What does hiring really cost you?
Compare in 10 seconds what your hires cost via job boards, a recruitment agency, social media, an ATS, or JobFunders — in euros and in your own time.
For a pure comparison, we only show the cost. on top of your normal labor costs (gross salary × wage cost factor, adjustable in the assumptions) — you bear that cost in every route.
Assumptions — feel free to adjust them
Defaults based on market averages in Flanders; gross annual salary = monthly salary × 13.92 (incl. holiday allowance and end-of-year bonus). Own HR hours per hire: see the time table below. JobFunders prices excl. VAT — view all formulas on the employer page. Would you prefer one specific alternative besides JobFunders? View the one-to-one comparisons.
And your own time? That counts too.
| Per recruitment | Job boards | Social media | Even with ATS | Selection agency | Interim agency | JobFunders |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drafting the vacancy & briefing | ±2 hours | ±3 hours | ±2 hours | ±2 hours | ±2 hours | ±1 hour — via Jobby |
| Sourcing & managing campaigns | 0h — passive waiting | ±8 hours | ±4pm | 0am | 0am | 0h — 24/7 automatic |
| Outreach & candidate follow-up | ±6 hours | ±6 hours | ±10h | ±2 hours | ±2 hours | ±2h — you chat directly |
| Assessing screening & pre-selection | ±8 hours — everything yourself | ±6 hours | ±8 hours | ±2 hours | ±2 hours | ±2 hours |
| Holding conversations | ±4 hours | ±4 hours | ±4 hours | ±4 hours | ±4 hours | ±4 hours |
| Total | ±20h | ±27h | ±40h | ±10h | ±10h | ±9h |
Conducting conversations remains your job everywhere — no tool should get in the way. Assessing a shortlist costs you roughly the same amount with every partner; the major time difference lies in sourcing, campaigns, and screening yourself.
How much does recruitment and selection cost in Flanders?
The costs of recruitment vary widely depending on the approach. recruitment agency typically charges 20 to 25% of the gross annual salary per hire — for a profile of €3,750 gross per month, that quickly amounts to €10,000 to €13,000 per hired candidate. interim agency works with a coefficient of approximately 2 on the gross salary for the duration of the interim period, often followed by a takeover fee. Job boards costs typically around €990 per vacancy for 60 days of visibility, without a guarantee of applications. And whoever the full does it yourself with an ATS pays €60 to 300+ per month for licenses — excluding sourcing, which then falls entirely on their own HR hours.
Those in-house hours are the most underestimated cost: sourcing, outreach, follow-up, and screening add up to around 40 hours per hire when recruiting in-house. Multiply that by an internal HR cost of €50 per hour, and the "free" channel suddenly turns out to cost €2,000 per hire — on top of the advertisements.
JobFunders takes a different approach: our AI recruiter Jobby actively searches talent pools of 260,000+ candidates 24/7, automatically screens based on your criteria, and delivers screened candidates directly to your dashboard — from €1,500 per year with a match guarantee, or €100 per approved candidate without a subscription. Calculate it yourself above using your figures, or test my vacancy for free for a real job vacancy.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a recruitment agency cost?
Typically 20 to 251% of the gross annual salary per hire. With a salary of €3,750 per month (€52,200 gross per year incl. bonuses), you therefore pay €10,000 to €13,000 per hired candidate — and again per profile.
How much does an interim agency cost?
A traditional interim agency charges a coefficient of approximately 2 to 2.2 on the gross salary for the entire interim period, including sourcing and administration. If you wish to hire the candidate permanently afterwards, a takeover fee is often added.
What does a bad hire cost?
A wrong hire costs an average of around €30,000 per year in wages, guidance, productivity loss, and rehiring. Read all about it in our Handbook for Flemish SMEs.
Can I also start with JobFunders on an interim basis?
Yes. Jobby finds and screens the candidate; through payrolling with an interim partner, you then work at a low coefficient (typically around 1.6) instead of the classic all-in interim rate. So you pay the JobFunders matching price plus the interim payrolling — together usually significantly below a classic interim invoice.
Where do the numbers in this calculator come from?
The default values are market averages for Flanders; the JobFunders prices are our actual formulas. Do you find an assumption too high or too low? Adjust them under "Assumptions" — the calculation uses your figures in real time.
Don't just calculate it — test it for free
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From €1,500/year or €100 per match · Match guarantee included · No fee · No mandatory contract
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