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Recruiter commission calculator.Fair for them. Profitable for you.
Model a commission scheme and see what a recruiter earns, what their desk costs and what it makes the business, at their billings and above or below them.
The recruiter
Commission scheme
Each rate applies to annual billings from its threshold up to the next one
What the desk costs
Payroll taxes, pension and benefits
Office, software, data, job boards, management
9.6% of billings. Total pay $79,000.
The desk makes $143,100 a year after pay, employer costs and overhead (57.2% of billings). It breaks even at $80,500.
| Base salary + commission | $79,000 |
|---|---|
| Employment cost | $86,900 |
| Desk cost with overhead | $106,900 |
| Billings ÷ total pay | 3.2×Meets the 3× rule |
| If they bill | Commission | Desk profit |
|---|---|---|
| $125,000 | $1,500 | $42,850 |
| $187,500 | $11,500 | $94,350 |
| $250,000 | $24,000 | $143,100 |
| $312,500 | $36,500 | $191,850 |
| $375,000 | $49,000 | $240,600 |
How commission and desk profit are worked out.
Commission. Each band’s rate applies to billings from its threshold up to the next band’s threshold. For example, with bands at 90,000 and 150,000, billings of 180,000 earn 10% of the 60,000 between 90,000 and 150,000, plus 20% of the 30,000 above 150,000: 12,000 in total. In a retrospective scheme, the highest band reached applies to all billings instead.
Desk cost. Base salary plus commission, plus employer costs on that pay (payroll taxes, pension and benefits), plus the overhead you allocate to each desk.
Desk profit is billings less desk cost. Break-even is the lowest billing level at which profit reaches zero, found exactly rather than by trial and error, because commission rises in a straight line within each band.
The table under the results shows commission and profit at half, three-quarters, one-and-a-quarter and one-and-a-half times the billings you entered, so you can see how the scheme behaves in a slow year or a record one.
How is recruiter commission usually structured?
Most schemes pay a percentage of billings above a threshold, often set at two to four times base salary so the business covers the recruiter’s cost first. Rates commonly start around 10% and rise in bands to 20–30% or more for top billers. Some schemes pay on billings collected rather than placed, and many are calculated quarterly.
What is the 3× rule in recruitment?
A rule of thumb that a recruiter should bill at least three times what they’re paid: a third covers their pay, a third covers overhead and a third is profit. The calculator compares billings with total pay (base salary plus commission). Agencies with high overhead or low fees may need a higher multiple.
What’s the difference between a banded and a retrospective scheme?
In a banded scheme, each rate only applies to billings within its band, like income tax. In a retrospective scheme, reaching a band pays its rate on every billing from zero, which creates a big jump at each threshold. Retrospective schemes motivate people near a threshold but can make a desk less profitable just above it. Tick the box to compare.
What overhead should I include per desk?
Everything a desk costs apart from the recruiter’s own pay: a share of rent, software and data subscriptions, job boards, phones, travel, marketing, and the management and back-office time that supports them. Divide your annual non-salary costs by the number of billing recruiters for a starting figure.
Is commission paid annually?
This calculator works on annual figures to keep the comparison simple. If your scheme resets its threshold monthly or quarterly, commission can come out higher or lower than the annual figure depending on how evenly someone bills through the year.
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