The True Cost of Hiring SDRs in 2026 (With Calculator)

When I ask B2B SaaS leaders how much their SDR team costs, most quote me the base salary. Maybe they add benefits and tools. But the true cost of hiring SDRs includes dozens of hidden expenses that most companies never properly calculate.

The reality? That SDR you think costs $65,000 per year actually costs closer to $120,000 when you factor in everything. And when you calculate cost per meeting, the numbers get even more eye-opening.

In this guide, I'll break down every single cost involved in building and maintaining an SDR team, show you the real math, and help you calculate your actual ROI. Whether you're planning to hire your first SDR or evaluating your existing team's performance, these numbers will change how you think about outbound sales.

The Obvious Costs: What Everyone Calculates

Let's start with the expenses everyone knows about. Even here, companies often underestimate the true numbers.

Base Salary

In 2026, the average SDR salary varies significantly by market:

• Entry-level SDR: $55,000 - $65,000
• Mid-level SDR: $65,000 - $80,000
• Senior SDR: $80,000 - $95,000
• Major tech hubs (SF, NYC, Seattle): Add 20-40%

This is just base salary. The OTE (on-target earnings) including commission is typically 1.5x to 2x base. So a $65,000 base SDR has an OTE of $100,000 to $130,000.

Benefits and Taxes

Employers pay significantly more than base salary:

• Payroll taxes: 7.65% (FICA)
• Health insurance: $6,000 - $12,000 per year
• 401k match: 3-6% of salary
• Paid time off: 15-20 days (built into cost)
• Other benefits: $2,000 - $5,000

Total benefits package adds 25-35% on top of base salary.

Sales Tools and Technology

Every SDR needs a tech stack:

• CRM (HubSpot, Salesforce): $50 - $150/month
• Sales engagement platform (Outreach, SalesLoft): $100 - $150/month
• Data enrichment (ZoomInfo, Apollo): $100 - $200/month
• Email verification: $50 - $100/month
• LinkedIn Sales Navigator: $80/month
• Call recording and intelligence: $50 - $100/month
• Calendar booking tool: $10 - $20/month

Total tech stack: $440 - $800 per SDR per month, or $5,280 - $9,600 per year.

Most companies calculate these three categories and stop. That's a mistake.

The Hidden Costs: What Most Companies Miss

Here's where the real expenses hide. These costs are just as real as salary, but rarely make it into ROI calculations.

Recruitment and Hiring

Getting the right SDR in the door costs more than you think:

• Job posting and advertising: $500 - $2,000
• Recruiter fees (if used): 15-25% of first year salary ($10,000 - $20,000)
• Internal recruiting time: 20-40 hours at manager's rate
• Interview time (multiple rounds): 10-15 hours across team
• Background checks and screening: $100 - $500

Average total hiring cost: $12,000 - $25,000 per SDR.

And that's just to get them hired. They haven't sent a single email yet.

Onboarding and Training

New SDRs aren't productive on day one. The ramp period is expensive:

• Onboarding time: 2-4 weeks of reduced productivity
• Training materials and resources: $500 - $2,000
• Manager training time: 40-60 hours in first month
• Sales enablement time: 20-30 hours
• Lost productivity during ramp: 3-6 months to full productivity

During the first 90 days, your SDR is being paid full salary but generating minimal pipeline. This "ramp cost" equals roughly 25% of annual compensation.

Management Overhead

SDRs need active management. The rule of thumb is one manager per 6-8 SDRs.

• SDR Manager salary: $110,000 - $150,000
• Manager benefits and taxes: +35%
• Manager's tools and expenses: $10,000+/year

Per SDR, management overhead adds $20,000 - $28,000 annually.

Turnover and Replacement Costs

This is the big one that nobody wants to talk about. SDR turnover averages 35-40% annually in SaaS. High-performing teams still see 25% turnover.

When an SDR leaves:

• Lost productivity: 2-4 weeks notice period of reduced output
• Recruitment costs: $12,000 - $25,000 to hire replacement
• Onboarding costs: Another 3-month ramp period
• Knowledge loss: Institutional knowledge walks out the door
• Team morale impact: Harder to quantify but real

With 35% annual turnover, you're essentially paying 35% of full hiring and onboarding costs every single year.

Opportunity Cost of Low Performance

The average SDR books 5-10 qualified meetings per month. That means 20-25 working days to generate 5-10 meetings. What about the other 15-20 days?

Time breakdown of typical SDR activities:

• Manual research and prospecting: 30%
• List building and data entry: 20%
• Administrative tasks: 15%
• Internal meetings and training: 10%
• Actual selling activities: 25%

You're paying for 40 hours per week but only getting 10 hours of actual revenue-generating activity. That's an opportunity cost of 75% of salary.

The Complete Cost Breakdown

Let's add it all up for a single SDR at a typical B2B SaaS company:

Year 1 Costs (Including Hiring and Ramp):

• Base salary (OTE): $100,000
• Benefits and taxes: $30,000
• Tools and technology: $7,200
• Recruitment costs: $15,000
• Onboarding and training: $8,000
• Management overhead: $24,000
• Workspace and equipment: $3,000

Total Year 1 Cost: $187,200

Ongoing Annual Costs (Year 2+):

• Base salary (OTE): $105,000 (assuming 5% raise)
• Benefits and taxes: $31,500
• Tools and technology: $7,500
• Management overhead: $24,000
• Amortized turnover cost: $15,000 (35% turnover rate)
• Ongoing training: $2,000

Total Ongoing Annual Cost: $185,000

Calculating Cost Per Meeting

Now let's translate this into the metric that actually matters: cost per qualified meeting.

Average SDR performance:

• Meetings booked per month: 6-8
• Productive months per year: 9 (accounting for ramp, PTO, holidays)
• Annual meetings: 54-72

Using our $185,000 ongoing annual cost and 60 meetings per year:

Cost per meeting = $3,083

If only 50% of those meetings are truly qualified:

Cost per qualified meeting = $6,166

For many B2B SaaS companies, that's more than their average customer acquisition cost target.

How Team Size Changes the Economics

Many companies think that scaling to a larger SDR team will improve unit economics through efficiency. The opposite is often true.

2-3 SDR Team

• Total annual cost: $370,000 - $555,000
• Management overhead: Shared with other roles
• Cost per meeting: $3,200 - $4,000
• Risk: High impact from single person turnover

5-6 SDR Team

• Total annual cost: $925,000 - $1,110,000
• Management overhead: Requires full-time SDR manager
• Cost per meeting: $2,800 - $3,500
• Risk: Management complexity, inconsistent quality

10+ SDR Team

• Total annual cost: $1,850,000+
• Management overhead: Multiple managers needed
• Cost per meeting: $2,500 - $3,200
• Risk: Coordination overhead, quality control, high turnover impact

Notice that cost per meeting doesn't improve dramatically with scale. You get some efficiency, but you also add complexity.

The AI Lead Generation Alternative

Now let's compare this to AI-powered lead generation:

Typical AI Lead Generation Investment:

• Monthly service fee: $5,000 - $15,000
• Annual cost: $60,000 - $180,000
• Setup time: 1-2 weeks
• Ramp time: Immediate
• Management overhead: Minimal

Typical AI Performance:

• Meetings per month: 15-25
• Annual meetings: 180-300
• Cost per meeting: $400 - $800

That's 75-85% lower cost per meeting than traditional SDRs, with no hiring, training, or turnover costs.

Beyond the Numbers: Qualitative Factors

Cost isn't the only consideration. Other factors matter too:

Advantages of Human SDRs

• Relationship building: Can build genuine rapport with prospects
• Complex selling: Better at navigating complex organizational structures
• Adaptability: Can pivot strategy based on market feedback
• Brand representation: Represents your company culture directly

Advantages of AI Lead Generation

• Consistency: Same quality every day, no bad days
• Scale: Can engage thousands of prospects simultaneously
• Speed: Immediate responses, no time zone limitations
• Data: Perfect tracking and analytics of every interaction
• Optimization: Continuous A/B testing and improvement

Making the Right Choice for Your Business

The decision between SDRs and AI isn't always binary. Here's how to think about it:

Choose Human SDRs If:

• You're in a complex, relationship-driven market
• Average deal size exceeds $100,000 annually
• Sales cycles are 6+ months
• You need deep product expertise in conversations
• Your ICP includes very senior executives

Choose AI Lead Generation If:

• You have a clear, well-defined ICP
• Your product has proven product-market fit
• Deal sizes are $5,000 - $100,000 annually
• You need predictable, scalable pipeline
• Cost efficiency is a key priority

Hybrid Approach:

Many companies get the best results by combining both:

• AI handles top-of-funnel outreach and initial qualification
• Human SDRs take qualified prospects through discovery
• AEs focus purely on closing deals

This gives you the efficiency of AI with the relationship-building of humans, while dramatically improving SDR job satisfaction by removing the worst parts of the role.

Conclusion: Know Your True Numbers

The cost of hiring SDRs is significantly higher than most companies realize. When you properly account for all costs, that $65,000 SDR actually costs $185,000+ annually.

More importantly, when you calculate cost per qualified meeting, traditional SDR teams often cost $3,000 - $6,000 per meeting. For many B2B SaaS companies, that's simply not sustainable.

AI lead generation offers a compelling alternative with 75-85% lower cost per meeting, zero ramp time, and perfect consistency. But it's not right for every situation.

The key is understanding your true costs, measuring the right metrics, and choosing the approach that delivers the best ROI for your specific business.

Key Takeaways:

• True SDR cost is 2-3x higher than base salary due to benefits, tools, training, management, and turnover
• Average cost per qualified meeting for SDR teams ranges from $3,000 - $6,000
• Hidden costs like turnover (35% annually) and ramp time (3+ months) significantly impact ROI
• AI lead generation typically delivers $400 - $800 cost per meeting, 75-85% lower than human SDRs
• The best approach depends on your deal size, sales complexity, and growth stage

Want to calculate your specific SDR costs and see how they compare to alternatives? Book a free ROI analysis call and we'll show you exactly what you're spending per meeting.