How Much Do Executive Search Firms Charge?

Hiring a CEO, CFO or other senior leader through a search firm means agreeing to a fee before you meet a single candidate. Proposals use different terms, and two quotes that look alike can end up costing very different amounts once expenses and adjustments arrive.

This guide explains how executive search firms charge, what the fee is calculated on, and what tends to appear on the invoice. It works through one hypothetical hire under each fee model, sets out what eight firms and records publish about their fees, and ends with the questions to settle before you sign. If you are still deciding whether to use a search firm at all, executive search vs. in-house recruiting compares the two.

DisclosureJake Jorgovan co-founded Alpha Apex Group, which is mentioned in this article.

What executive search usually costs

Two global search firms describe their pricing in annual reports filed with the SEC, and both use the same model: a retainer of about one-third of the hire's estimated first-year compensation. Korn Ferry specifies cash compensation, and Heidrick & Struggles' report says this level is typical of retained search firms generally.

Korn Ferry's annual report (opens in a new tab) for the year to April 2026 says its search fees are "generally one-third of the estimated first-year cash compensation of the placed candidate", plus a percentage of the fee for indirect expenses. It also bills an "uptick" fee when the final package is higher than the estimate. Heidrick & Struggles' report for 2024 (opens in a new tab) describes the same structure. Its retainer is about a third of estimated first-year compensation, indirect expenses are a percentage of the retainer "with certain dollar limits per search", and both are billed in thirds over the first three months.

Other firms' fee guides give a range rather than a single figure. CJPI and KiTalent both put typical retained fees at around 25% to 35% of first-year compensation, and KiTalent calls a third "a practical reference point" and "a common norm, not a universal rule". On a package of $300,000, a third is $100,000 before expenses.

What makes one search cost more than another

Fees also vary with the search itself. KiTalent lists seniority, function scarcity, geography, language requirements, relocation, stakeholder complexity and confidentiality as factors that shape the fee, and says a regional CFO search in a well-defined market will usually be simpler than a global CEO search. Scope matters too. Some proposals cover identification and placement only; others add market mapping, assessment, compensation advice, referencing and help after the hire. KiTalent's point is that proposals often differ more in what the fee includes than in the percentage, so ask each firm to list the work its fee covers.

Four ways search firms charge

The fee model decides when you pay and what happens if the search fails. Fixed pricing is a separate choice that can sit on retained terms: The Good Search, for example, runs fully retained searches for a flat fee. The firms' figures for each model are in the table of published fees further down.

Retained search

Retained search pays for the work of the search as well as the result. Firms describe it as exclusive, with the fee split into thirds. CJPI describes thirds paid on instruction, on the shortlist and on selection, or after set periods. Cowen Partners describes a typical schedule of a third to begin, a third 60 days in and the last on hire. The Good Search publishes its own: thirds at the start, at 30 days and at 60 days. The AESC (opens in a new tab), the professional association for executive search firms, says its member firms work "on a retained and exclusive basis".

Contingency search

Contingency search costs nothing unless you hire through the firm. Cowen Partners and Talentfoot both publish contingency ranges, shown in the table below.

Hybrid search

Hybrid search sits between the two. The Good Search describes a modest upfront retainer with the balance due on placement, typically $8,000 to $15,000 upfront and 20% to 25% at close, and Talentfoot calls its version "engaged" search, at 25% to 33% in total.

Flat-fee retained search

A flat fee separates the fee from the candidate's pay. The Good Search argues that a percentage gives a firm a reason to push the package up. It offers a flat fee that "doesn't increase if a candidate is paid more" and says its fees are in the same range as a third of total cash compensation. CJPI also notes that "Sometimes firms will offer a fixed fee" so clients can budget and avoid "fee-creep". A public record shows how this can be negotiated. In 2014 the University of Nebraska said (opens in a new tab) that Isaacson, Miller, whose standard fee was a third of first-year compensation, had agreed to a flat $130,000 for its presidential search, plus direct expenses and $14,300 for indirect expenses.

What the percentage is calculated on

"Percentage of salary" is not a separate fee model; it is the base the fee is calculated on, and it differs between firms. This is where proposals that quote the same percentage stop being comparable.

• Cash compensation or base salary. Korn Ferry and The Good Search describe the base as first-year cash compensation. KiTalent says some firms use base salary only, while others use total cash compensation, which may include bonuses and other first-year cash payments. Ask the firm to list every component it includes.
• Equity varies. KiTalent says equity "is not automatically included" and should only count if the engagement letter says so.
• An estimate first, then a true-up. The fee is set on an estimated package at the start. Korn Ferry bills an uptick when the final package is higher; Heidrick says it is often authorized to bill a third of the excess.

A retained proposal should state its compensation basis, treatment of equity and adjustment terms. On a $300,000 base with a $60,000 target bonus, a third of base is $100,000 and a third of base plus bonus is $120,000. That is a $20,000 difference between two proposals that both say "one-third".

A worked example: one hypothetical hire under each model

Take a hypothetical CFO search. The estimated first-year cash compensation is $360,000: a $300,000 base and a $60,000 target bonus. The candidate you hire negotiates $390,000. The figures below apply the fee terms described above; the 10% indirect-expense charge is an assumption for illustration, since neither annual report gives its percentage. The flat-fee row assumes a fixed professional fee of $120,000, with expenses set by the contract.

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The article’s hypothetical CFO search: $360,000 estimated cash compensation, $390,000 agreed. Retained includes an assumed $12,000 indirect charge; other expense terms differ. Travel and other direct expenses are excluded. These are examples, not quoted prices.

These figures compare fees for the same hypothetical package. If a contingency or hybrid search fails, the lower bill still leaves the CFO role unfilled. A retained fee pays for the search work and is generally owed even without a hire; it does not guarantee a CFO, and the client usually appoints one firm exclusively. Talentfoot lists retained search as the default model for a CFO, so the contingency row illustrates the arithmetic rather than a typical CFO arrangement.

What appears on an executive search invoice

Expect up to four kinds of line on a retained search invoice. Each one belongs in the engagement letter before the search starts.

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The approach described in this article, shown as a visual guide.

1. Retainer installments. Usually three equal amounts. Heidrick bills them over the first three months; other firms tie them to milestones.
2. Indirect or administrative expenses. Korn Ferry and Heidrick both describe a charge for indirect expenses set as a percentage; the Nebraska contract's indirect charge was 11% of the professional fee. Labels vary: Christian & Timbers (opens in a new tab) says some firms charge an administration fee for costs such as research databases, background checks, travel and assessment tools, invoiced "either upfront or upon completion of project expenses". Ask exactly what each charge covers.
3. Direct expenses. Travel, assessments, background checks and advertising may be billed separately. Ask whether each is included in the fee, reimbursed at cost or covered by another charge.
4. An uptick or final adjustment. The true-up when the agreed package differs from the estimate.

Ask for an estimate of direct expenses at the start and set a budget the firm must ask permission before exceeding.

What search firms publish about their fees

The table includes firms' general descriptions of search pricing, their own published terms and one dated contract. General ranges are guidance, not quotations for your search.

The firms agree on the shape more than the number. Each one here that says how retained fees are billed describes stages, usually thirds, and the published percentages cluster around a third. Heidrick filed to end its SEC reporting in December 2025 (opens in a new tab) after a merger, so the table uses its 2024 annual report.

Fees in the UK and Europe

CJPI, a UK firm, says executive search fees in the UK, America and Europe "are typically structured as retained fees", at around 25% to 35% of estimated first-year compensation, paid in thirds. The annual reports of Korn Ferry and Heidrick & Struggles describe the same one-third model.

Guarantees, minimums and what can be negotiated

The percentage is only one of the terms worth comparing.

• Guarantees. Talentfoot says retained engagements typically carry a 6 to 12 month guarantee and contingency replacement windows are often 30 to 90 days. KiTalent notes that most guarantees are "replacement-based rather than refund-based": a qualifying departure may lead to a replacement search under the contract's conditions instead of a refund.
• Minimum fees. The Good Search says top-tier firms set minimums of $75,000 to $100,000, and has its own (in the table above), so a third of a modest package may not be the fee you are quoted.
• Payment timing. The Good Search's FAQ (opens in a new tab) says payment timing "is often more negotiable than the base percentage".
• Repeat hires. The same FAQ says traditional retained firms "charge an additional fee if you hire a 2nd candidate" from a search into a different role, while The Good Search hands clients its research so they can hire from it again at no additional cost. Ask any firm what a second hire from the same search costs.

The AESC Client Bill of Rights (opens in a new tab), which applies to its member firms, says the engagement terms "should be in writing", covering the scope, timing, "the fees and payment schedule", deliverables and terms such as guarantees, off-limits and conflicts.

Know the role before you pay for the search

A retained fee is paid for a search against a brief, so a vague brief is an expensive way to find out what you need. Before signing, be able to say what the person must achieve in their first year, what the package is, and what a strong candidate's record looks like.

I learned this hiring for my own companies. I went through several painful finance hires before I learned the function well enough to judge candidates. It was the same with operations. As I put it in a May 2025 interview (opens in a new tab), "my next COO or ops hire was awesome because I knew exactly like what it is I was looking for". The same applies when the hire goes through a search firm. The firm can map the market and assess candidates, but the decision about what the role needs is yours, and it is cheaper to make before the first installment than after the shortlist.

Questions to settle before you sign

Ask every firm on your shortlist the same questions, so the proposals can be compared line by line. The guide to choosing an executive search firm covers the rest of the selection.