Employee Turnover Cost Calculator
Enter what a role costs per year, what it costs to recruit and onboard a replacement, how long the seat stays empty and how long the new hire takes to reach full productivity. You get the cost per leaver and the yearly cost at your turnover rate. Nothing is sent anywhere.
In one sentence: Turnover cost is everything you spend and lose between one person leaving and their replacement working at full speed.
Formula: daily cost = annual cost ÷ working days; vacancy cost = daily cost × vacant days; ramp cost = daily cost × ramp days × (1 − ramp productivity); per leaver = recruiting + vacancy + onboarding + ramp; per year = per leaver × headcount × turnover rate.
Where the cost hides
Few of the costs of losing someone appear on a single invoice, which is why turnover feels free. The direct costs are recruiting (job ads, agency fees, the hours colleagues spend interviewing) and onboarding (training time, equipment, admin). The larger costs are usually indirect: the work that does not get done while the seat is empty, and the months during which a new hire is paid in full but produces a fraction of the output. This calculator values both using the role's daily cost, which the employee cost calculator gives you.
Choosing the inputs
Use the full annual cost of the role, not just salary. Vacant days run from the leaver's last day to the replacement's first; if colleagues cover the work, the cost is real even when no money changes hands. Ramp-up varies by role: weeks for routine work, many months for senior or specialised positions. The ramp productivity figure is the average over that period; 50% is a common assumption. Turnover rate is leavers in a year divided by average headcount.
What to do with the number
The yearly figure is the budget you are already spending on turnover. Compare it with what retention would cost: a pay raise for the people most likely to leave, better onboarding to shorten ramp-up, or a faster hiring process to cut vacant days. Each of those is a line in this calculator, so you can see directly which change pays back most.
Frequently asked questions
Should I include severance or notice pay?
If leavers are paid for a notice period in which they do little work, add that to the recruiting cost field.
Does this work for one role?
Yes. Set headcount to 1 and the turnover rate to 100% to see the cost of one replacement.
Is my data stored?
No. Everything runs in your browser.