An in-house recruiter costs money every month, even when there is nothing to hire for. An agency, in the most common model, only costs money when it places someone. So the choice is a sum of fixed against variable costs. IPMERC worked it out: the break-even point is around five to seven placements a year.
What a recruiter costs
A corporate recruiter in the Netherlands earns around €41,000 a year on average; for a mid-level to senior profile €45,000 to €55,000 is a fair working figure. Add about 30% employer costs, plus a few thousand euros for an applicant tracking system, job boards and a sourcing platform. All in, an in-house recruiter costs €65,000 to €80,000 a year.
What an agency costs
On a no-cure-no-pay basis, Dutch recruitment agencies usually charge 22 to 32% of gross annual salary. Retained search is 20 to 30%, part of it up front. At a salary of €55,000 and a 25% fee, that is €13,750 per placement.
The break-even point
Divide the fixed cost by the fee. At €75,000 a year and €13,750 per placement, break-even is five to six placements. At a low fee it is six to seven, at a high fee four to five. Only placements that would otherwise have gone through an agency count.
Above that volume the in-house recruiter wins clearly. In the last broad Dutch benchmark (measured in 2020), a hire at corporates cost €3,818, with a recruiter handling 20 vacancies on average. Below break-even it flips: hire three people a year with a recruiter on staff and you pay about €25,000 per hire.
Paying twice
The most expensive outcome is in scarce technical profiles. 87% of employers with hiring problems get too few applicants, UWV reported in autumn 2025. An in-house recruiter changes little about a candidate who doesn't respond. If the vacancy goes to an agency after months of trying internally, you pay the salary and the fee.
What you can do
- Work out how many placements a year are realistic before you hire a recruiter. Below five to seven, the fixed cost exceeds the fees you save.
- Above ten to fifteen placements a year, the in-house recruiter almost always wins on cost per hire.
- For scarce profiles, budget for both routes. Don't treat them as alternatives.
- Use your own figures. The benchmark predates the wage surge, and amounts are higher now.
Sources: IPMERC, What the in-house recruiter costs (August 2026); Intelligence Group, Compagnon and Werf&, benchmark measured in 2020; UWV, autumn 2025.
Pearson & Partners locates and qualifies candidates for the roles an in-house recruiter doesn't fill.