Best Recruitment Agencies
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The Chicago index

Chicago recruitment agencies, ranked.

Every firm we track, scored on public signals: specialist focus, market activity and track record. Terms, claiming and sponsorship never change a rank.

The index is free to read and free to be listed in. Our sponsor makes that possible, and has no say in any ranking.

Firms tracked
409
Specialties
13
Open roles
6,813
Updated
Nov 11
Chicago, United States

The full leaderboard, Chicago

  1. 01Request Technology88.1
    Not statedNot disclosed33 open roles
  2. 02CFSAccounting, finance, human resources and technology staffing82.7
    Not statedNot disclosed400 open roles
  3. 03Next Step Systems78.3
    Not statedNot disclosed401 open roles
  4. 04CultureFit Talent Partners77.2
    Not statedNot disclosed26 open roles
  5. 05Kittleman & Associates76.5
    Not statedNot disclosed40 open roles
  6. 06Atticus RecruitingLaw firm partners, associates, general counsel and in-house attorneys73.9
    ContingencyNot disclosed72 open roles
  7. 07Smith Hanley AssociatesMarket research and consumer insights, data science, actuarial and commercial analytics72.7
    Not statedNot disclosed60 open roles
  8. 08HealthCare Recruiters InternationalHealthcare, mental health, medical technology and healthcare leadership72.6
    Not statedNot disclosed48 open roles
  9. =09Atlantic GroupFinance, accounting and professional recruitment72.2
    Not statedNot disclosed218 open roles
  10. =09Chicago Legal Search / CLS Legal StaffingAttorneys, paralegals, legal executives and law firm support professionals72.2
    Not statedNot disclosed30 open roles
  11. 11Ezra Penland Actuarial RecruitmentActuarial, catastrophe risk, predictive modeling and insurance leadership recruitment72.1
    HybridNot disclosed135 open roles
  12. 12Resource 1IT staff augmentation for enterprise software, data, infrastructure and HP NonStop technology roles.72.0
    Not statedNot disclosed25 open roles
  13. 13LindauerNonprofit executives, fundraising and advancement leadership71.8
    RetainedNot disclosed75 open roles
  14. 14Gonser GerberNonprofit and higher education advancement leadership search69.9
    Not statedNot disclosed8 open roles
  15. =15CS Recruiting69.7
    Not statedNot disclosed77 open roles
  16. =15Pacific Advisory ServiceJapanese-English bilingual professional search69.7
    Not statedNot disclosed21 open roles
  17. 17Priority PhysiciansPermanent physician, physician assistant and nurse practitioner recruitment68.5
    Not statedNot disclosed50 open roles
  18. 18LumicityEngineering, technology, energy transition, construction and life sciences recruitment68.1
    Not statedNot disclosed71 open roles
  19. 19S.C. InternationalActuarial, insurance, benefits administration and analytics recruitment67.9
    Not statedNot disclosed58 open roles
  20. =20Miller Resource GroupNaperville · Food manufacturing and industrial-technology recruiting67.0
    Not statedNot disclosed69 open roles
  21. =20SaltHill Group67.0
    Not statedNot disclosed13 open roles
  22. 22McCormack Schreiber Legal SearchAttorney and legal professional search for law firms and in-house teams66.8
    Not statedNot disclosed333 open roles
  23. 23BrooksourceSoftware engineering, cloud, cybersecurity, data and AI, enterprise applications and technical delivery66.5
    Not statedNot disclosed137 open roles
  24. 24Vetted SolutionsExecutive, board and senior staff recruitment for associations and purpose-driven organizations65.4
    Not statedNot disclosed21 open roles
  25. 25Sikich Executive Search64.5
    Not statedNot disclosed27 open roles
  26. 26Arc ScoutArchitecture and interior design contract staffing, contract-to-hire and permanent recruitment63.7
    Not statedNot disclosed15 open roles
  27. 27ZRGRetained executive and board search across corporate functions, industries, education and nonprofit organizations.63.4
    Not statedNot disclosed99 open roles
  28. 28Cambridge Consulting Services62.8
    Not statedNot disclosed67 open roles
  29. 29BottomLine Recruiting62.5
    Not statedNot disclosed7 open roles
  30. =30180 EngineeringNaperville · Engineering and IT recruiting62.0
    Not statedNot disclosed44 open roles
  31. =30Sirius Human Capital62.0
    Not statedNot disclosed12 open roles
  32. 32Johnson Service GroupEngineering, IT and professional staffing alongside manufacturing recruitment61.5
    Not statedNot disclosed296 open roles
  33. 33Banyak GroupQuantitative trading, investment technology and leadership search for investment management firms61.4
    RetainedNot disclosed24 open roles
  34. 34MMD Services60.3
    Not statedNot disclosed31 open roles
  35. 35Maneva GroupNonprofit, foundation and association executive search60.2
    Not statedNot disclosed22 open roles
  36. =36ExecuSearch of ChicagoLife sciences commercial teams, pharmaceutical sales and healthcare leadership.59.0
    HybridNot disclosed32 open roles
  37. =36Geneva Search PartnersAccounting, finance, HR, marketing, sales and business support59.0
    Not statedNot disclosed13 open roles
  38. 38Owen Daniels58.9
    Not statedNot disclosed24 open roles
  39. 39Katalyst GroupFinance, accounting and human resources executive recruiting and project resources58.7
    Not statedNot disclosed12 open roles
  40. 40ClinLab Solutions GroupLife sciences recruitment across research, clinical development, regulatory affairs and commercialization58.0
    Not statedNot disclosed150 open roles
  41. 41LaSalle Intelligent SolutionsAccounting, finance and specialist professional recruitment57.1
    Not statedNot disclosed117 open roles
  42. 42DSG Global56.9
    Not statedNot disclosed4 open roles
  43. 43Jean Kripton, Inc.Legal, accounting, administrative, HR and corporate professional staffing56.6
    Not statedNot disclosed17 open roles
  44. =44CPS, Inc.56.5
    Not statedNot disclosed390 open roles
  45. =44Myticas Consulting56.5
    Not statedNot disclosed116 open roles
  46. =44Talentfoot56.5
    Not statedNot disclosed19 open roles
  47. 47Planet Pharma55.5
    Not statedNot disclosed240 open roles
  48. 48SmartHireConstruction project controls, engineering, legal and professional recruitment55.3
    HybridNot disclosed22 open roles
  49. 49Tri-S RecruitersIT, engineering and professional mid-level to executive recruitment55.2
    Not statedNot disclosed5 open roles
  50. 50Wells Blair55.1
    Not statedNot disclosed9 open roles

Score built from public signals · Fee model from firm websites · Terms reported by firms · Terms never affect the score

How the score works →

Recruitment agencies in Chicago: questions

How are these Chicago recruitment agencies ranked?

Each firm gets a score from public data: how focused it is on one specialty, how many roles it is actively hiring for, and its track record. We rank 409 firms in Chicago so far and re-score them as new data comes in. The full method is on our methodology page.

Can a recruitment agency pay to rank higher?

No. There is no paid placement. Claiming a profile, adding terms and our sponsor never change a score or a rank.

What's the difference between a recruitment agency, a headhunter and an executive search firm?

They overlap. A recruitment agency fills roles for employers, usually on contingency. Headhunter is the informal name for a recruiter who approaches people who aren't job hunting. Executive search firms are headhunters for senior roles and usually work on a retained basis. We list all three when they fill professional, white-collar roles.

How much do recruitment agencies in Chicago charge?

Most agencies charge a percentage of the hire's first-year base salary. Contingency recruiters are commonly quoted at around 15–25% and are paid only when you hire; retained and executive search firms often charge 25–35%, paid in stages as the search progresses.

My firm is missing or something is wrong. What can I do?

Firms can claim their profile for free and correct their details. Anyone can request a correction; we reply within three working days.

Browse by specialty

13 specialties