Job posting costs vary wildly — from free to thousands of dollars per month — and the marketing from major platforms makes it hard to understand what you're actually paying. This is a straightforward breakdown of what each major option costs in 2026, what you get, and who it's right for.
The Full Cost Comparison
| Platform | Cost | Model | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indeed (sponsored) | $5–$20+ per click | Pay-per-click | High-volume, broad reach |
| LinkedIn (job slot) | $300–600/month per job | Monthly subscription | Professional/white-collar roles |
| Workable | $299/month (Starter) | Monthly subscription | Teams hiring 3–5 roles/year |
| Greenhouse | $6,000–$12,000/year | Annual contract | Companies with dedicated HR teams |
| Lever | $3,000–$8,000/year | Annual contract | Mid-size companies, structured pipelines |
| Wellfound (AngelList) | Free–$299/month | Free tier + paid | Startups, tech roles |
| ApplyHere | $9 per job post | One-time per post | Small teams, 1–10 hires/year |
Indeed: Unpredictable Pay-Per-Click
Indeed is the largest job board by traffic, and its free organic listings still exist — but they get buried quickly. To get meaningful visibility, you need sponsored listings. Indeed charges per click (not per application or per hire), and click costs vary dramatically by role type and market.
A typical sponsored campaign for a mid-level role in a competitive market runs $5–$20 per click. With 50–100 clicks per application, a single hire can cost $500–$2,000 in Indeed spend alone — plus your time. For high-volume, lower-skilled roles, Indeed can make sense. For a small business making 2–3 hires per year, the math often doesn't.
LinkedIn: Premium Brand, Premium Price
LinkedIn job slots start around $300–600 per month per job posting. You get access to LinkedIn's enormous professional candidate base and the ability to see detailed candidate profiles. For white-collar, professional, and executive roles, LinkedIn often produces strong candidates.
The problem for small businesses: at $300–600/month, a role that takes 6 weeks to fill costs $450–$900 in LinkedIn spend. Multiply that across 3 open roles and you're at $1,350–$2,700 in a single quarter. Most small businesses can't justify that without a dedicated recruiter managing the pipeline.
Workable: Solid Tool, Subscription Model
Workable is a mid-market ATS that includes job board distribution, candidate tracking, interview scheduling, and a reasonable applicant dashboard. Their Starter plan is ~$299/month.
If you're hiring continuously — 4+ roles per year — Workable can be worth it. If you're making 1–3 hires per year, you're paying $3,588/year for a tool you use intermittently. That's $1,196 per hire before you've placed a single job board ad.
Greenhouse and Lever: Enterprise Tools at Enterprise Prices
Both are excellent products for companies with dedicated HR and recruiting teams. Both are severe overkill for small businesses. At $6,000–$12,000/year for Greenhouse and $3,000–$8,000/year for Lever, these tools are designed for companies making 20+ hires per year with structured interview processes, multiple stakeholders, and compliance requirements.
See our full breakdown: Greenhouse Alternative for Small Business and Lever Alternative for Small Business.
What's the Cheapest Way to Post a Job?
The cheapest effective approach depends on what you're optimizing for:
- Zero cost: LinkedIn personal post (your network), Reddit job subreddits, Wellfound free tier, referrals. These are free but require active effort to distribute.
- Low cost, organized: ApplyHere at $9 per post gives you a professional job page, application form, and applicant dashboard. Share the link anywhere. Pay once per role.
- Broader reach: Add Indeed or LinkedIn sponsorship on top for $100–$300 to supplement organic channels.
For most small businesses, the sweet spot is a $9 job post on ApplyHere distributed through free channels (LinkedIn, Reddit, referrals). Total cost per hire: under $50 in most cases.
Cost Per Hire: The Number That Actually Matters
Platform cost alone doesn't tell you what you actually paid to hire someone. Factor in your time (hours spent reviewing, interviewing) and any distribution spend. A $9 job post that takes 4 hours of your time at $100/hr value = $409 per hire. A $14,000 recruiter fee for the same role = $14,000.
The math is rarely close.