Time-to-Fill Cost Calculator

Put a number on the cost of leaving a role open. Enter each role’s salary, the value it produces, and the days it has been open, and the workbook returns the net cost of the vacancy, the cost across every open role, and what hiring faster would save.

One Excel workbook that prices every open role and totals the cost

A working model, not a blank grid. You set two assumptions and list your open roles, the workbook returns the net cost of each vacancy and the total, and it opens on a worked example so the logic is clear before you change anything.

• Time-to-Fill Cost Calculator. Set working days per year and benefits as a percent of salary, then list each open role with its salary, a value multiplier, the days open, and any coverage cost. The workbook returns the role’s daily value, the value lost while it is empty, the loaded pay you are not spending, and the net cost of the vacancy, role by role with a running total.
• A board-ready summary, sourced benchmarks, and the method in plain English. A one-page Summary totals every open role, shows the average days open and the net cost per day, and estimates what cutting your time to fill would save. A Benchmark tab holds time-to-fill and cost-of-vacancy figures from SHRM and public research, and the Notes tab documents how each number is built.

Three steps from open roles to the cost of waiting

You set two assumptions, list the roles, and the workbook returns the net cost of each vacancy, the total, and what faster hiring would save.

• Set the two assumptions. Fill the amber cells for working days per year and benefits as a percent of salary. Both feed the pay-saved side of every role, so the cost you see is net of the salary you are not spending while the seat is empty.
• List your open roles. Enter each role’s title, annual salary, a value multiplier, the days it has been open, and any coverage cost you are paying. The daily value, the value lost, the pay saved, and the net cost of the vacancy calculate on the right.
• Read the net cost and the lever. The Summary totals every open role and shows the net cost per day, the amount each day of faster hiring saves across all of them. Set how many days you could cut to see the payback of moving sooner.

A vacancy is not free and it is not the whole salary either

Two shortcuts get this wrong. One treats an open role as costing nothing because no one is being paid. The other counts the full salary as lost. The honest number sits between them: the value the role would have produced, minus the pay you are not spending while it is empty.

• The cost is net, not gross. Value lost minus the pay and benefits you save while the role is open, plus any coverage cost. For a role worth about its pay, the net can be small or even negative, which the workbook shows rather than hides.
• The multiplier is the one real judgment call. It sets how much value a role produces per dollar of salary: about 1.0 for support roles, higher for revenue or hard-to-cover ones. Keep it consistent across roles so the comparison stays fair.
• The net cost per day is the lever. Each day you trim from time to fill saves about that much across every open role, which turns a faster process into a dollar figure you can take to a budget conversation.

Who this calculator fits and where to go if that is not you

Built for

• A talent acquisition or HR leader who needs to put a defensible number on open roles and the cost of a slow process, role by role.
• A finance or HR partner weighing the payback of hiring faster, or of the coverage and overtime a long vacancy runs up.
• A hiring manager or operator who wants to show what an unfilled seat is costing rather than argue it in the abstract.

If you are looking for

• How many recruiters it takes to fill your open roles faster, sized against the reqs they carry. The Recruiter Capacity Planner runs that.
• Whether to fill faster with an outside agency or your own recruiters, fee by fee. The Agency vs Internal Recruiter ROI Calculator runs that decision.

Before you buy

What format is it and can I edit it?

It is one Excel workbook that also works in Google Sheets. Every input and formula is editable, and the file is yours to keep. Add roles by inserting rows inside the table, and duplicate the file to price a second set of openings or a later point in the year.

There is a free version of this calculator. Why pay for this one?

The free tool prices one open role in the browser and resets when you close the tab. This workbook is the model you keep: it lists every open role on one sheet, totals the value lost net of the pay you save, and returns the net cost per day, the lever faster hiring pulls. It adds a board-ready summary, an estimate of what cutting a set number of days would save, and a Benchmark tab with sourced figures, and every formula is open, so you can set the value multipliers to your own roles and reuse the file as openings change.

How accurate is the result?

It is a planning estimate, and the value multiplier drives it. How much value a role produces against its pay depends on the role, your business, and what you count, and it is a judgment call. Set the multipliers consistently across roles, lean conservative, and treat the output as a floor for sizing the cost of open roles. The math is correct for the inputs.

How do I set the value multiplier?

It is how much annual value a role produces for each dollar of salary. Support roles sit near 1.0, where the output is worth about the pay, so a vacancy roughly breaks even against the salary you save. Revenue-generating or hard-to-cover roles are worth more, so set them higher; the Benchmark tab puts revenue roles at 1.5 to 3 times pay. Keep your multipliers consistent across roles so the comparison stays fair.

What is the refund policy?

Digital products are covered by a 14-day money-back guarantee. See the refund policy for the full terms.

What happens after I buy?

Checkout delivers an instant download link, and a receipt with the same link arrives by email. Open the workbook in Excel or Google Sheets, set the two assumptions, and list your open roles. If a file gives you trouble, email support@truestephr.com.

Planning estimates and general business information, not legal or tax advice. The value of a role is a judgment call set by the multiplier, so treat the result as a conservative floor for sizing the cost of open roles, not a precise figure. Last reviewed June 2026.