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How it works

Cost of a bad hire calculator

A bad hire costs you the pay for work you couldn't use, the money spent recruiting and training them, the manager time lost while things went wrong and the cost of hiring again. This calculator adds those up from your own numbers.

Try it on a real hire that didn't work out. Every line of the breakdown shows its working, so you can check it or change it.

The figures filled in are examples so you can see how it works. Replace them with your own numbers. Nothing you type leaves this page.

Their pay

Your share of payroll taxes, benefits and insurance as a % of pay. Leave at 0 if you don't know it.

Time in the role

Coaching, warnings and notice, if any.

If about half of what they did was usable, enter 50.

Hiring and training

Job ads, agency fee, background checks.

Fallout

Extra supervision, fixing mistakes, paperwork, the exit itself.

Severance or other payments when they left.

Overtime to cover the gap, scrap, refunds, a lost customer.

Your estimate

Estimated cost of this bad hire

$12,877

As a share of their annual pay
28.6%
Weeks on your payroll
10
Pay for work you couldn't use$865 a week × 10 weeks × 50% not usable
$4,327
Recruiting the bad hire
$3,000
Onboarding and training40 hrs × $30
$1,200
Manager time lost30 hrs × $45
$1,350
Recruiting the replacement
$3,000
Exit costs
$0
Other costs
$0
Total
$12,877

Estimates for planning only, based on the numbers you entered.

How this is calculated

Every figure comes from the numbers you enter. Nothing is filled in from averages or outside data.

Weekly pay cost
annual pay ÷ 52 × (1 + payroll costs %)

For an hourly worker, annual pay is the hourly wage × hours per week × 52.

Pay for work you couldn't use
weekly pay cost × (weeks until spotted + weeks until they left) × (100% − share of work you could keep)
Onboarding and training
training hours × hourly cost of the trainer
Manager time lost
manager hours lost × manager's hourly cost
Total
unusable pay + cost to recruit them + training + manager time + cost to recruit the replacement + exit costs + other costs
Share of annual pay
total ÷ annual pay × 100

The total has no multiplier or industry figure added to it. Lost sales and the strain on the rest of the team are hard to price, so they count only if you enter an amount under Other costs.

How to make the next hire stick

  • Write down what went wrong

    Before you post the job again, note what the problem was and when you first saw it. A skills gap, missed shifts and a job that didn't match the posting each need a different fix.

  • Screen for the thing that failed

    If the last person couldn't run the software, test it in the interview. If they missed shifts, ask about their commute and past attendance, and ask references about it directly.

  • Spot problems sooner

    Unusable pay grows with every week a problem runs on. Set clear expectations for the first 30 days and hold a check-in at the end of week two so issues come up early.

  • Read your recruiting terms

    If an agency placed the person, check your agreement for replacement or refund terms before you start a new search. Our guide to how contingency recruitment works lists the questions to ask before you sign.

Want help filling the role?

Send us the role, the location and the pay range. You pay a recruitment fee only when a successful candidate is hired, subject to agreed terms.

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