Signing bonuses became less prevalent in 2024 but still remain more popular than in pre-pandemic years, according to a Jan. 28 report by Indeed’s Hiring Lab.
About 3.7% of U.S. job postings on Indeed mentioned a signing bonus in December 2024, nearly double the pre-pandemic average of 1.9%. Pay-upon-hire bonuses began growing during the second half of 2020 and peaked at 5.6% in September 2022 but have declined since then.
“This pattern mirrors other labor market trends over the same period, including rising and falling wage growth, and the tightening and subsequent easing of job openings,” Indeed economist Cory Stahle wrote. “This suggests that signing bonus data provides another valuable perspective on labor market tightness and recruiting intensity.”
The still-elevated use of signing bonuses appears to indicate that hiring managers still feel the need to compete for workers, Stahle wrote. Wage growth began to cool before signing bonuses, which could mean a shift in recruitment strategies in favor of one-time signing bonuses over raises, he added. This could be viewed as a flexible and cost-effective recruitment option.
The signing bonus strategy also appears to be more prevalent in certain industries and roles, particularly healthcare and in-person roles rather than knowledge work or remote roles. In December 2024, Indeed job posts with signing bonuses were highest for veterinary, nursing, physician and surgeon, beauty and wellness and medical technician roles, with roughly 10%-12% of roles offering signing bonuses in these areas.
On the other hand, arts and entertainment, banking and finance, information design and documentation, mathematics and marketing had the lowest percentages of signing bonus offers, all less than 1%.
“The labor market has definitively cooled but has largely stabilized at a healthy level where signing bonuses remain vital for recruiting workers,” Stahle wrote. “Utilizing signing bonuses — in addition to offering benefits and/or employee flexibility like hybrid or remote work — may be good alternatives to stand out in the hopes of recruiting workers without committing to long-term wage increases.”
Even at the height of signing bonuses in 2022, the recruitment strategy appeared to be much more common for jobs and sectors that required in-person work, according to another Indeed report. In many cases, employers are using bonuses to keep workers in the office, trading flexibility for more cash.
