Cost of Turnover Calculator
Build the real cost of losing one employee from the ground up. Enter the salaries of the people involved and your time and cost assumptions, and the workbook prices the exit, the open vacancy, recruiting a replacement, and the ramp to full speed, then returns the total per departure, the cost as a percent of salary, and the annual cost at your turnover volume.
One-time purchase, no subscription. Instant download.
Built by expert HR practitioners and leaders
- The full cost of one departure: enter the salaries and your time assumptions, and the workbook prices the exit, the open vacancy, recruiting, and the ramp into a single number
- Where the cost concentrates: a subtotal for each of the four stages, so you can see that the output lost while the role is open and while a new hire ramps is usually the largest piece
- The cost as a percent of salary: the result divided by the salary of the role that left, so you can read it against the benchmark ranges for that kind of role
- The annual cost at your turnover volume: one departure multiplied by the exits you expect for the role each year, so a recurring problem shows its full yearly weight
- Open, editable formulas in Excel or Google Sheets, with a worked example pre-filled and sourced benchmarks; set your assumptions once and duplicate the file to cost another role
The workbook prices the cost from the numbers you enter. The salaries, the hours each role spends, the days the seat stays open, and the ramp time are yours to set.
Planning estimates and general business information, not legal or tax advice. The result is sensitive to the time-lost assumptions, so treat the coverage and ramp figures as your best estimate and adjust them to your situation.
Not the right fit? Take the 60-second match.
Last reviewed June 2026
One Excel workbook that prices a departure from the ground up
A working model, not a blank grid. You enter the salaries and your time assumptions, the workbook builds the cost across four stages, and it opens on a worked example so the logic is clear before you change anything.
Cost of Turnover Calculator
Enter the salaries of the role that left, the manager, a coworker, and HR, set your working days, then work down four stages: separation, the open vacancy, recruiting, and onboarding. The workbook prices each person's time from their pay, adds the output lost while the role is open and while a new hire ramps, and returns the total per departure, the share from each stage, the percent of salary, and the annual cost at your turnover volume. It opens on a worked example so the logic is clear before you change the inputs.
A board-ready summary, sourced benchmarks, and the math in plain English
A one-page Summary pulls the four stage subtotals and the total into a snapshot for a budget conversation. A Benchmark tab holds turnover-cost ranges by role type from Gallup, SHRM, and public research to sanity-check your result, and the Notes tab documents how each number is built.
Three steps from a departure to its real cost
You set the pay basis, enter your time and cost assumptions across four stages, and the workbook returns the cost per departure and the annual figure.
Set the pay basis
Enter the annual salary of the role that left, plus the manager, coworker, and HR salaries and your working days, so every hour of time below is priced from real pay.
Work the four stages
Fill the amber cells for separation, the open vacancy, recruiting, and onboarding: the hours each person spends, the days the seat stays open, the recruiting costs, and the ramp time. Everything else calculates.
Read the total and the percent
The workbook shows the cost per departure, the share from each stage, the cost as a percent of salary, and the annual cost at your turnover volume, so the number is built up rather than guessed.
The cost is mostly lost output, not invoices
The cash you write a check for, job ads and an agency fee, is the small part. The larger cost is the output lost while the seat is empty and while a new hire climbs to full speed, which is why this workbook prices time, not just spend.
Who this calculator fits and where to go if that is not you
It prices one departure for one kind of role from the ground up. For the yearly drag of open seats or the all-in cost of filling a role, the right tool is next to it.
Built for
- An HR or finance partner who needs the real cost of a departure to weigh against the cost of retaining people.
- A manager building the case for a counteroffer, a retention program, or a faster backfill, with a number instead of a guess.
- An HR leader who wants a board-ready figure for what turnover in a given role costs per exit and per year.
If you are looking for
- The yearly cost of seats sitting open from your turnover and time to fill, not the cost of one departure. The Vacancy Cost Calculator prices the drag of open roles across the year.
- The all-in cost of filling a role, recruiting spend and hours on their own, not the full turnover cost. The Cost Per Hire Calculator builds the cost-per-hire figure on the ANSI/SHRM formula.
Before you buy
What format is it and can I edit it?
There is a free version of this calculator. Why pay for this one?
How accurate is the result?
What does the cost include?
What is the refund policy?
What happens after I buy?
Can I expense this purchase to my business?
Most customers buy TrueStep HR tools for business use, and a tool you use for work often qualifies as a deductible business expense. Whether it does for you depends on your situation, so confirm with your accountant or tax professional. Your receipt arrives by email at checkout and works as documentation.
The 6 red flags to check before you discipline or fire someone
A five-minute screen that catches the most common and most expensive people-decision mistakes before they happen. Free PDF, sent to your inbox. Unsubscribe anytime.
Put a real number on losing one employee
The cost across all four stages, the percent of salary, and the annual figure at your turnover volume, in a file you keep.
Planning estimates and general business information, not legal or tax advice. Last reviewed June 2026.