Success-fee recruiting (also called contingency search) is still the most widely used model for hiring Sales, Tech or AI talent in France. The principle is simple: the firm charges nothing until the hire is actually made. But "nothing until" hides a real pricing mechanic worth understanding before signing a mandate.
How the percentage is calculated
The French market typically runs between 18% and 25% of the role's gross annual salary, due only once the candidate has actually started. At Walead, that rate is 22%, published openly rather than negotiated case by case.
The percentage applies to gross annual base salary, sometimes extended to guaranteed first-year variable depending on the firm. This is worth clarifying before signing: two mandates quoted at "22%" can use different calculation bases.
What this fee covers (and doesn't)
Active sourcing: direct identification and outreach, not just posting a job ad.
Qualification: one or more interviews conducted by the firm before presenting a profile to you.
A shortlist, typically 3 to 5 profiles depending on the role and how rare it is.
A replacement guarantee, usually 3 to 4 months: if the hire leaves or doesn't work out, sourcing restarts at no extra cost.
What this fee usually doesn't cover: high-volume screening for junior or low-qualification roles, where the time-spent-to-fee ratio doesn't economically work for a specialist firm, that's more the territory of RPO or freelance placement.
When the success-fee model isn't the right fit
Success fees suit a one-off need, on a specific role, with a reasonable timeline (under 20 days on average for most Sales roles). It becomes less relevant in two situations:
High, continuous volume (several hires a month, over several months): RPO, billed daily or monthly, is generally more cost-effective than stacking up success fees.
A strategic role in a very tight market where absolute priority and search exclusivity justify an exclusive mandate instead of a standard success fee, usually at a slightly higher rate in exchange for that priority.
In both cases, the question isn't just "how much does it cost", it's "which model actually matches the real pace of my hiring need."