Headhunter Fees

I am wondering if anyone knows how much headhunters receive when they place analysts at private equity firms & hedge funds?

Do they take a fixed percentage of the analyst's future salary? And if they do, how much is typical? Or do they just crank through analysts, and make like $10k per analyst, regardless of the position?

10 Comments
 

Agree with the above post lulz

-------------------------------------------------------- "I do not think there is any other quality so essential to success of any kind as the quality of perseverance. It overcom
 

30% sounds pretty high - I've heard more around 10-15% of first year salary dependent upon 3 months of satisfactory performance.

 
Best Response

It completely depends on the type of recruiting firm and the hiring firm. If the recruiter was hired on a contingent basis (paid if their candidate gets placed), bulge bracket banks typically pay approximately 20% of first year total comp while a growing boutique could pay closer to 15% of first year total comp because the recruiting firm is hoping to build a longer term relationship. Retained searches usually have lower fees associated with them (fixed engagement fee and then 15% of total comp, for example) because the firm is getting paid whether or not they actually place a candidate. Keep in mind, most of these fees are contingent on the hire doing well in 3, 6, and 9 months after the placement.

There are a few contingent search firms that will work for as low as 10% of first year total comp but they typically have very low candidate and client contact and really just churning resumes and trying to make as many placements as possible with less regard to the culture of the firm and the right fit for the candidate.

 

Accusantium odit quo pariatur magni quis esse. Quia explicabo aut et molestias. Sit voluptatum quia alias labore suscipit praesentium. Rerum nemo fuga sint ipsum laboriosam est quae. Tempora consequuntur facere aut at ut earum. Aspernatur quam aut omnis illum.

Omnis reiciendis labore error illo qui molestiae eligendi. Molestias possimus pariatur id iste non quo excepturi. Distinctio nobis et tempore soluta.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (15) $434
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (80) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”