How to Respond to a Recruiter

Reply within 24–48 hours, keep it under 120 words, and always answer — even when the answer is no. A recruiter message is the cheapest interview pipeline that will ever land in your inbox: someone paid to fill a role has already decided you might fit it. What you say next either books a call, banks a future contact, or quietly deletes you from a database you didn't know you were in.

Here are the scripts for all seven situations — email and LinkedIn versions — plus what to ask before the first call, how to handle the salary question, and the two-minute check that filters out the fake recruiters.

Three ground rules, whatever your answer

• Speed beats polish. Recruiters submit shortlists to hiring managers in batches, usually within days of starting a search. A decent reply today outperforms a perfect one next week. If you can't decide yet, send a holding line: "This caught my interest — can I come back to you by Thursday?"
• Short, warm, specific. Thank them, state your position in one sentence, propose a concrete next step (times for a call, or a clean no). Recruiters skim; nobody reads your third paragraph.
• Verify before you share. Real recruiters have consistent LinkedIn histories, company-domain emails (or well-known agency domains), and roles they can name. Job-offer scams open with flattery and end with requests for your SSN, bank details, or "equipment fees." Nothing sensitive goes out before you've run the fake-job checklist.

The seven scripts

1. Interested — book the call

Hi [Name], thanks for reaching out — this role lines up well with what I do and where I'm headed. I've attached my resume; could you send over the full job description and the salary range? I'm free for a call [two specific windows]. Looking forward to it.

LinkedIn version: "Thanks for reaching out, [Name] — genuinely interested. Happy to talk this week; what's the best way to grab 20 minutes? If you can share the JD and range in the meantime, even better."

2. Interested, but you need more first

Hi [Name], thank you — I'm open to hearing more. Before we book time, could you share the job description, the compensation range, and whether the role is remote/hybrid/onsite? I want to make sure I don't waste your time if the basics don't line up.

This filter question is doing real work: a recruiter who won't name a range for a real, budgeted role is a yellow flag, and in many U.S. states pay-transparency laws mean the range legally exists in writing already.

3. Wrong role, right company

Hi [Name], thanks for thinking of me. [Role] isn't quite my lane — I'm strongest in [your actual thing], and I noticed [Company] is also hiring for [role you want]. Would it make sense for me to talk to whoever owns that search? Resume attached in case it's useful either way.

4. Not looking right now — keep the door open

Hi [Name], thanks for reaching out. I'm happy where I am and not exploring at the moment, but I'd genuinely like to stay connected — the kind of roles you work on are exactly where I'd look next. If it's useful, check back with me around [quarter/season].

That last sentence is the difference between a dead thread and a recruiter who pings you first when the market turns — worth writing every time you mean it even slightly.

5. Clean no

Hi [Name], thank you for reaching out — I'm not interested in making a move, and I don't expect that to change soon. Best of luck filling the role.

6. The salary question, before you're ready

Hi [Name], happy to talk numbers once I understand the role's scope — could you share the budgeted range for the position? For context, I'm evaluating opportunities in the [$X–$Y] range depending on total package, but the range you're working with is the more useful starting point.

Range first, never your current salary, anchor slightly high. The long version of that dance lives in our salary expectations guide.

7. The scheduling reply that prevents three more emails

Hi [Name], great — any of these work: [Tue 10–12], [Wed 2–4], [Thu before 11], all [timezone]. My number is [phone]. If none of those fit, send a couple of options and I'll make one work.

Agency recruiter vs. internal recruiter — adjust two things

Internal recruiters (an @company.com address) work for one employer; everything you say is effectively said to the hiring team, so treat the first call as round zero of the interview: have your "tell me about yourself" tight and your questions ready. Agency recruiters represent many clients and get paid on placement. Share your real target range and timeline — they can only match you with what they know — but stay vaguer about which other companies you're talking to (that's market intelligence), and confirm they'll name the client and get your OK before submitting you anywhere. Double-submission to the same company through two channels creates genuine ATS chaos that has cost real candidates real offers.

Five things to ask on (or before) the first call

• Why is the role open — growth, backfill, or churn?
• What's the compensation range and the rough interview loop (rounds, timeline, take-home)?
• Is it remote/hybrid/onsite, and is that policy stable or "evolving"?
• How long has it been open, and how many candidates are in process? (Old role + crowded process = calibrate expectations.)
• For agencies: which client is this, and do you submit only with my approval?

The recruiter's answers — and their willingness to answer at all — tell you most of what you'll get to verify later when you research the company properly.

What happens after you reply

A screen call within a week is the normal happy path — usually 15–30 minutes covering your background, logistics, and comp; treat it with phone-screen discipline even though it's "just a chat." If they go quiet after a promising exchange, one bump at day 5–7 ("Checking in on this — still moving? If the role's filled or paused, no problem, just keeping my own search organized.") and one at two weeks, then release it. Recruiter silence usually means the req froze or the shortlist filled — the same physics as any post-interview ghosting — and none of it obligates you to stop applying elsewhere. A recruiter conversation is one live line in what should stay a many-line search.

The bottom line

Answer every recruiter inside two days, in under 120 words, with your position stated plainly and a concrete next step attached. Get the range and the JD before you invest an hour; verify the recruiter before you share anything sensitive; keep warm the ones whose market matches yours. Handled that way, recruiter messages compound — each reply, even the no's, is a deposit in the only pipeline that eventually starts sending opportunities to you.