Custom ATS for a Recruitment Agency: London Cost (2026)

The verdict in three sentences

From 20 consultants upwards, a recruitment agency in London or Paris paying 120 EUR per user per month spends more than 36,000 EUR a year (about 31,000 GBP) on ATS licences, without owning its data or its roadmap. A custom ATS priced at 45,000 to 90,000 EUR pays back in 2 to 3 years and becomes an asset that adds value at fundraising or exit. Below 10 users, or if your process matches the market standard, stay on an off-the-shelf product.

Licences vs build: the real 5-year comparison

The cost of a market ATS does not stop at the licence. Add paid modules (multiposting, e-signature, client portal), connectors and annual price increases, often 5 to 8%.

These are 2026 ballpark figures for Paris and London (convert at roughly 0.86 GBP per EUR). The gap widens as the agency grows: each new consultant adds 1,440 EUR a year in licences, versus zero with a custom build.

The features that matter and what they cost

A custom ATS only makes sense if it fits your method: headhunting, mission-based search, shortlists presented to clients. Here is a typical budget breakdown.

GDPR (and UK GDPR) is not optional: the French CNIL recommends keeping candidate data for 2 years after last contact, and the UK ICO expects a similarly justified retention period. A well-built ATS purges or anonymises automatically, requests consent renewal and logs every access. Fines can reach 4% of global turnover.

Timeline and method: 4 to 6 months

Migration is the number one risk: check from day one that your current vendor allows a full export (CVs, notes, attachments) in a usable format.

Mini case study

Claire, partner at a 25-consultant recruitment agency, pays 36,000 EUR in licences and 6,000 EUR in modules a year, so 42,000 EUR. She commissions a custom ATS at 70,000 EUR, with 9,000 EUR a year for hosting and maintenance. Annual saving: 42,000 - 9,000 = 33,000 EUR. Break-even: 70,000 / 33,000 = 2.1 years. On top of that, AI parsing saves 20 minutes per candidate entered: at 300 candidates a month, that is 100 consultant hours recovered every month.

FAQ

How much does a custom ATS cost for a recruitment agency?

Budget 45,000 to 90,000 EUR depending on scope, plus 6,000 to 12,000 EUR a year for hosting and maintenance. An MVP limited to the candidate base and pipeline starts around 30,000 EUR.

From how many consultants does custom become profitable?

The threshold is around 15 to 20 users paying more than 100 EUR a month each. Below that, break-even often exceeds 4 years.

How should CV retention be handled under GDPR?

The reference period is 2 years after last contact. The ATS must purge or anonymise automatically and keep proof of consent, which represents 4,000 to 8,000 EUR of development.

Is AI CV parsing reliable?

On standard CVs, correct extraction exceeds 90% for identity, roles and skills. Human validation remains useful for salary expectations.

Can we recover data from our current ATS?

Yes in most cases, via CSV export or API, though attachments sometimes need a specific export. Plan 2 to 3 weeks for migration.

Let's scope your project. Send us your headcount, current tools and priorities, and we will price an MVP scope and a 6-month roadmap. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.