About the Employee Turnover Rate Calculator
This employee turnover rate calculator measures how many people left your organization during a period relative to your average headcount. Enter headcount at the start and end of the period, the number of separations (and how many were voluntary), plus new hires, and it returns the overall turnover rate, voluntary and involuntary rates, the retention rate and an annualized figure you can compare across months or quarters.
HR teams, founders and managers use turnover to spot retention problems early, benchmark against their industry and estimate hiring needs. Splitting out voluntary exits (resignations, retirements) from involuntary ones (dismissals, layoffs) shows whether people are choosing to leave.
The calculation uses the standard HR method: separations divided by average headcount. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics JOLTS survey reports separation rates the same way, as separations divided by employment. Annualizing a monthly or quarterly rate simply scales it to 12 months, which assumes the same pace continues.
With the default inputs, the turnover rate is 14.4%. Change any value above to recalculate instantly.
How to use the employee turnover rate calculator
- 1Enter headcount on the first and last day of the period.
- 2Enter how many employees left, and how many of those left voluntarily.
- 3Enter the number of new hires in the same period.
- 4Choose the period length to get an annualized rate.
- 5Compare voluntary turnover and retention with your industry benchmark.
Formula and method
Turnover divides the number of employees who left during the period by the average number employed, which smooths out growth or shrinkage during the period. The voluntary and involuntary rates use the same denominator, so they add up to the total turnover rate.
Retention looks only at the people who were there at the start: employees at the end minus those hired during the period, divided by the starting headcount. The annualized rate multiplies a monthly, quarterly or half-year rate by 12 ÷ months in the period so it can be compared with yearly benchmarks.
- Start, End
- Headcount on the first and last day of the period
- Separations
- Everyone who left — resignations, retirements, dismissals, layoffs
- New hires
- People who joined during the period
Worked examples
Growing company, full year
Average headcount is (120 + 130) ÷ 2 = 125. Eighteen separations give 18 ÷ 125 = 14.4% turnover, of which 9.6% was voluntary. Of the original 120 staff, 130 − 28 = 102 remain, an 85% retention rate.
Small team, one quarter
Four departures against an average of 49 employees is 8.16% for the quarter. If that pace continued all year it would be about 32.65% annual turnover, even though 92% of the starting team stayed through the quarter.
Large employer with high voluntary attrition
With an average of 780 employees, 120 separations is 15.38% turnover. Voluntary exits alone are 11.54%, suggesting pay, management or career-path issues are worth investigating.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good employee turnover rate?+
It depends heavily on industry. Accommodation, food services and retail have some of the highest separation rates in BLS JOLTS data, often well above 50% a year, while government and finance run much lower. Compare your voluntary rate with the JOLTS quits rate for your industry rather than a single universal number.
What is the difference between turnover and attrition?+
The terms are often used interchangeably. Some HR teams use “attrition” for departures that are not backfilled (the role is eliminated) and “turnover” for departures that are replaced. The math in this calculator is the same for both.
Should I include involuntary separations?+
Total turnover includes both, but reporting them separately is more useful. Voluntary turnover reflects engagement and competitiveness, while involuntary turnover reflects hiring quality, performance management or restructuring.
Why use average headcount instead of starting headcount?+
Average headcount reflects how many people were actually employed across the period. If the company grew or shrank a lot, dividing by the starting number alone would overstate or understate the rate.
How is retention rate different from 100% minus turnover?+
Retention tracks only employees who were there at the start, while turnover counts every separation, including new hires who left quickly. That is why retention and turnover rarely add up to exactly 100%.