An in-house recruiter has one client: their employer. An agency recruiter has two markets at once. They sell to clients who have vacancies and they recruit candidates to fill them, and they get paid only when the two meet. Software built for corporate hiring teams handles the second half well and the first half barely at all.
That is why agencies need a different kind of system: an applicant tracking system and a sales CRM sharing one database, with job distribution, client submissions, fee tracking and, for temporary staffing, timesheets, pay and billing. This guide explains what agency software needs to do, compares five platforms on published information, and sets out how to choose and switch without losing your database.
We compare tools on what their own websites say and what they publish about price. We have not run paid trials and have left out vendors' outcome claims. Prices are as published in November 2026, per user per month, and exclude tax.
How agency software differs from a corporate ATS
| Need | Corporate ATS | Agency software |
|---|---|---|
| Clients | Hiring managers inside one company | Many client companies, contacts and decision-makers |
| Business development | Not needed | Leads, opportunities, client meetings and pipeline |
| Candidates | Applicants to the company's own jobs | A long-term database placed with many clients over years |
| Submissions | Internal shortlists | Formatted CVs sent to clients, often with contact details removed |
| Revenue | Not tracked | Fees, placements, margins and recruiter billings |
| Temporary work | Rare | Timesheets, shifts, pay rates, bill rates and invoicing |
The candidate database is an agency's main asset. A good agency system makes it easy to find the right person you spoke to two years ago, see every interaction with them, and put them in front of a client quickly.
If you are starting or growing an agency, our guide to recruiting agencies covers how agencies work, fee models and how clients choose them.
The scale of the staffing market
Agency software runs a large industry. The American Staffing Association reports that nearly 2.0 million temporary and contract employees worked for U.S. staffing companies in an average week in 2025, and that staffing firms hired 9.5 million temporary and contract employees over the year. Every one of those placements needs tracking from first contact to final timesheet.
The five platforms at a glance
| Platform | Best fit | Temp and contract support | Published price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bullhorn | Small agencies to the largest staffing firms | Middle office in North America (quoted separately) | Starter from $99; Core $165 |
| JobAdder | Small and mid-sized agencies, especially in Australia, NZ and the UK | Contract placements; timesheets not described on home page | No (no commitment) |
| Crelate | Small and mid-sized agencies and search firms | Onboarding and compliance (Crelate Hire, per hire) | Essentials $85; Business $119 |
| Manatal | Budget-conscious and small agencies | Not described | From $15 (annual) |
| Zoho Recruit | Agencies already using Zoho apps | Timesheets, assignments and shift coordination | Free plan; paid prices via calculator |
Bullhorn
Bullhorn is the best-known name in staffing software. Its website FAQ lists Bullhorn Starter from $99 per user per month and Bullhorn Core at $165, with Pro (which bundles recruitment CRM, AI search and matching, chat, automation and analytics) and Max (an agentic AI layer) quoted. Middle Office, Onboarding and Recruitment Cloud are quoted separately; Bullhorn says its middle office extends into pay and billing in North America, with 1.3 million workers paid monthly through it.
- Strength: breadth across professional, light industrial, healthcare and executive search, and a large partner ecosystem.
- Watch for: the total cost depends on how many separate products you need; get every module in one quote.
- Best for: agencies that expect to grow and want a system that scales from a few desks to hundreds.
- Not for: micro-agencies that only need a simple ATS and CRM.
Read our full Bullhorn review for a closer look.
JobAdder
JobAdder's website describes a platform built for agencies, with an ATS that uses AI to rank the database and score applicants, a recruitment CRM for candidates and placements, a business development module for contacts, companies and opportunities, outreach by email, SMS and sequences, reporting and automation. It cites multi-posting to more than 130 job boards and more than 180 integration partners, with an open API. It says it has been "trusted by over 4,000 agencies since 2007" and more than 27,000 recruiters. Pricing is not published on the home page; JobAdder promotes "no commitment" and demos.
- Strength: an agency-first design with business development built in and a large integration marketplace.
- Watch for: confirm timesheet and back-office options for temp desks, which the home page does not describe.
- Best for: small and mid-sized permanent and contract agencies, particularly in Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Ireland, where its case studies are based.
Crelate
Crelate publishes prices on its pricing page. Essentials costs $85 per user per month, paid annually, and includes an ATS, recruiting CRM, job portal, resume parsing and sourcing, limited to two users and 20,000 contacts. Business at $119 adds an AI assistant, client and team portals, reports and analytics, and email connections, with annual or monthly billing. Business Plus and Platform plans are custom-priced and add business development workflows, automation and sequences, a full API and enterprise security options. Crelate Hire, for onboarding and compliance, is priced per hire.
- Strength: transparent pricing and client portals that let clients review submissions without email chains.
- Watch for: Essentials' two-user limit; most growing agencies will start on Business.
- Best for: small and mid-sized agencies and executive search firms.
Manatal
Manatal is the lowest-priced option here. Its pricing page lists Professional at $15 per user per month billed annually ($19 monthly) for up to 15 jobs and 10,000 candidates, Enterprise at $35 ($39 monthly) with unlimited jobs and candidates plus workflow automation, and Enterprise Plus at $55 ($59 monthly) with an advanced report builder, LLM integration, open API and SSO. A recruitment CRM to "track leads and manage clients" is included on all three plans. There is a 14-day free trial with no credit card.
- Strength: price. A small agency can run a full ATS and client CRM for a fraction of the cost of larger platforms.
- Watch for: Professional's job and candidate caps; the page gives little detail on client management, so test it in the trial.
- Best for: new and small agencies, and agencies in markets where per-user costs matter.
- Not for: temporary staffing desks needing timesheets and pay and bill.
Zoho Recruit
Zoho Recruit sells corporate and staffing versions of its ATS. Its staffing agency page describes client portals, contact profiles with activity and placement history, formatted resumes that let you share candidates "without disclosing PII", and timesheet management for temporary staffing, with assignment tracking and shift coordination. Plans run from Forever Free through Standard, Professional and Enterprise. The pricing page offers a 15-day trial of Enterprise features and up to 16% off for yearly billing, but staffing prices come from a calculator rather than a printed list.
- Strength: temp staffing basics at a low entry cost, plus easy connections if you already use Zoho CRM, Books or other Zoho apps.
- Watch for: check which features sit on which plan using the calculator before you commit.
- Best for: small and mid-sized agencies already in the Zoho ecosystem.
Other options worth a look
Two more agency platforms are covered in our recruiting CRM comparison: Recruit CRM, which publishes plans from $95 per user per month, and Loxo, which builds sourcing data and outreach into its agency CRM from $149. For corporate hiring teams rather than agencies, see our applicant tracking system guide.
Temporary and contract desks: the back office
Permanent recruitment ends at the placement. Temporary staffing starts there. For every worker on assignment, the agency must record hours, pay the worker, invoice the client and keep the margin between the two. That requires:
- Timesheets: online or mobile timesheets with client approval.
- Pay and bill rates: per assignment, including overtime, holiday and shift premiums.
- Payroll export or integration: to your payroll software or provider.
- Client invoicing: from approved timesheets, with consolidated invoices for large clients.
- Compliance records: right-to-work checks, certifications and worker documents.
If you run a temp desk, decide early whether you want this inside your agency platform or in a specialist back-office system connected to it. Ask each vendor to show the full flow from placement to paid invoice in a demo.
UK agency rules your software should support
UK agencies have specific obligations that good software makes easier to meet. GOV.UK says agencies must give workers a key information document, "a short explanation of how you'll be paid and what deductions will be applied", covering the minimum rate of pay, a sample payslip, who is paying the worker, any fees and benefits, plus written terms of engagement. Agency workers also gain equal treatment rights after 12 weeks in the same job, including "the same pay as a permanent colleague doing the same job" and paid annual leave.
Your system should store these documents against each worker, track the 12-week qualifying period per assignment and flag when equal treatment applies, so pay rates can be updated in time.
How to choose
1. Separate perm, contract and temp needs. A pure permanent-placement agency needs a strong ATS and CRM. A temp desk needs timesheets, pay and bill. Do not pay for back office you will not use, and do not buy a perm-only system if you plan to launch a temp desk next year.
2. Test with your own data. Ask for a trial or sandbox loaded with a sample of your candidates and clients. Search for real people the way your recruiters do. Database search quality makes or breaks agency software.
3. Check job board and integration coverage. Make sure the boards you use and your email, calendar, phone and payroll systems are supported.
4. Ask about migration. Switching systems is the riskiest part of the project. Ask what the vendor migrates (candidates, contacts, notes, attachments, placements), how long it takes and what it costs.
5. Look at total cost, not headline price. Add per-user fees, sourcing credits, back-office modules, onboarding and integrations. SHRM found that 30% of HR leaders regret their most recent HR technology purchase. A clear quote avoids most of the surprises.
6. Plan for adoption. Recruiters live in their system all day. If it is slow or awkward they will keep notes elsewhere, and the database, your main asset, stops being complete.
Metrics your system should report
- Placements, fees and margin by recruiter, client and sector.
- Submission-to-interview and interview-to-placement ratios per client.
- Time to fill by client and role type. For comparison, SHRM reports median in-house time to fill of roughly a month and a half; faster delivery is one of the main reasons clients use agencies.
- Temp workers on assignment, hours billed and gross margin per week.
- Database health: candidates contacted or updated in the past six months.
Frequently asked questions
What is recruiting agency software?
A system that combines an applicant tracking system for candidates with a CRM for client companies and contacts, plus job posting, submissions and placement tracking. Staffing versions add timesheets, pay and billing for temporary workers.
Can a recruiting agency use a normal ATS?
It can, but most corporate ATSs lack client management, business development and fee tracking, so agencies end up running a separate CRM or spreadsheets. Agency platforms keep candidates and clients in one database.
What is the cheapest recruiting agency software?
Of the tools here, Manatal is the lowest-priced, from $15 per user per month billed annually, including a recruitment CRM. Zoho Recruit also has a free plan with limited features.
What is the best software for temp staffing agencies?
Look for built-in or integrated timesheets, pay and bill rates, payroll export and client invoicing. Bullhorn offers middle office in North America, and Zoho Recruit's staffing version includes timesheet management.
How hard is it to switch agency software?
The main risk is data migration. Ask vendors exactly what they migrate and test a sample before you sign, then run both systems briefly in parallel.