Top Echelon Review 2026

Top Echelon is recruiting software built for staffing agencies and independent recruiters. It combines an applicant tracking system (now called TE Recruit), a CRM for managing client relationships, and a split-placement recruiting network (TE Network) where agencies share job orders and candidates to fill positions faster. The split-placement network is the feature that no competitor replicates, and it is the main reason this tool deserves attention in a crowded ATS market.

Two Products, One Ecosystem

TE Recruit is the ATS and CRM side. You track candidates through customizable pipeline stages per job order, parse resumes with one click, post to multiple job boards simultaneously, manage client communications with full history, and schedule interviews through integrated calendar syncing with Outlook and Gmail. Hotlists let you group candidates and companies for quick access. The built-in search is powerful enough to find candidates by skills, location, experience level, or any custom field you create.

The Professional plan adds AI-powered candidate matching (Smart-TE AI), automated outreach sequences for candidate nurturing, custom application forms, a custom careers page with your own domain, an organization chart view, and full API access. You also get 10,000 emails/month, 100GB storage, and weekly backups instead of monthly.

TE Network is the split-placement network. Over 500 agencies and 1,000+ recruiters across the US and Canada participate. You post a job order to the network when you have the client but not the candidate (or vice versa). Another recruiter fills the other half, and you split the placement fee. The network has been running since 1988, making it one of the oldest in the industry. Membership requires a four-step screening process where the agency owner must be a full-time recruiter, which keeps quality high.

The combination is what makes Top Echelon different from everything else. You get your ATS, your CRM, and a built-in network of potential collaborators in one platform. Competitors like Bullhorn, Greenhouse, and JobAdder offer solid ATS and CRM features but nothing equivalent to the revenue-generating split-placement network.

Pricing

TE Recruit Standard at $75/user/month (annual billing) or $89/user/month (monthly). Includes resume parsing, pipeline management, custom fields, email and calendar integration, job board integrations, a careers page, browser extension for sourcing, GDPR/CCPA compliance, and no-cost support and training. Allocation: 5,000 emails/month, 10GB storage, one backup/month.

TE Recruit Professional at $89/user/month (annual) or $110/user/month (monthly). Adds everything in Standard plus Smart-TE AI, automation sequences, custom application forms, custom careers page domain, org chart, and API access. Allocation: 10,000 emails/month, 100GB storage, weekly backups.

TE Network membership runs $135/month (annual) or $150/month (monthly). There is a $350 one-time startup fee (waived on annual plans) plus a 6% brokerage fee on placements made through the network. The brokerage fee only applies when you actually complete a split placement, so the risk is minimal. You are essentially paying for access to deal flow.

15-day free trial with no credit card required and full version access on both products. Live demos also available on request.

What Recruiters Say

Capterra: 4.6/5 from 516 reviews. G2: 4.5/5. GetApp: 4.6/5 from 447 reviews. The aggregate satisfaction rate across platforms is 92% from roughly 1,575 total reviews. The feedback is remarkably consistent: easy to use with minimal training required, excellent customer support that includes live training sessions, strong candidate tracking and pipeline management, and good value for the price (87% of reviewers on Capterra mention pricing positively).

The criticisms center on email integration that can be inconsistent with certain providers, limited automation and AI features compared to newer competitors like Bullhorn, occasional double data entry issues, and some limitations with third-party CRM integrations. The platform lacks predictive analytics and advanced automated candidate matching that enterprise tools now offer. Email Inbox Syncing is listed as "Coming Soon" on the Professional plan, which suggests they know this is a gap.

How It Compares

Against Bullhorn ($75+/user, enterprise-focused), Top Echelon is simpler, easier to learn, and has the split-placement network. Bullhorn offers more advanced AI sourcing, bulk outreach, and a more sophisticated platform suited for mid-to-large staffing agencies with 20+ recruiters. Against Greenhouse ($6,000+/year), the comparison barely applies. Greenhouse is built for in-house corporate HR teams, not recruiting agencies. Against JobAdder ($99+/user, global), Top Echelon is more affordable and US/Canada focused, but JobAdder has stronger multi-region support and a broader international presence.

The marketplace now includes 30+ integrations: ZipRecruiter, ZoomInfo, Checkr, Swordfish AI, hireEZ, Spark Hire, and Verified First among them, covering sourcing, background checks, video interviews, and payroll. Not the widest ecosystem, but it covers the essential recruiting workflow needs.

If you run a small to mid-size staffing agency (1-20 recruiters) in the US or Canada, Top Echelon gives you a capable ATS at a competitive price with a unique collaborative network that can directly generate revenue through split placements. The recently rebranded platform (formerly called Big Biller) has a fresh UI and growing feature set. The split-placement model is genuinely useful for agencies with strong client relationships but gaps in candidate coverage for certain specialties or geographies.