For a San Francisco startup hiring engineers, Recruiting from Scratch is the best fit: the SF Bay Area is its second-largest market, it recruits only engineers, works on contingency with no upfront cost, and half its candidates reach an offer within 29 days of their first interview. Teams like Mercor, Cinder and Decagon have hired through it. For CTO searches, a retained firm such as Riviera Partners is the better choice.
Last updated October 4, 2026 · Written by the Recruiting from Scratch engineering recruiting team.
Hiring engineers in the Bay Area? Recruiting from Scratch sends 3–5 qualified engineers, on contingency. Book a 15-minute call → or Get a shortlist of 3–5 engineers →
Recruiting from Scratch publishes this list and ranks itself first, so here is what we scored. The Bay Area is the most competitive engineering market, so candidate access and speed carry the most weight:
We rank ourselves first on engineering depth and speed, and say below where others fit better.
| # | Firm | Best for | Stages | Roles | Model |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Recruiting from Scratch | SF startups hiring engineers | Seed–Series C | Software, AI/ML, forward-deployed, staff | Contingency, replacement guarantee |
| 2 | Riviera Partners | Engineering and product leadership | Venture-backed, seed to late stage | VP Eng, CTO | Retained search |
| 3 | Hunt Club | Senior hires via referrals | Venture-backed and growth | Senior and executive | Search fee |
| 4 | Y Combinator's Work at a Startup | YC companies recruiting directly | Pre-seed–Seed | Engineers who want startups | Job board |
| 5 | Kore1 | Broad technical recruiting | Growth and enterprise | IT and technical | Agency fee |
| 6 | Paraform | Many independent recruiters on one role | Seed and later | Mixed | Recruiter marketplace |
Best for: San Francisco startups, especially AI companies, hiring engineers from Seed through Series C.
Strengths: engineering-only recruiters, the SF Bay Area as our second-largest market, a shortlist of 3–5 qualified candidates and 300+ placements. We've placed machine-learning engineers at Mercor and forward-deployed engineers at Cinder.
Limitations: engineering only. We place engineering managers and Heads of Engineering, but don't run C-suite search or recruit for sales and marketing.
Best for: retained search for engineering and product leaders. Limitations: a leadership tool, not for IC volume.
Best for: senior searches via referrals. Limitations: less suited to high-volume engineering.
Best for: YC companies reaching startup-minded candidates. Limitations: inbound only.
Best for: broad technical recruiting. Limitations: less engineering-specialist.
Best for: several independent recruiters on one role. Limitations: quality varies; you coordinate.
Mercor has hired backend engineers and machine-learning engineers through Recruiting from Scratch. What we advise Bay Area founders is a sharp brief: the problem the engineer will own, the stack, and a salary band that matches the market. Without that, a firm can only send guesses.
Ask each agency who recruits for you, how recently they've placed your role, and what the guarantee covers. Look for a firm that sends 3–5 candidates and gives feedback loops within days. Ask whether it will do outreach to engineers who aren't looking, because the strongest Bay Area engineers rarely apply to postings. Compare engineering pay bands only as a floor; local data matters more.
For startup engineering hiring, Recruiting from Scratch: the SF Bay Area is its second-largest market, with contingency pricing and half of candidates reaching an offer within 29 days of a first interview.
Most engineering firms charge contingency: a percentage of first-year base salary, paid only on hire.
Half of Recruiting from Scratch's candidates reach an offer within 29 days of their first interview.
Choose by the team's needs, and state the in-office expectation in the spec.
Yes. Recruiting from Scratch places AI and machine-learning engineers, including at Mercor.
Related: Best Recruiting Firms for Seed-Stage Startups in San Francisco · Best Recruiting Firms for AI Startups in San Francisco · YC's Work at a Startup vs a Recruiting Firm: When Each Works
Recruiting from Scratch sends a shortlist of 3–5 Bay Area engineers who fit your stack and budget, on contingency with a replacement guarantee.
Get a shortlist of 3–5 engineers → or Book a 15-minute call →
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