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We'll be creating a FAQ from this HN discussion. We intend to be very transparent.

It is free for the developer. Even though it is different, we found it easiest when employers pay us similar to how they pay contingency recruiters, placement fees. Typically recruiters charge 25-35% of your first year salary, we charge a flat 25K fee to the employer that hires you. We also have a unique offering for startups where they can amortize the payments over 12 months. This pricing structure means more interesting companies can afford to be on our platform and therefore more interesting opportunities for developers.

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As someone who is hiring, my problem is to also find developers who are not actively looking. Sometimes those are the best because they are talented but have an inertia to move anywhere and may not even be aware of interesting challenges in other areas that their skills are applicable to, such as Healthcare etc.

Also for a 80K salary, 25K is just too steep, given that we do not know how your screening process works.

developers who are not actively looking...are the best because they are talented but have an inertia to move anywhere and may not even be aware of interesting challenges in other areas that their skills are applicable to

Exactly. We couldn't agree more and that seems to be the majority of Pitchbox members. It's more of passive tool..."here are some things I'm looking for, don't contact me until you find it, in the meantime I'll enjoy what I'm currently working on."

Being contingency based, there is no cost to anyone until everyone is happy.

What's payable in case when a hired candidate doesn't work out (doesn't make it through a 1-3 month probation period)?

Wow, that's pretty steep. Maybe that's just a west coast thing. Where I live (Ohio) that's 50% of the salary of a developer with 5 years of experience. I signed up for your service but... that seems like a good chunk of change I'd prefer to have in my pocket :)

Wow, that's pretty steep. Maybe that's just a west coast thing.

I don't think most developers realize how much recruiters are getting paid for placements. 25% is pretty standard across US, we're less then that with our flat rate.

Where I live (Ohio) that's 50% of the salary of a developer with 5 years of experience.

This is why we built this product - assuming you are even remotely decent at programming and write code in modern languages, a dev with 5 years of exp can easily be making more then 80K+.

We have several companies right now that are hiring and paying more then that for roles where the developer can telecommute 100% from anywhere in the country. Not only do they pay well but they have really awesome teams.

25% is pretty standard across US, we're less then that with our flat rate.

Fair comment however your flat fee equates to 25% of a $100k role. It doesn't become a viable economic alternative for employers until you reach the $150k mark. If your primary target is CTO level roles then great, otherwise your fee is ridiculous.

We haven't had any companies complain about our pricing. But oure real focus is on making a better experience.

I think you might be underestimating the level of pay for developers in a lot of the "big" areas. (SF, Silicon Valley, NYC) I've personally heard of friends (fresh college grads) getting offers anywhere from $70k to $150k.

Fresh college grads getting $150k? I find that incredibly hard to believe.

As a fresh college grad from a non-top tier school in Silicon Valley, many of my friends are making ~$100K/year right out of school. I'm sure people from top tier schools going to Google and Facebook can make double that.

> a dev with 5 years of exp can easily be making more then 80K+.

Are you assuming west-coast? Generally speaking, "easily" sounds like a stretch to me.

Have you considered the possibility that charging a flat fee instead of a percentage of annual salary makes your service inappropriate for most areas outside of silicon valley or NYC?

A recruiter who specializes and limits their scope sounds great to me.

I agree that charging a % would be better for example for companies hiring not in US,

Yeah, I go to school in Ohio and am going to be working on the west coast. Salaries on the west coast are >2x (close to 3x) what I would have made in Ohio (Cleveland).

I haven't seen anybody raise the point about the cost of living. The salaries are more because the cost of living is higher. With 50k you can afford a mortgage for a nice house in the midwest, but in NYC the equivalent monthly income will qualify you for a tiny studio or 1 BR apt.

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