# Metix AI vs a recruiting agency: the fee versus the booked interview

Canonical: https://metix.ai/compare/metix-vs-recruiting-agency

SHRM's 2016 guidance puts contingency fees at 20 to 25 percent of first-year cash. On a $120,000 hire that is $24,000 to $30,000, a derivation. Metix AI prices the booked interview at $49 to $299 a month. When the agency earns the fee, and when the middle meter fits.
Head-to-head with a contingency/retained agency. SHRM 18 July 2016: contingency 20–25% of first-year cash, retained about 33%. Metix AI prices a booked interview-ready candidate at $49 to $299/mo; credit spent only on delivery; 14-day trial with 3 New Roles and 12 Credits. When the fee is the right buy (executive, confidential, close). Checked 19 August 2026.
## FAQ

**How much does a recruiting agency charge?**

SHRM's 18 July 2016 guidance, by Mark Feffer, puts contingency fees "in the area of 20 percent to 25 percent" of first-year cash compensation (salary, bonus, and signing bonus), billed only if the firm fills the job. The same article puts retained executive search at about 33 percent. Treat 30 percent as market convention, not a documented standard. Dollar columns on this page are labeled derivations. Opened 19 August 2026.

**Is Metix AI a recruiting agency?**

No. Metix AI is a hiring platform with a delivery team behind it. You employ the person. There is no placement fee as a share of first-year cash. A credit is spent only when a qualified, interested, interview-ready candidate is booked, after outreach you approved and a delivery-lead review of the shortlist.

**When is Metix AI cheaper than an agency?**

On sticker, yes: plans run $49 to $299 a month, and a year of Scale is $3,588 billed monthly or $3,228 on annual billing, both derivations from the $299 and $269 list prices. That is an incomplete comparison. A failed contingency search costs nothing; a quiet Metix month still bills the plan, with credits unspent. The fee includes closing craft; the credit buys a booked interview. Units differ.

**Does Metix AI guarantee a hire?**

No. A credit is spent when an interested, interview-ready candidate is booked, not when an offer is signed. Interviews, verification, and the hiring decision stay with the employer.