The Shifting Landscape of Recruiting Costs: What Operators Need to Know

Recruiting and staffing costs in the United States restaurant sector continue to evolve as wage floors rise, applicant shortages persist, and compliance requirements increase. Between 2020 and 2025, both temporary staffing markup rates and permanent placement recruiting fees shifted significantly, shaping the predictable fee structures projected for 2026. Understanding these benchmarks is essential for operators managing high turnover roles, specialized back-of-house talent shortages, and competitive front-of-house retention challenges. This report provides a quantified and qualified breakdown of U.S. recruiting and staffing expenses, grounded in multi-source, publicly available industry data. All figures reflect validated ranges observed throughout 2024–2025 and extend logically into 2026 conditions.

SECTION 1 — TEMPORARY STAFFING MARKUPS (U.S. 2024–2025 → PROJECTED 2026)

Temporary staffing markup represents the percentage added to a worker’s hourly wage to cover payroll burden, unemployment insurance, workers’ compensation, ACA compliance, background checks, onboarding, administrative overhead, and agency margin. National data from 2024–2025 provide a detailed picture of how this range behaves across industries, with restaurant operations consistently landing above the national average.

Observed National Range: 20%–75%

The lower band (20–25%) is almost exclusively found in predictable, low-risk, high-volume placements with minimal onboarding. These tend to be long-term repetitive roles where the agency’s administrative risk is low.

The upper band (60–75%) appears in emergency fill situations, high-risk assignments, positions requiring certifications, or short-duration specialized placements. These markups reflect increased insurance exposure, rapid-response labor requirements, or compliance-intensive onboarding.

These bands reflect variations in workers’ compensation rates, liability exposure, wage thresholds, and workforce availability.

SECTION 2 — PERMANENT PLACEMENT FEES (DIRECT HIRE)

Permanent placement recruiting fees represent the percentage of the candidate’s first-year salary paid to the recruiting firm upon successful hire. This fee covers sourcing, recruitment marketing, applicant management, screening, scheduling, interviewing, reference checking, background verification, and retention guarantees.

Observed National Range: 12%–35%

At the lowest end (12–18%), fees appear primarily in:

• High-volume, entry-level bulk hiring
• Low-skill roles with abundant applicant pools
• Budget agencies or limited-service recruiters

Most professional hospitality recruiters do not operate in this tier, particularly for BOH leadership.

Weighted National Average: 18%–25%

This is the most documented and stable national range for recruiting fees. It covers:

• Supervisors
• Line managers
• Kitchen leaders
• FOH/BOH shift leadership roles

This range appears consistently across staffing studies, recruiter commission analyses, and national agency reports.

Restaurant Sector Typical: 20%–28%

Restaurants often require:

• Faster candidate sourcing timelines
• Multi-channel outreach
• Behavioral screening
• Higher candidate failure rates
• More replacement guarantees

This pushes typical restaurant fees above the national baseline into the 20–28% range.

Premium and Executive Search: 30%–35%

Roles falling into this band include:

• Executive chefs
• Regional or multi-unit leaders
• Directors of operations
• Complex concept development roles

 

These positions require lengthier searches, limited applicant pools, and extensive vetting.

SECTION 3 — TEMP-TO-PERM (HYBRID STAFFING MODELS)

Temp-to-perm staffing models allow employers to evaluate workers on assignment before committing to permanent hire.

Conversion Fee Range: 10%–20%

If a restaurant hires a worker before the required minimum hours set by the staffing firm are met, a conversion fee is applied. This fee compensates the agency for sourcing, onboarding, payroll administration, and the expected duration of the assignment.

Effective Total Cost Range: 25%–45%

When combining:

• hourly temp costs
• payroll burden
• agency overhead
• early conversion fees

 

the effective total expense often exceeds that of direct hire, especially for longer evaluation periods.

SECTION 4 — ROLE-SPECIFIC RESTAURANT BENCHMARKS

These benchmarks reflect 2024–2025 data aggregated across BOH and FOH categories.

Back of House (BOH)

Line Cooks, Prep Cooks, Dishwashers

Temp markup: 35–50%

Direct hire: 18–25%

Sous Chef

Temp markup: 40–55%

Direct hire: 22–28%

Executive Chef

Temp markup: 45–60%

Direct hire: 25–35%

Front of House (FOH)

Servers and Hosts

Temp markup: 30–45%

Direct hire: 15–22%

Restaurant Manager

Temp markup: 40–50%

Direct hire: 20–28%

 

General Manager

Temp markup: 45–60%

Direct hire: 25–35%

 

=

SECTION 5 — SUMMARY TABLE

Temporary Staffing

• Low: 20–25%
• Typical: 30–40%
• Restaurant: 35–50%
• High: 45–60%
• Extreme: 60–75%

 

Permanent Placement

• Low: 12–18%
• Typical: 18–25%
• Restaurant: 20–28%
• Premium: 30–35%

Temp-to-Perm

• Conversion Fee: 10–20%
• Effective Cost: 25–45%

 

REFERENCES

Advance Partners. (2024). Staffing agency bill rate calculator: How to price your staffing services. https://www.advancepartners.com/calculate-how-to-price-your-staffing-services/

 

PerformSS. (2025). Breaking down staffing markups: What you’re really paying for. https://www.performss.com/blog/breaking-down-staffing-markups-what-you’re-really-paying-for/

 

SecondTalent. (2025). Staffing agency fee structures explained.

https://www.secondtalent.com/resources/staffing-agency-fee-structures/

 

The Resource Company. (2025). Average staffing agency markup in 2025.

https://www.theresource.com/2025/10/27/average-staffing-agency-markup-in-2025/

 

PACE Staffing Network. (2025). Making cents of your staffing agency invoice.

https://pacestaffing.com/2025/02/10/making-cents-of-your-staffing-agency-invoice/

 

U.S. Talent. (2024). Permanent vs temporary staffing: Pros, cons, and costs.

https://usetalent.com/permanent-vs-temporary-staffing/

 

Manatal. (2025). Recruiter commission explained: 2025 complete guide.

https://www.manatal.com/blog/recruiter-commission/

 

IQ Partners. (2025). How do recruitment agencies get paid?

https://www.iqpartners.com/blog/how-do-recruitment-agencies-get-paid/

 

TalentLeverage. (2025). How much does it cost to hire a recruiter? 2025 guide.

https://talentleverage.com/resources/how-much-does-it-cost-to-hire-a-recruiter-2025/

 

Upwork. (2024). How much do staffing agencies charge?

https://www.upwork.com/resources/how-much-do-staffing-agencies-charge/