What Is Ladders Recruiter?
Ladders Recruiter is a free job posting site where employers can find seasoned professionals who are midcareer or late career. Ladders Recruiter facilitates:
- Job posting and promotion
- Talent search functionality
- Candidate outreach
How Ladders Recruiter Works
We tested Ladders Recruiter on a Windows laptop using the Google Chrome browser. Once we set up our free account, we had to choose between posting a job or searching for candidates.
When setting up your account in Ladders Recruiter, you’ll have to pick between posting jobs or searching for candidates.
When choosing one option or the other, you’re not blocked from going back to choose the other, so you can always go back and change your choice.
No matter which option you choose, the site takes you to the pricing page. For example, if you choose the “post a job” option, you’re taken to the promoted jobs plans page and if you choose to start searching for candidates, you’re directed to the sourcing plans page.
Featured Partners
1
BambooHR
Yes
Yes
ATS
2
Pinpoint ATS
Yes
Yes
24/7 customer support, easy-to-use interface, fast and flexible workflows, hundreds of integrations
3
ClearCompany
Yes
Yes
Employee engagement
Ladders Recruiter Features
Ladders Recruiter allows employers to post jobs, promote jobs and source candidates.
Job Posting
Regardless of whether you’re posting a free or paid job post, the process of creating the job post itself is straightforward. You enter the job title, job description, location preferences and other relevant information.
Ladders Recruiter’s job posting interface is where you enter job title, job description and other relevant information.
An interesting feature that we found helpful is that when you enter a job title from Ladders Recruiter’s drop-down list, you see a graph of salary data to give you an idea of whether your compensation range is competitive enough.
Ladders Recruiter suggests competitive compensation from within the job post draft.
When you finish entering information you click “Proceed to Preview,” then “Continue with Posting.” We were led to screening questions about visa status, authorization to work in the United States, salary expectations and more. You can select which questions to ask and, of the questions you do ask, which ones should be required or optional.
It’s also important to note that paid subscribers receive one free monthly job post. In addition, Ladders Recruiter restricts what kinds of jobs you can post. For example, it does not allow you to post jobs that are based outside of the U.S. or Canada, commission-based roles, financial advisor roles, part-time or contract roles that are less than 12 months or jobs that compensate less than $80,000.
Job Post Promotion
Ladders Recruiter claims that all jobs in its promoted post packages are promoted automatically. However, elsewhere we found the option to promote a job ad for $10.70 per day for up to eight weeks to maximize its visibility. We assume that this optional add-on is for the one free monthly job post that paid subscribers receive. In any case, promoting your job post ensures that it appears at the top of job seekers’ search results and in front of a qualified audience.
Candidate Sourcing
You can search Ladders Recruiter’s database by location, skills, work experience, education, job title, industry, desired compensation or by a specific name. When we tried searching for an “Editorial Manager” who desires a salary range of $120,000 to $130,000, we landed on the sourcing plan pricing page.
Ladders Recruiter’s search interface
Alternatively, we tried the Quick Search function, which leads you through a series of questions to help you find what you’re looking for. We selected the industry, specialty and desired location but were also ultimately directed to purchase a sourcing plan. So, there’s not much searching you can do without paying for either a jobs plan or sourcing plan.
Ladders Recruiter’s Quick Search interface
Ladders Recruiter Pricing & Plans
Ladders Recruiter has two different types of plans. You can either purchase a package of job posts or subscribe to a monthly sourcing plan.
Promoted Job Post Packages
Ladders Recruiter’s Promoted Job Post plans are great for recruiters who want to advertise their job posts and let the applications come in.
It’s unclear how Ladders’ promotion pricing works in these packages. While it claims that the promoted job post plans are all promoted jobs, it also advertises the ability to promote your job post for $10.70 per day for up to eight weeks. The latter claim might apply to your one free monthly job post.
| Single Job Post | Three Job Posts | 10 Job Posts | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Total Price
|
$599
|
$1,707
|
$5,390
|
|
Cost per Job Post
|
$599
|
$569
|
$539
|
|
Percentage Savings per Job Post
|
N/A
|
5%
|
10%
|
|
Job Ad Promotion
|
Included
|
Included
|
Included
|
Sourcing Plans
The sourcing plans are better suited for recruiters who want more control over the sourcing and vetting process.
| Lite Access | Full Access | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Monthly Price
|
$299 per month
|
$599 per month
|
Custom
|
|
Monthly Price With Annual Billing
|
$239 per month
|
$499 per month
|
Custom
|
|
Resume Views
|
600 |
6,000
|
Custom
|
|
Dedicated Customer Support
|
Included
|
Included
|
Custom
|
|
Advanced Search
|
Included
|
Included
|
Custom
|
|
Saved Searches
|
600 |
1,200
|
Custom
|
|
ATS Integration
|
N/A
|
Included
|
Custom
|
|
Live Support
|
N/A
|
Included
|
Custom
|
Lite Access
Lite Access is great for companies that have lower hiring volumes for midmanagement to executive-level positions. As such, this plan is likely ideal for smaller and medium-sized businesses. A drawback with this plan is that you’ll have to navigate back and forth between Ladders Recruiter and your ATS as there is no ATS integration available in this tier.
Full Access
If you’re hiring in large volumes for mid-management roles and higher, the Full Access plan is likely a good fit. This plan is suited for large enterprise businesses with multiple managerial and executive layers.
Enterprise
Companies that need a job posting site that’s shaped to their specific needs should opt for the Enterprise plan that includes:
- ATS integration
- Promoted job posts
- Candidate sourcing
- Dedicated job feeds
- Branded company page
- Dedicated Customer Success Manager
Additional Features Worth Noting
Ladders Recruiter shows you preanswered interview questions from candidates in its database and enables you to promote jobs in a specific city via personalized emails.
Third Page
Third Page is a feature of Ladders Recruiter that collects more information from candidates in its database. Candidates can answer as many preinterview questions as they want. The questions relate to their work preferences and work style to help you gauge whether that candidate would integrate well with your team.
Candidates typically answer 125 Third Page questions on average but answering one question will activate the Third Page feature on their profile.
CityHire Emails
CityHire emails are a way for companies to aggressively recruit in a specific city by sending a customized email to qualified candidates for your posted roles in that particular city.
Ladders Recruiter Customer Service and Support
Sourcing plan subscribers all get a dedicated Customer Success Contact and Full Access sourcing plan subscribers receive access to live support via chat. Ladders Recruiter customers can get support by phone, email, knowledge base or support ticket. We were able to find out the methods of contacting customer support by searching our browser rather than being able to find it easily on the website or from within our account.
Ladders Recruiter Alternatives & How They Compare
| Ladders Recruiter | Guru | Handshake | Wellfound | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Starting Price
|
$599 per job post, $299 per month or $239 per month when billed annually
|
Free; 2.9% handling fee*
|
Free, then $309 per job per month
|
Free, then $149 per month
|
|
Free Trial
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
|
Syndicated Job Postings
|
No
|
No
|
Yes
|
No
|
|
ATS
|
Via integration in Full Access and Enterprise plans only
|
No
|
Available via integration in Talent Engagement tier
|
Built-in or via integration included
|
|
Candidate Matching
|
No
|
Enterprise
|
Yes
|
Yes, via premium add-on
|
|
Candidate Relationship Management
|
Text and phone call
|
In-app messages
|
Text and email
|
In-platform messaging and email
|
|
Customizable Workflows
|
No
|
Enterprise
|
No
|
Yes
|
|
Automations
|
No
|
Enterprise
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
|
Scheduling Tools
|
No
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
|
Interviewing Tools
|
No
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
|
Onboarding
|
No
|
Enterprise
|
Consultation services in Talent Engagement plan
|
No
|
|
Analytics and Reporting
|
No
|
Enterprise
|
Yes
|
No
|
|
Templates
|
No
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
|
Third-party Integrations
|
ATS integrations in Full Access and Enterprise plans only
|
Enterprise
|
Greenhouse, iCIMS and Workday in Talent Engagement plan
|
Slack, plus ATS integration included for Ashby, Greenhouse, Lever and Workable
|
|
Customer Support
|
Support ticket, phone, email, dedicated Customer Success Contact included, dedicated Customer Success Manager in Enterprise plan
|
Support ticket, phone and email
|
Knowledge base, email and chat
|
Knowledge base and email
|
|
Mobile App
|
No
|
No
|
iOS and Android, for university and student users only
|
No
|
|
Read Reviews
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*Guru reimburses for the invoicing fee if you pay freelancers via e-check or wire transfer.
Ladders Recruiter vs Guru
Ladders Recruiter and Guru target very different hiring needs. While Ladders Recruiter will help you find seasoned professionals, Guru is great for sourcing and managing freelancers. You can still take advantage of both to hire temporary talent as well as experienced, full-time employees.
Ladders Recruiter vs Handshake
Ladders Recruiter and Handshake are opposite job posting sites. Ladders Recruiter helps you find experienced talent while Handshake is designed to help businesses recruit and hire emerging talent who is starting out in their career. However, because they serve different experience levels doesn’t make these solutions mutually exclusive. You can use both if you’re hiring for entry-level as well as mid- to senior level in your organization.
Ladders Recruiter vs Wellfound
Ladders Recruiter and Wellfound also serve different hiring needs. Ladders is a more general job posting site to reach all kinds of professionals, although it does cater specifically to experienced professionals seeking six-figure jobs. Meanwhile, Wellfound serves startups by helping them find qualified candidates in roles that startups typically need, such as software engineers and DevOps professionals. While you can use Ladders Recruiter to find a broader range of role types at a specific salary range, Wellfound helps you fill roles for a broader range of salaries but for a more narrow set of roles.
Our Expert Opinion
Setup
To get started with Ladders Recruiter, you enter your name, job title, phone number and email address. You then choose to either start posting jobs or sourcing candidates. It’s tricky to get to your one free job post per month, but once you get to the job post setup, it’s straightforward to enter job-related information. You’ll still need to sign up as a paid customer before being able to post your free job.
Ease of Use
We were only able to test out the job posting and candidate sourcing feature up to a certain point before we had to make a purchase to access its other features. So, from what we saw, Ladders Recruiter was straightforward and we especially liked the suggested salary range for job titles. However, customer support is not easy to find from within the interface or on the Ladders Recruiter website.
Featured Partners
1
BambooHR
Yes
Yes
ATS
2
Pinpoint ATS
Yes
Yes
24/7 customer support, easy-to-use interface, fast and flexible workflows, hundreds of integrations
3
ClearCompany
Yes
Yes
Employee engagement
Bottom Line: Is Ladders Recruiter Right For You?
Ladders Recruiter’s offering is simple. You can post and promote jobs and source candidates. It lacks the more sophisticated features that we’ve seen from other job posting sites, such as automatic candidate matching, interviewing and scheduling tools.
Ladders Recruiter is best for:
- Companies that want to fill midlevel, senior-level and executive-level roles
- Companies looking for experienced professionals in the U.S. and Canada only
- Companies that want flexible pricing options
- Recruiters who want contextualized candidate profiles
Ladders Recruit is not recommended for:
- Companies that are looking for a job posting site to hire for a wide range of experience levels
- Companies that want to hire talent in other countries besides the U.S. and Canada
- Recruiters who want a job posting site with automation
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is Ladders Recruiter?
Ladders Recruiter is a job posting site that allows employers to source and hire candidates for midlevel to executive-level roles that earn six-figure salaries.
How much does it cost to post a job on Ladders Recruiter?
Job posting plans start at $299 per month or $239 per month when you commit to annual billing. Under the promoted job post plans, you get one free job post per month. You can promote your free job post by paying an additional $10.70 per day for up to eight weeks.
Who uses Ladders?
Ladders is for job seekers, while Ladders Recruiter is for employers. However, the Ladders site brings both job seekers and employers together to find and fill jobs, respectively.
