What does a phone screen really cost?
A phone screen feels free because nobody sends an invoice. It is paid for in recruiter hours. Here is a worked example you can adjust to your own numbers.
The time per call
A "10-minute" phone screen rarely takes 10 minutes. Once you add finding the number, calls that go to voicemail, rescheduling, the call itself and writing it up, a screen can easily take 15-30 minutes per applicant.
The cost of that time
Take a recruiter on £30,000 a year. At 37.5 hours a week for 52 weeks, that is about £15.38 an hour in salary alone - before employer's National Insurance, pension and overheads.
| At 15 min | At 30 min | |
|---|---|---|
| Salary cost per phone screen | £3.85 | £7.69 |
| Screening 15 applicants for one role | £58 (3.75 hours) | £115 (7.5 hours) |
| Screening all 200 applicants for one role | £769 (50 hours) | £1,538 (100 hours) |
Salary cost only; real employment costs are higher. Change the salary and minutes to match your team.
The cost nobody counts
- The applicants you never call. In the example, screening only 15 of 200 saves time but leaves 185 unheard. See screening coverage.
- The work that doesn't get done. Hours spent dialling are hours not spent interviewing, onboarding or working with hiring managers.
- Lost candidates. Candidates who wait days for a call may accept another offer. See why applicants go cold.
Compared with screening every applicant
With BeCareers, every one of the 200 applicants gets a structured screening conversation for £1.50 each - £300 in screening charges for the role, plus your monthly subscription (from £199) - and no recruiter time is spent on the first stage. Run your own numbers.
Frequently Asked Questions
See it on one of your roles
Early access includes 100 free screenings and 50% off your first 3 months. Setup usually takes a day or less.