The Recruiting Collective

Recruiting Tools & Calculators

Free tools to help you track, measure, and optimize your recruiting process. Calculate costs, understand metrics, and make data-driven hiring decisions.

Cost Per Hire Calculator

Total Recruiting Costs
$0.00
Cost Per Hire
$0.00

Essential Recruiting Metrics Guide

Understanding and tracking these key metrics will help you optimize your hiring process, reduce costs, and improve candidate quality.

1 Cost Per Hire (CPH)

Formula: (Internal Recruiting Costs + External Recruiting Costs) ÷ Total Number of Hires

This metric measures the total cost to hire a new employee. Track this over time to identify cost-saving opportunities.

What to Track:
  • Recruiter time and salaries
  • Job board and advertising costs
  • Agency fees
  • Interview and assessment costs
  • Onboarding and training expenses

2 Time to Fill

Formula: Days from Job Posting Date to Offer Acceptance Date

Measures how long it takes to fill an open position. Shorter time-to-fill reduces lost productivity and improves candidate experience.

Industry Average: 36-42 days
Best Practice: Track by role type and department to identify bottlenecks

3 Time to Hire

Formula: Days from First Contact with Candidate to Offer Acceptance

Measures the efficiency of your interview process. Faster hiring improves candidate experience and reduces drop-off rates.

Target: Less than 14 days from first contact
Tip: Streamline interview stages and reduce wait times between rounds

4 Source Quality (Source of Hire)

Metric: Percentage of Hires by Source Channel

Identifies which channels produce the best candidates. Focus resources on high-performing sources.

Common Sources:
  • Employee referrals (usually highest quality)
  • Job boards (Indeed, LinkedIn, etc.)
  • Company website/careers page
  • Recruiting agencies
  • Social media

5 Offer Acceptance Rate

Formula: (Accepted Offers ÷ Total Offers Extended) × 100

Measures how attractive your offers are. Low acceptance rates may indicate compensation issues or poor candidate experience.

Industry Average: 70-85%
Warning Sign: Below 60% suggests need to review compensation or process

6 Candidate Conversion Rate (Funnel Metrics)

Formula: (Candidates at Each Stage ÷ Candidates in Previous Stage) × 100

Tracks progression through your hiring funnel: Applications → Screenings → Interviews → Offers → Hires

Typical Funnel:
  • Applications to Screen: 20-30%
  • Screen to Interview: 40-50%
  • Interview to Offer: 20-30%
  • Offer to Hire: 70-85%

7 Quality of Hire

Metric: Performance reviews, retention, productivity, cultural fit

Measures the long-term success of hires. Track performance at 90 days, 6 months, and 1 year.

Key Indicators:
  • 90-day retention rate
  • Manager satisfaction scores
  • Performance review ratings
  • Time to productivity
  • Cultural alignment feedback

8 Applicant to Interview Ratio

Formula: Total Applications ÷ Interviews Conducted

Indicates job posting quality and targeting. Lower ratios suggest better-targeted postings and higher applicant quality.

Target: 5-10 applicants per interview (industry dependent)
Tip: Clear job descriptions reduce unqualified applications

📊 Tracking Tips

  • • Track consistently: Measure the same metrics monthly or quarterly
  • • Benchmark: Compare your metrics against industry averages
  • • Segment data: Break down metrics by role, department, and source
  • • Set goals: Establish targets for each metric and track progress
  • • Review regularly: Monthly metric reviews help identify trends early
  • • Automate where possible: Use your ATS to automatically track key metrics