Recruitment Agency Website Design That Fills Roles: Two Audiences, Job Pages and Google's Job Rules

Key takeaways

• A recruitment site serves two audiences with opposite needs. Employers want proof you can fill a role. Candidates want to find a job and apply fast.
• Give each audience its own path from the home page. Two clear doors beat one crowded menu.
• Each job needs its own page. Google says JobPosting markup belongs on a page for a single job, never on a list page.
• Expired jobs must come down. Google says expired postings are not allowed, and failing to act on them may result in a manual action.
• Hiding jobs behind a login breaks Google's rules. Its policy says users must be able to see the job details without logging in.
• Agencies can mark a job as confidential. Google's page says to use the value "confidential" as the hiring organisation name when hiring anonymously for an employer.
• Check what a platform includes. One UK vendor's page lists integrations with 21 ATS and CRM vendors but no built-in job board or CV parsing.

The short answer

A recruitment agency website needs five blocks: an employer path, a candidate path, a live jobs section, proof, and a team. The home page should send employers to "Hire talent" and candidates to "Find a job", show a few current roles, and show proof such as placements by sector, a named team and real reviews. Each vacancy should have its own page with the details a candidate needs and an easy way to apply. If you want Google to show the jobs in its job search, add JobPosting markup to those pages and follow Google's policies.

Who is writing: Amariq designs and builds websites. We have not built a recruitment platform, and we have not tested the products named below. The page plan and checklist are our own summary of the sources linked in the text.

What ranks for this search, and what it leaves out

On 9 November 2026 the first page of Google (US, English) for "recruitment agency website design" showed Dribbble, Recsite, Shazamme, a Webflow showcase, a Reddit thread on r/Wordpress, RecruiterWEB, Wix templates, Awwwards, Behance and a Figma kit.

The pattern is clear. Half the results are galleries (Dribbble, Behance, Awwwards, Webflow). The rest are vendors selling a platform or a template. We read the Recsite page, which is a sales page that lists its job board, candidate portal and CV parsing and shows no prices, and the Webflow page, which is a gallery of 18 recruiting sites in its current view and says nothing about what such a site should include. Neither says how to organise a site around the two audiences, or what Google requires of job pages. That is the gap this guide fills.

Two audiences, two paths

A recruitment site is not like a plumber's site. You are marketing to two groups at once, and what persuades one can put off the other.

The practical answer is two doors on the home page, side by side, one for each audience, with different wording. Our guide to B2B website design covers the employer side, where buyers compare suppliers. For the candidate side, think about job search on a phone, which is where much of it happens. See mobile website design.

The page plan

Do not build a sector page for a sector you do not recruit in. If you do three sectors well, show three. A page for every industry makes you look like you do none.

Job pages and Google

If you want your vacancies to show in Google's job search, Google's JobPosting documentation (read on 9 November 2026 in the Search Central pages) sets rules a designer must plan for.

Google also says that if the hiring organisation is anonymous, such as a staffing agency acting for an unnamed employer, you should use the value "confidential" for the hiringOrganization name. And it says to put the same canonical URL on duplicate copies of a job.

On the technical side, Google recommends the Indexing API for job posting URLs over sitemaps, because it prompts Googlebot to crawl sooner, while still recommending a sitemap for the whole site. The job search experience is listed as available in North America, Latin America, Sub-Saharan Africa and many countries in Europe, Asia and the Middle East and North Africa, with Bangladesh, India and the United Kingdom among those named. Availability changes, so check the page for your market.

Google does not guarantee that markup produces a result. Its page says features that consume structured data may not show up. Plan for the markup as an extra, and make the job page good for people first.

The apply step

A candidate who finds a job should be able to apply in a minute. Google's own definition of a "direct apply" experience is one where the person does not have to click apply and provide information more than once, and the page offers a short and simple process. We read that as a reasonable standard for any site.

• Ask for the minimum. Name, email, phone and CV. Everything else can come later.
• Offer a way in for people without a CV to hand, such as a short form or a call back.
• Tell them what happens next. "We reply within two working days."
• Do not ask for sensitive details in the first form. Keep it to what you need to match them.
• Confirm receipt on screen and by email.

Proof for employers

Employers look for evidence, not slogans. Useful, honest items include:

• Roles filled by sector, described in words, with a number only if you can stand behind it.
• A short process: brief, search, shortlist, interview, offer, with typical steps.
• Named consultants with their sectors and a photo.
• Two or three employer reviews with a company name or role.
• Terms in plain language if you can share them, such as the type of fee model.

Do not invent figures or show logos of clients that have not agreed. See website testimonials page design for how to show reviews without overdoing it.

Handling candidate data

A recruitment site collects CVs, which are personal data. Add a clear privacy policy, say what you do with CVs, how long you keep them and how to ask for deletion, and check the rules in your country. This is not legal advice. Our guide to the privacy policy for a website covers the basics.

What to check before you buy a platform

Platforms for recruiters are sold as templates with a job board attached. We read one UK vendor's page, RecruiterWEB, on 9 November 2026. It lists four plans, all shown plus VAT in pounds: Fully Bespoke Design at £599 a month, Semi-Bespoke at £299, Template at £199 and Start-Up Recruiter at £149. It says there is no build cost and no upfront fee, and that every plan runs on the same platform with unlimited jobs, pages and users. It lists integrations with 21 ATS and CRM vendors and support for Google for Jobs and Bing job indexing. The page does not mention a job board, CV parsing or a built-in applicant tracking system, and does not state a contract length. We are not recommending or rating it. It shows what a vendor page does and does not tell you.

Ask any vendor the questions below.

1. Where do my jobs live, and do I keep the data if I leave?
2. Does each job get its own page with Google job markup, and can I control it?
3. Does it connect to my ATS or CRM, and how?
4. What happens to expired jobs?
5. Who owns the domain and the design?
6. What is the minimum term, and what is the exit cost?
7. Can candidates apply without logging in?

Monthly fees add up. Over three years, £199 a month is £7,164 and £599 a month is £21,564, which is our arithmetic from the vendor's listed prices, before VAT. A custom build costs more up front and has no monthly platform fee, but you then pay for hosting, updates and a job feed. See how much a website costs for how we think about the total.

A recruitment website checklist

1. The home page has one door for employers and one for candidates.
2. A few live jobs show on the home page.
3. Each job has its own page with the full description, location and a way to apply.
4. Job pages work without logging in.
5. Expired jobs are removed or marked, and the markup follows.
6. JobPosting markup, if used, sits only on single-job pages and matches what is visible.
7. Pay is shown only if the employer states it.
8. Candidates are never charged to apply.
9. Sector pages exist only for sectors you really recruit in.
10. Consultants are named with photos.
11. Proof is real and sourced.
12. A privacy policy explains how CVs are used.
13. The site works on a phone and the apply form is short.

How Amariq can help

If you run a recruitment agency and your site sends everyone through one menu, send us the link and we will tell you how we would split it into the two paths and what job pages need. For a new build we work on Webflow, Framer, WordPress, Shopify, Wix, Squarespace or a custom stack. Each project is priced from its scope, never by the hour, with 40% to start, 30% at design approval and 30% before launch. Once the final payment is made, the design, copy and code belong to you, and your domain, hosting and analytics accounts sit in your name. See our web design service.

Frequently asked questions

What should a recruitment agency website include?

Two paths for employers and candidates, live jobs, a page for each job, proof for employers, a named team and a clear privacy policy.

Does each job need its own page?

If you want Google to show it in job search, yes. Google says JobPosting markup must go on a page for a single job and not on a list page.

Can I hide jobs behind a login?

Not if you want them in Google's job search. Google's policy says users must be able to see the job details without logging in.

Can an agency hide the employer's name?

Google says that when hiring anonymously, such as a staffing agency acting for an employer, you should use the value "confidential" as the hiringOrganization name.

What happens when a job is filled?

Google says expired postings are not allowed and failing to act may cause a manual action. Set validThrough in the past, return a 404 or 410, or remove the markup.

Can I charge candidates to apply?

Google's job posting policy does not allow postings that require payment from applicants.

How much does a recruitment website cost?

It depends on the build. One UK platform vendor lists plans from £149 to £599 a month plus VAT on its page of 9 November 2026. A custom build is priced from scope and has no monthly platform fee, but needs hosting and updates.