Free tool
Cost-per-hire calculator
Enter your hiring costs and see what each new hire actually costs you - plus the savings from AI CV screening. Inputs are editable and the URL updates so you can share the result.
What's included in cost per hire?
Cost per hire is total spend on filling a role divided by the number of hires. It includes three layers:
- Direct costs - agency fees, job-board spend, sponsored ads, background checks, referral bonuses.
- Soft costs - recruiter time (screening, scheduling, calls) and interview-panel time. Usually the biggest hidden cost.
- Overhead - ATS licences, careers-site hosting, sourcing tools. Constant regardless of screening method, so the calculator keeps them out.
2026 benchmarks by industry
Median time-to-hire and top-decile teams. Sources: AIHR, Workable, HRBench, US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
| Industry | Median days | Top decile |
|---|---|---|
| Tech / engineering | 40–50 | 21 |
| Financial services | 40–45 | 22 |
| Healthcare / pharma | 49–67 | 35 |
| Hospitality / retail | < 30 | 14 |
| SaaS (US median) | 24 | 12 |
How to reduce cost per hire
Six levers ranked by impact. Full breakdown with per-lever ROI math in how to reduce time to hire.
- Automate CV screening30–50% of total cycle time typically goes to screening. AI cuts per-CV review from ~4 min to ~5 s.
- Kill unnecessary interview roundsEach round adds 3–7 days. Async first-round can remove one full stage.
- Pre-built talent pipelinesSilver-medalist re-engagement and boolean-sourced pools shave 5–15 days on repeat roles.
- Structured schedulingAsync links plus pre-booked panel blocks cut 2–4 days of back-and-forth.
- Faster offer authorisationApprove the offer before the final interview, not after. 1–3 days back.
- Reduce ghosted-offer riskWeekly touchpoints in the last 2 weeks keep the candidate warm.
Frequently asked questions
What counts as cost per hire?
Total money spent on filling a role divided by the number of hires. Direct costs (agency fees, job boards, ads) plus soft costs (recruiter time, interview-panel time). SHRM puts the average at £3,000–£5,000 in 2026 but industry ranges vary widely.
How is the AI-assisted number calculated?
We assume the manual screening step (minutes per CV × CVs per role × recruiter cost) drops to about 4% of manual time - roughly 5 seconds of AI parsing per CV plus 15 minutes reviewing the ranked shortlist per role. Every other cost (agencies, boards, interview panels) is unchanged. Editable via the inputs on the left.
Is this an SHRM-standard cost-per-hire formula?
Close but simplified. SHRM includes some overheads (systems, training, sourcing tooling) as internal costs - we treat those as constant across manual vs AI screening because they do not change based on the screening method.
How reliable is the 4% number for AI screening?
It reflects real SwiftShortlist production logs on a mid-sized sample. Your mileage varies with CV formatting and role complexity, but the ceiling is consistently a 20–30× time reduction on the screening step. Change the minutes-per-CV input to model your own case.
Can I share my result?
Yes. The URL updates as you change inputs - copy the share link and send it to anyone. They see the same numbers with the same inputs. No sign-up needed.
Do I need to sign up to use the calculator?
No. The calculator is completely free and requires no email or account. If you want to actually try AI CV screening on real CVs, the free SwiftShortlist plan covers 3 jobs and 50 CVs per job with no credit card.
See the savings on your own CVs
The free SwiftShortlist plan covers 3 jobs and 50 CVs per job - enough to test AI CV screening on a real role before committing.