--- title: "Recruiter fees for sales hires: base salary or OTE?" description: Recruiter fees for sales hires can apply to base or OTE. For an AE on $75k base and $105k OTE, 20 to 25% is $15,000 to $26,250. A fixed fee is $7,500. image: https://funded.club/hubfs/blog-featured-images/fc-recruiter-fee-base-vs-ote.png --- [![Primary\_logo](https://funded.club/hubfs/Primary_logo.svg)](https://funded.club/) [Book a call](https://funded.club/contact-us) - [Hire](https://funded.club) - [Pricing](https://funded.club/pricing) - [Find a job](https://funded.club/startupjobs) - [Case Studies](https://funded.club/case-studies) - [Locally](https://funded.club/case-studies/locally) - [Supernova](https://funded.club/case-studies/supernova) - [Isolocity](https://funded.club/case-studies/isolocity) - [WeTravel](https://funded.club/case-studies/wetravel) - [Digital Science](https://funded.club/case-studies/digital-science) - [Blog](https://funded.club/blog-results) - [Resources](https://funded.club/resources) - [Predict success](https://signup.predict.ventures/) - [Growth Planner](https://funded.club/growth-planner) - [Glossary](https://funded.club/glossary) - [FAQ](https://funded.club/faq) - [Contact us](https://funded.club/contact-us) [Book a call](https://funded.club/contact-us) - Engagement options: - [Hiring solutions](https://funded.club) - [Pay-as-you-go](https://funded.club/pricing) - Membership plan # Recruiter fees for sales hires: base salary or OTE? ![recruiter-fees-for-sales-hires:-base-salary-or-ote?](https://funded.club/hs-fs/hubfs/blog-featured-images/fc-recruiter-fee-base-vs-ote.png?width=1200&height=628&name=fc-recruiter-fee-base-vs-ote.png) [Ray Gibson](https://funded.club/blog/author/ray-gibson) Sep 30, 2026, 1:53:55 AM *Updated September 2026* A recruiting fee for a sales hire can apply to base salary, to on-target earnings (OTE), or to "total first-year compensation", and the contract decides which. For an illustrative account executive on $75,000 base and $105,000 OTE, a 20 to 25% contingency fee is $15,000 to $18,750 on base, or $21,000 to $26,250 on OTE. A fixed fee, such as Funded.club's $7,500 for this package, removes the question entirely. Sales packages are the one place where "20% of salary" is ambiguous. An engineer's salary is one number. A salesperson's pay has a guaranteed part and a variable part that depends on results, and recruiters don't all define the fee base the same way. Reading that one definition before you sign is worth more than negotiating the percentage down by a point or two. ## The same AE, priced three ways Our worked example is an account executive on $75,000 base with $30,000 of target commission, so $105,000 OTE. The numbers are illustrative, so swap in your own plan. ![Bar chart for an illustrative account executive on $75,000 base and $105,000 OTE: 20 to 25% of OTE costs $21,000 to $26,250, 20 to 25% of base costs $15,000 to $18,750, and a Funded.club fixed fee is $7,500](https://funded.club/hs-fs/hubfs/(01)%20Thumbnails/n06-ae-fee-basis.png?width=1200&name=n06-ae-fee-basis.png) Moving the fee from base to OTE adds $6,000 to $7,500 for this one hire. Across a year in which you hire four or five AEs, that is a meaningful line in the budget, and it comes from a single word in the contract. ## Paying a fee on commission nobody earned One cost is easy to miss. OTE is a target, not a promise. New reps usually ramp for several months, and plenty of good hires land below target in their first year while they learn your product. Say the AE in our example reaches 60% of target in year one, so they earn $18,000 of the $30,000 commission. If the recruiter's fee was calculated on OTE, you paid 20 to 25% on the full $30,000. That means $2,400 to $3,000 of the fee relates to commission that was never paid out. On senior sales roles with larger variable pay, the same effect is bigger. The split of the package matters as well. With a fee on base, a package weighted towards variable pay costs less in fees. With a fee on OTE, the split makes no difference at all. ![Bar chart of contingency fees on a $200,000 OTE sales package at 70/30, 60/40 and 50/50 splits: a fee on base falls from $28,000 to $35,000 down to $20,000 to $25,000, while a fee on OTE stays at $40,000 to $50,000](https://funded.club/hs-fs/hubfs/(01)%20Thumbnails/n06-split-effect.png?width=1200&name=n06-split-effect.png) This creates a quiet incentive. A recruiter paid on base earns more when more of the package is guaranteed, which moves risk from the hire onto you. Most recruiters act in good faith, but it is worth knowing where the structure pushes. ## Questions to ask before you sign | Ask this | Why it matters | | --- | --- | | Is the fee calculated on base, OTE or total first-year compensation? | In our AE example, the difference is $6,000 to $7,500 on one hire. | | Are sign-on bonuses, guaranteed commission or draws included? | Guaranteed payments in the first months are often counted as compensation. | | Is the fee based on target commission or on what is actually paid? | Target commission can include money the rep never earns. | | What happens if we change the comp plan after the offer? | If the fee is tied to OTE, a later change to the plan can reopen the fee. | | When does the fee fall due? | Start date, offer acceptance or split across the search all affect your cash. | Get the answers in writing. A two-line email that says "fee is 20% of first-year base salary, excluding commission and bonuses" saves a lot of awkward conversations later. ## Where Funded.club fits We take the base-versus-OTE question off the table. Funded.club is a fixed-fee recruiting partner for funded startups and fast-growing teams across North America, Europe and APAC, and we've helped 500+ startups from Seed to Series D, including sales and go-to-market hires. The fee is agreed upfront, averages 6 to 9% of salary and runs from $4,900 to $21,900 per hire, and it does not move when you adjust quota, commission or the split. Our AE example sits in the up to $110,000 band on either reading, so the fee is $7,500. See [pricing](https://funded.club/pricing) for every band. Part of the fee is an advance at the start of the search, with the balance due when your candidate accepts. If we don't deliver a shortlist of at least 3 qualified candidates within 30 days, you can claim the advance back in full. One dedicated recruiter runs each search end to end, first screened candidates arrive within 7 days, and the average time from kick-off to hire is 33 days. For senior sales leadership, see our guide to [hiring a VP of Sales](https://funded.club/blog/hire-vp-sales-startup). ## Frequently asked questions ### Do recruiters charge on base salary or OTE for sales roles? Both are common, and some contracts use total first-year compensation. The definition in the contract decides it, so check before you sign. On a package with a large variable element, a fee on OTE can be far higher than a fee on base. ### What is OTE in a sales job offer? OTE, or on-target earnings, is base salary plus the commission a rep earns if they hit 100% of their target. It is a target, so actual first-year pay is often lower, especially during ramp. ### How much is a recruiter fee for an account executive? For an illustrative AE on $75,000 base and $105,000 OTE, a 20 to 25% contingency fee is $15,000 to $18,750 on base or $21,000 to $26,250 on OTE. Funded.club's fixed fee for this package is $7,500. ### Does Funded.club's fee change if the commission plan changes? No. The fee is fixed and agreed upfront, so changes to quota, commission or the base and variable split do not change what you pay. Worth a brief chat about your next hire? [Book a free call](https://funded.club/contact-us). ## Hiring after a funding round? First candidates in 7 days. Fixed-fee, no commission. [See pricing](https://funded.club/pricing) [Book a free call](https://funded.club/contact-us) [Try the Growth Planner](https://funded.club/growth-planner) [![Primary\_logo](https://funded.club/hubfs/funded-images2022/Primary_logo.svg)](https://funded.club) © 2019-2026 Funded.club B.V. All Rights Reserved. Chamber of Commerce: 63083809    VAT (BTW): NL855084844B01 ## Contact Us - [Hiring service](https://funded.club) - [Pricing - Recruiting projects](https://funded.club/pricing) - [Find a job](https://funded.club/startupjobs) - [Our team](https://funded.club/fundedteam) - [Blog](https://funded.club/blog) - [Case studies](https://funded.club/case-studies) - [Startup resources](https://funded.club/resources) - [FAQ](https://funded.club/faq) - [Contact Us](https://funded.club/contact-us) ## Follow Us © 2019-2026 All rights reserved. - [Privacy Policy](https://www.iubenda.com/privacy-policy/56133290) - [Cookie policies](https://www.iubenda.com/privacy-policy/56133290/cookie-policy) - [Terms of Use](https://funded.club/terms) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@id" : "https://funded.club/#ray-gibson" }, "dateModified" : "2026-09-29", "datePublished" : "2026-09-29", "headline" : "Recruiter fees for sales hires: base salary or OTE?", "image" : [ "https://7828179.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/7828179/blog-featured-images/fc-recruiter-fee-base-vs-ote.png" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://funded.club/blog/recruiter-fee-base-vs-ote", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@id" : "https://funded.club/#organization" } } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@id" : "https://funded.club/#organization", "@type" : "Organization", "areaServed" : [ "North America", "Europe", "Asia-Pacific" ], "description" : "Fixed-fee recruiting partner for funded startups and fast-growing teams across North America, Europe and APAC. 500+ startups helped since 2019. 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