How Much Does Recruitment Really Cost in Ireland in 2026?

Ask an Irish recruitment agency what a hire costs and you'll usually hear a percentage: 15%, 20%, sometimes 25% of first-year salary. Percentages sound painless — until you do the multiplication.

The percentage problem

On a €45,000 role — a mid-level position in most sectors — a 15% fee is €6,750. At 20% it's €9,000. At 25%, €11,250. And because the fee scales with salary, the agency earns more when your payroll costs more. Their incentive isn't to find you the best-value candidate; it's to place the highest-salary candidate you'll accept.

That's before the hidden costs: most percentage agencies offer no meaningful guarantee, so if the placement falls through after the rebate period, you're paying twice.

What hiring actually needs to cost

The job of recruitment splits into two parts: reach (getting your vacancy in front of the right people) and selection (screening, interviewing and closing). Percentage fees bundle both and price them off your payroll. Flat-fee models price them off the work.

• If your role attracts applicants, you mainly need reach. A flat-fee advertising package — €499–€599 with us — puts one vacancy on Jobs.ie, IrishJobs, Indeed, CV-Library, LinkedIn and Google for Jobs for 28 days, with CVs coming straight to you. Across our Irish adverts to date, an advert has averaged 33 applications.
• If your role is hard to fill, you need selection too. A managed flat-fee search — our Guaranteed Hire runs €1,800–€4,300 depending on salary band — gives you a dedicated recruiter, and the fee doesn't move whether your hire accepts at the bottom or top of the range.

The comparison on a real role

Take that €45,000 role. An agency at 15% wants €6,750. Guaranteed Hire at the Professional tier is €2,300 flat — a saving of €4,450 — and it includes a 100% money-back guarantee if the role isn't filled within the agreed window. If the role is one you could fill from applications alone, advertising at €499 makes the saving over €6,000.

Don't forget the cost of the empty seat

An unfilled role costs real money every week — lost output, overtime cover, stretched teams. Whatever route you choose, speed matters: our adverts go live within 24 hours, and managed searches deliver a first shortlist within 3–5 working days.

See advertising packages · See Guaranteed Hire pricing