Glossary
A plain-language definition from the Curriculo hiring glossary.
Time to fill is the number of days between the day a job is opened and the day a candidate accepts the offer.
The formula
Time to fill = offer acceptance date minus job opening date.
Some teams start the clock when the role is approved, others when the job post goes live. Pick one and use it every time.
Time to fill vs time to hire
Time to fill includes all the waiting before the right person shows up. Time to hire starts later, when a specific candidate enters your pipeline, and measures how fast you move that person to a yes. Time to fill helps with planning. Time to hire shows how efficient your process is.
A worked example
You open a product designer role on March 3. The candidate you hire applies on March 24 and accepts on April 21.
- Time to fill: March 3 to April 21, or 49 days.
- Time to hire: March 24 to April 21, or 28 days.
The 21 days before the hire applied point to a sourcing gap. The 28 days after point to the speed of your process.
Why it matters
An open role costs money every day: lost output, overworked teammates, and delayed projects. Knowing your typical time to fill lets you open searches early enough. If engineering roles take 60 days to fill, you need to start two months before the start date.
Common mistakes
- Mixing different start points across roles, so averages mean nothing.
- Comparing time to fill across very different roles without splitting them.
- Cutting time to fill by lowering the bar.
- Ignoring it in headcount planning, so hires always arrive late.
Compare it with time to hire, read the full time to hire guide, and use your numbers in headcount planning.