Calculate your employee turnover rate, voluntary vs involuntary attrition, and estimated cost of employee turnover. Includes 2026 industry benchmarks.
Turnover rate measures how many employees leave an organization over a given time period, expressed as a percentage of the average workforce.
Enter headcount data for your chosen time period (monthly, quarterly, or annual).
Employee turnover costs organizations 1.5–2x an employee's annual salary when accounting for recruiting, onboarding, lost productivity, and institutional knowledge loss. Tracking and benchmarking your turnover rate is the first step to reducing it.
How do I calculate employee turnover rate?
Divide the number of employees who left during a period by the average number of employees during that same period, then multiply by 100. Use (beginning + ending headcount) ÷ 2 for the average.
What is a good employee turnover rate?
It varies significantly by industry. Knowledge-work industries (pharma, technology) typically see 10-15% healthy turnover. Retail and hospitality may see 40-60%. Anything above your industry benchmark consistently suggests a retention problem worth investigating.
What is the difference between turnover rate and attrition rate?
Turnover rate includes all separations (voluntary + involuntary) AND replacement hires. Attrition rate only counts positions that are not refilled — the workforce shrinks. Turnover measures churn; attrition measures net workforce reduction.
How much does employee turnover cost?
SHRM estimates replacing an employee costs 6-9 months of their salary. For specialized roles (pharma sales reps, data scientists), replacement costs can reach 200% of annual salary when including lost productivity during ramp-up.