Offer Acceptance Rate

(OAR)

Glossary of HR Terms Offer Acceptance Rate (OAR)

What is OAR?

Offer Acceptance Rate (OAR) is a recruiting metric that measures the percentage of job offers extended by an organization that are accepted by candidates. It reflects how competitive and attractive an employer’s offers are in the job market and serves as a key indicator of recruiting effectiveness.

Why it matters

A low OAR may signal issues such as uncompetitive compensation, a weak employer brand, misalignment between candidate expectations and role requirements, or problems in the candidate experience. Monitoring this metric helps organizations identify gaps in their hiring strategy, refine offers, and strengthen employer reputation to secure top talent.

Where it fits in the HR stack

Offer Acceptance Rate sits in the talent acquisition analytics layer of the HR stack. It is tracked within ATS platforms and recruiting dashboards and often integrated with HRIS and compensation tools to ensure offer competitiveness and alignment with market benchmarks.

Common use cases/Examples

  • Evaluating whether compensation packages are competitive in a specific market.
  • Comparing acceptance rates across departments, job families, or regions.
  • Measuring the impact of employer branding campaigns on candidate decisions.
  • Identifying bottlenecks in the candidate experience that cause drop-offs.
  • Benchmarking offer acceptance performance against industry peers.

Examples of companies that use it:

  • Tech companies like Google and Microsoft, which track OAR closely to ensure they remain competitive for high-demand technical talent.
  • Enterprises such as Deloitte or Accenture, where OAR impacts the ability to scale large global hiring initiatives.
  • SMBs and startups using ATS platforms like Greenhouse, Lever, or Workable to measure OAR and improve offer strategies.

FAQ

OAR = (Number of Offers Accepted ÷ Number of Offers Extended) × 100.

A healthy benchmark is typically above 85 percent, but this varies by industry, role type, and market competitiveness.

Compensation, benefits, employer reputation, career development opportunities, speed of the hiring process, and candidate experience.

By offering competitive packages, clearly communicating value propositions, maintaining a positive candidate experience, and ensuring alignment between role expectations and candidate interests.

Yes. Consistently low acceptance rates may harm reputation in the job market, while strong acceptance rates reinforce the organization’s image as an attractive employer.