--- title: "Best Engineering Recruiting Firms (2026)" description: "Engineering recruiting firms for software, data, and cloud roles: Coastal Recruiting, Motion, Harnham, La Fosse, TEKsystems, and published fees." url: https://getaob.com/engineering-recruiters --- # Best engineering recruiting firms (2026): who hires software, data, and cloud talent Engineering recruiting firms fill software, data, infrastructure, and cloud roles. Some are contingency agencies for startups. Some are staffing firms for contract engineers. Some are marketplaces where you hire remote developers with less of a traditional search. The broader startup list, which mixes engineering, go-to-market hiring, executive search, and job platforms, is [tech recruiting agencies](https://getaob.com/recruiting-agencies). This page stays on engineering. Quota-carrying sales hiring is on [GTM and sales recruiting agencies](https://getaob.com/gtm-sales-recruiters). Coastal Recruiting is listed first because it places engineers at VC-backed startups and is a OneGTM client. By [Garrett Wolfe](https://garrettawolfe.com), founder of OneGTM (Clay Artisan Solutions Partner) and former GTM engineer at Unify. Updated November 4, 2026. Key takeaways - Coastal Recruiting places engineering, product, and GTM talent at VC-backed startups and publishes a 25% fee on first-year base salary, with nothing due upfront. - Motion Recruitment and TEKsystems staff software, data, and infrastructure talent on contract and direct hire. Harnham specializes in data, analytics, and AI. - La Fosse recruits software engineers in the UK and Europe, including contract and permanent roles. - Nigel Frank and Jefferson Frank are Tenth Revolution Group brands, for Microsoft technology and for cloud talent. - Terminal and Arc are marketplaces for remote developers. Gun.io is a network for senior engineering work. Most of these firms do not publish a percentage. ## Startup and specialist engineering recruiters Use these when the role is a software, data, or product-engineering hire and you want a recruiter who works that market. Coastal is a client. Read the rest of the list with that in mind. ### [Coastal Recruiting](https://www.coastalrecruiting.co/?utm_source=onegtm&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=engineering-recruiters) OneGTM client Boutique firm for VC-backed startups, placing engineering, product, and GTM talent. Offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, and Miami. OneGTM built the candidate sourcing system its recruiters use. The numbers are in the [Coastal Recruiting case study](https://getaob.com/coastal-recruiting-case-study). **Best for:** Seed to growth-stage startups hiring engineers **Fees:** Placement fee of 25% of first-year base salary. No upfront payment. Free replacement if a hire leaves within the guarantee period. ### [Motion Recruitment](https://www.motionrecruitment.com/?utm_source=onegtm&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=engineering-recruiters) IT staffing firm placing software, data, infrastructure, cybersecurity, product, and embedded engineers on contract, direct-hire, and statement-of-work terms. Also on the [tech recruiting agencies](https://getaob.com/recruiting-agencies) list. **Best for:** Contract and direct-hire engineers in the US **Fees:** Fees not published. ### [Harnham](https://www.harnham.com/?utm_source=onegtm&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=engineering-recruiters) Data and AI recruitment firm. It places data science, analytics, AI, and data engineering talent on a permanent or contract basis, from individual contributors through leadership. **Best for:** Data, analytics, and AI hiring **Fees:** Fees not published. ### [La Fosse](https://www.lafosse.com/?utm_source=onegtm&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=engineering-recruiters) UK and Europe technology recruiter with a software engineering practice covering contract and permanent hires, including JavaScript, Python, Java, mobile, and DevOps roles. **Best for:** Software engineers in the UK and Europe **Fees:** Fees not published. ## Cloud specialists and technology staffing Nigel Frank and Jefferson Frank sit inside Tenth Revolution Group. TEKsystems is the large technology staffing option when you need contract coverage at volume. ### [Nigel Frank](https://www.tenthrevolution.com/our-expertise/nigel-frank/?utm_source=onegtm&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=engineering-recruiters) Microsoft technology recruiting brand of Tenth Revolution Group. It places people across the Microsoft stack, including Azure, Dynamics, and related engineering and consulting roles. **Best for:** Microsoft and Azure engineering hires **Fees:** Fees not published. ### [Jefferson Frank](https://www.tenthrevolution.com/our-expertise/jefferson-frank/?utm_source=onegtm&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=engineering-recruiters) Cloud recruiting brand of Tenth Revolution Group, focused on AWS and cloud talent. It is a sister brand to Nigel Frank. **Best for:** AWS and cloud engineering hires **Fees:** Fees not published. ### [TEKsystems](https://www.teksystems.com/?utm_source=onegtm&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=engineering-recruiters) Technology services and talent firm. It staffs technical roles and also delivers technology projects. A fit when you need contract engineers across several teams. **Best for:** Contract technology talent at scale **Fees:** Fees not published. Choosing tools for an outbound build? Send me your current stack and what you want it to do. I'll tell you what I'd keep and what I'd change. Get a stack review ## Remote developer marketplaces A marketplace is cheaper to start than a retained search, and you do more of the selection. Leadership search for a VP of Engineering is a different product, covered on [executive search firms](https://getaob.com/executive-search-firms) and, for technology leadership, on [tech recruiting agencies](https://getaob.com/recruiting-agencies). ### [Terminal](https://terminal.io/?utm_source=onegtm&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=engineering-recruiters) Talent platform for hiring software developers in Canada, Latin America, and Europe. The site says hires come with a 14-day guarantee. **Best for:** Remote software developers outside a traditional agency search **Fees:** Pricing not published as a placement percentage. The site advertises a 14-day guarantee. ### [Arc](https://arc.dev/?utm_source=onegtm&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=engineering-recruiters) Marketplace of remote talent for freelance or full-time work, including developers, designers, and product managers. Arc says candidates are vetted. **Best for:** Hiring a vetted remote developer without a full search **Fees:** Pricing not published on the homepage. ### [Gun.io](https://gun.io/?utm_source=onegtm&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=engineering-recruiters) Network for hiring senior engineers on contract or longer engagements. The site positions the work as high-stakes engineering, with vetting before an introduction. **Best for:** Senior contract engineers **Fees:** Fees not published. Fees are from each firm's own site as of November 2026. Where a firm does not publish a percentage, the card says so. This is an opinionated list, not a paid ranking, and nobody paid to be on it. Coastal Recruiting is a OneGTM client. ## Engineering recruiting firms compared | Firm | Best for | Fee | | --- | --- | --- | | Coastal Recruiting | Seed to growth-stage startups hiring engineers | 25% of first-year base | | Motion Recruitment | Contract and direct-hire engineers in the US | Not published | | Harnham | Data, analytics, and AI hiring | Not published | | La Fosse | Software engineers in the UK and Europe | Not published | | Nigel Frank | Microsoft and Azure engineering hires | Not published | | Jefferson Frank | AWS and cloud engineering hires | Not published | | TEKsystems | Contract technology talent at scale | Not published | | Terminal | Remote software developers outside a traditional agency search | Not published | | Arc | Hiring a vetted remote developer without a full search | Not published | | Gun.io | Senior contract engineers | Not published | Fees as published on each firm's own site in November 2026. "Not published" means the firm does not list a percentage or a dollar amount. ## How to choose an engineering recruiter An agency that fills founding-engineer seats is rarely the one you want for a six-month contract platform team. Ask which of those they did last quarter. - Ask for three placements at companies your stage, in the same language or stack. - Get the fee, the guarantee, and whether contractors convert to full-time in writing. - Ask who sources, and whether they keep an off-limits list so they do not recruit your current engineers. - For a marketplace, ask who employs the developer and who holds the contract. - Agree how many candidates you will see per week, and how fast you will interview. ## Related lists Startup recruiting that also covers GTM roles and hiring platforms is on [tech recruiting agencies](https://getaob.com/recruiting-agencies). Sales hiring is on [GTM and sales recruiting agencies](https://getaob.com/gtm-sales-recruiters). Marketing and RevOps hiring is on [marketing and RevOps recruiters](https://getaob.com/revops-marketing-recruiters). Engineers inside banks and trading firms are on [finance and fintech recruiters](https://getaob.com/finance-recruiters). Life sciences technical hiring is on [healthcare and life sciences recruiters](https://getaob.com/healthcare-recruiters). Running the whole function is on [RPO firms](https://getaob.com/rpo-firms). ## Run a recruiting firm? Candidate outbound is a separate system OneGTM does not recruit engineers. For a recruiting firm, we build the candidate data, scoring, outreach, and reply triage the recruiters use. That is the system behind Coastal Recruiting. Accepted candidate intros grew 4.7x, from 72 in April to 340 in August 2026. The [case study](https://getaob.com/coastal-recruiting-case-study) has the build. - Interested candidates arrive in bursts, then dry up. - Recruiters write every note by hand. - You cannot say which sources produce accepted intros. Book a call ## Engineering recruiting FAQ ### What are the best engineering recruiting firms? For VC-backed startups, Coastal Recruiting places engineers and publishes a 25% fee on first-year base salary. Motion Recruitment and TEKsystems staff contract and direct-hire engineers. Harnham focuses on data and AI. La Fosse recruits software engineers in the UK and Europe. Nigel Frank and Jefferson Frank, both Tenth Revolution Group brands, cover Microsoft and cloud talent. Terminal, Arc, and Gun.io are remote marketplaces. Coastal is a OneGTM client. ### How much do engineering recruiters charge? Coastal Recruiting charges 25% of first-year base salary with nothing upfront. The other firms on this list do not publish a percentage. Contract staffing is usually a markup on the hourly rate. Marketplaces price a placement or a monthly rate. Ask which model applies before the first candidate. ### How is this different from the tech recruiting agencies list? The tech recruiting agencies page mixes startup engineering, sales hiring, executive search, and job platforms. This page is engineering, data, and cloud recruiting only. Motion Recruitment and Coastal Recruiting appear on both because they do engineering work. ### Should I use a staffing firm or a contingency recruiter for an engineer? Contingency fits a permanent hire you will employ, and you pay if you hire. A staffing firm fits a contract engineer you may convert later. A marketplace fits a remote developer when you want to choose from a vetted pool. A VP of Engineering is usually retained search. ### Does OneGTM recruit engineers? No. OneGTM builds candidate-sourcing and sales systems. Coastal Recruiting, a client, is the recruiting firm on this list that we have built for. Running a recruiting firm and want more interested candidates? ## Related - [Best tech recruiting agencies](https://getaob.com/recruiting-agencies): Tech recruiting agencies, search firms and hiring platforms for startups, with published fees. - [Best GTM and sales recruiting agencies](https://getaob.com/gtm-sales-recruiters): GTM and sales recruiting agencies for SaaS and tech, including UltraTalent, with the fee models they publish. - [Best marketing and RevOps recruiters](https://getaob.com/revops-marketing-recruiters): Marketing and RevOps recruiters and talent networks, with what they publish on fees. - [Best finance and fintech recruiters](https://getaob.com/finance-recruiters): Finance and fintech recruiters for banks, funds, and startups, with what they publish on fees. - [Best healthcare and life sciences recruiters](https://getaob.com/healthcare-recruiters): Healthcare and life sciences recruiters for pharma, biotech, and medtech, with how search is paid. - [Best executive search firms](https://getaob.com/executive-search-firms): Executive search firms for startups and growth companies, including CPI in New York, with how retained search is paid. - [Best RPO firms](https://getaob.com/rpo-firms): Recruitment process outsourcing firms for enterprise programs and smaller embedded teams. - [Coastal Recruiting case study](https://getaob.com/coastal-recruiting-case-study): How a recruiting firm grew recruiter-accepted candidate intros 4.7x in four months. ## Get a candidate outbound review Tell me what you're building. I reply the same day. Book a call at [getaob.com/#contact](https://getaob.com/#contact) or email [team@getaob.com](mailto:team@getaob.com).