Estimate an AI note taker's total cost using subscription charges, covered usage, setup effort, review work, and any handoff work that remains. A low per-seat price is only one part of the decision, and estimated time value is not the same as cash saved.
List costs with their assumptions
| Cost area | Input to collect |
|---|---|
| Subscription | Current quote, billing period, and seat commitment |
| Usage | Applicable limits and any extra charges |
| Setup | Template, training, and integration work |
| Ongoing work | Review, correction, and manual handoff time |
| Exit | Export and transition requirements |
Verify the current terms directly with each vendor. Do not compare an annual per-month equivalent with a cancel-anytime monthly plan as though the commitments were identical.
Work through a fictional calculation
Suppose a hypothetical agency pays $250 per month for a tool and spends another ten team hours on review and handoff work. At an assumed internal planning value of $40 per hour, the workload represents $400 of staff time, making the modeled monthly total $650 before other costs.
These figures are invented assumptions, not Recruit Recap pricing or customer results. The calculation helps expose inputs; it does not establish that the agency can remove $400 from payroll or create additional revenue.
Compare against the current process
Measure the same tasks before and during the pilot. If the new workflow adds capture troubleshooting or still requires manual ATS entry, include those tasks. If staff use released time for other work, describe that as capacity, not automatically as a financial return.
Avoid counting the same minute twice under “note writing” and “client submittal preparation.” Define where one task ends and the next begins.
Make uncertainty visible
Use a range when review effort varies and identify what would change the decision. A vendor quote may be precise while the team's future usage is uncertain. Keep those inputs separate.
Use the pilot plan and review-time measurement to collect evidence. Check Recruit Recap's current pricing for its actual offer. ATS integrations are scoped on demand, so confirm any integration work before including it as a known cost or capability in the comparison.