Uncover the Hidden Costs of Hiring Top Talent

  • by Jessica Burns
  • Published Date: Feb. 17, 2025
  • Modified Date: Oct. 29, 2026
Illustration of a person with a pencil, a laptop displaying a calendar, a calculator, and a salary document with coins.

Top talent comes at a premium and is more costly than ever in today’s competitive market. Hiring is expensive and can be full of hidden costs from advertising open positions to interviewing, reference checks, training, and more. Recouping the costs invested in a new hire to break even can take more than six months, so it’s critical to hire effectively and cost-efficiently.

Whether you’re hiring to expand your workforce, meet increased demand, or fill roles open due to turnover, optimize the process by partnering with a staffing company like Express Employment Professionals.  

The True Cost of Hiring

Hiring includes direct and indirect expenses, both tangible and intangible. The average cost per hire is nearly $4,700, according to the Society for Human Resource Management, but for roles that are in higher demand or require more specialized skills, that cost quickly rises.

Direct Costs of Hiring Indirect Costs of Hiring
Recruiting Lost productivity
Advertising Disruption
Interviewing Turnover
Onboarding Impact on morale
Training Impact on team synergy

Between the time it takes to recruit, onboard, and train a new employee, hiring the wrong person could cost up to 150% of their annual salary. If the average salary at a company is $50,000, that means it could cost up to $75,000 to replace an employee who leaves. Multiply that number by the average yearly turnover, and it can add up quickly. Find the true cost of turnover at your company through Express’ Turnover Calculator.

Value of Partnering with a Staffing Company

Partnering with a staffing company can ease the burden of hiring and allow you to focus on what you do best: managing your business. A staffing company can take on every step of recruiting active and passive job candidates, evaluating their skills, verifying past employment, and matching the right candidate that fits your needs.

Staffing companies can save your company time and money by minimizing expenses associated with training new hires, freeing up valuable time, and executing employee-management-related tasks. A common misconception is that partnering with a staffing company is expensive. The American Staffing Association outlines the components that factor into a staffing company’s bill rate and how net profit is calculated.

If a staffing company pays an average hourly rate, for example, $17, it would have to mark up that pay rate by 51.5% to account for operating expenses, legally mandated labor costs, like unemployment and workers’ compensation, and the industry’s national average net profit rate of 3.3%. This results in an hourly bill rate of $25.76.

Partnering with a staffing company is not just cost-efficient but is a strategic investment for your business’ success.

Partner with Express—A Leader in Staffing

At Express Employment Professionals, we’re in the business of people. From job seekers to client companies, Express helps people thrive and businesses grow. Our international network of franchises offers localized staffing solutions to the communities they serve across the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand, employing more than 11 million since its inception. For more information, visit ExpressPros.com/Employers or ExpressPros.ca/Employers.


Photo of adult woman with dark curly hair wearing a yellow top and cardigan working on a laptop at a desk in a snowy outdoor landscape; text: “Hiring Is Lonely” and “Express is here to support you through the recruiting and hiring process.” with logo “Express Employment Professionals” and button “Connect with Express”.

Jessica Burns is the Senior Content Marketing Specialist at Express Employment International with nearly a decade of content strategy, digital marketing, and storytelling experience. Her passion is creating content focused on professional development, workplace trends, and leadership, helping readers understand challenges and opportunities shaping the workforce. An award-winning writer, she enjoys turning complex topics into practical, engaging content that inspires. 

Leadership Recent Posts

Close