How to hire a Receptionist

How to hire a receptionist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step receptionist hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a receptionist job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new receptionist
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a Receptionist do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your receptionist job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a receptionist for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine Employee vs Contractor Status

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   Hiring the perfect receptionist also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of receptionist salaries for various roles:

   Type Of Receptionist	Description	Hourly Rate
   Receptionist	Receptionists perform administrative tasks, such as answering phones, receiving visitors, and providing general information about their organization to the public and customers.	$11-18
   Support Clerk	A support clerk is primarily in charge of performing administrative support tasks in an office, making the daily workflow easier. Their responsibilities typically include preparing and processing documentation, answering and forwarding calls, handling correspondence, disseminating and organizing files, and running errands as needed... Show More	$10-25
   Clerk	Clerks are responsible for many of the general administrative tasks in the office. They are in charge of manning office telephone lines, managing incoming and outgoing mails, filing paperwork and other needed records, scheduling and documenting meetings, typing out documents when needed, disseminating memos and other official announcements, and keeping an inventory of office equipment and supplies... Show More	$11-18

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common Skills:

   • Patients
   • Phone Calls
   • Customer Service
   • Data Entry
   • Telephone Calls
   • Front Desk
   • Appointment Scheduling
   • Office Equipment
   • Word Processing
   • Direct Calls
   • Multi-Line Phone System
   • Greeting Visitors
   • Clerical Support
   • HR

   Check All Skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage invoicing with QuickBooks, taking customer calls and helping with any issues, parts and equipment delivery/pickup/ordering.
   • Manage multiple employee/resident databases utilizing an EMR system.
   • Verify insurance information and manage medical records while ensuring confidentiality according to HIPAA requirements.
   • Manage desk operations for the YMCA, organizing and documenting members' payments and collating operational documents
   • Assist office management and staff with administrative projects/responsibilities such as managing time-sensitive projects, filing, copying, and collating materials.
   • Bill patients for medical services provide by various doctors using ICD-9 and CPT-4 coding.

   More Receptionist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the receptionist job description is a good way to get more applicants. A receptionist salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a receptionist in Oklahoma may be lower than in Massachusetts, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level receptionist. Additionally, a receptionist with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average receptionist salary

   $14.70hourly

   $30,571 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level receptionist salary

   $24,000 yearly salary

   Updated June 13, 2025

   Average receptionist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. Salary	Hourly Rate
   1	District of Columbia	$34,708	$17
   2	Massachusetts	$34,245	$16
   3	California	$34,223	$16
   4	Washington	$34,145	$16
   5	New York	$34,142	$16
   6	New Hampshire	$31,984	$15
   7	New Jersey	$31,527	$15
   8	Maine	$31,375	$15
   9	Oregon	$30,778	$15
   10	Maryland	$30,766	$15
   11	Minnesota	$29,882	$14
   12	Colorado	$29,742	$14
   13	Pennsylvania	$29,526	$14
   14	Illinois	$29,337	$14
   15	Arizona	$28,876	$14
   16	Nevada	$28,830	$14
   17	Missouri	$28,020	$13
   18	Utah	$27,297	$13
   19	Texas	$27,000	$13
   20	Iowa	$27,000	$13

   Average receptionist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average Salary	Hourly Rate	Job Openings
   1	Gensler	$45,965	$22.10	1
   2	Cornerstone Research	$43,642	$20.98
   3	The PNC Financial Services Group	$43,079	$20.71
   4	JPMorgan Chase & Co.	$42,738	$20.55	16
   5	University of California-Berkeley	$42,617	$20.49	1
   6	Fidelity Investments	$41,570	$19.99
   7	NRDC	$40,388	$19.42
   8	Epiq	$40,376	$19.41	19
   9	The University of Chicago	$40,098	$19.28	6
   10	Louisville Water	$39,643	$19.06	1
   11	Beacon Hill Staffing Group	$38,712	$18.61
   12	AEG	$38,577	$18.55	1
   13	Student Conservation Association	$38,513	$18.52
   14	Metals USA	$38,452	$18.49
   15	UBS	$38,428	$18.48	5
   16	Uline	$38,339	$18.43	1
   17	Cargill	$38,280	$18.40
   18	United States Courts	$38,042	$18.29
   19	Eastern Metal Supply	$37,979	$18.26
   20	McKinsey & Company Inc	$37,353	$17.96

4. Writing a Receptionist Job Description

   A receptionist job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a receptionist job description:

   Receptionist job description example

   The receptionist is often the first impression of Power Construction and should have a positive interaction with all employees and visitors throughout the day. This position provides company-wide administrative support where primary duties include answering and routing calls, greeting guests, accepting deliveries, processing mail, placing orders and additional administrative duties. Excellent customer service skills and moderate proficiency with MS Outlook, Word, PowerPoint and Excel are required. This position offers a great opportunity for a dynamic, motivated self-starter to work on a variety of projects and be challenged.
   MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES:
   
   Greet clients/visitors with a positive, helpful attitude and notify employee(s) of arrival. Answer, screen and direct incoming calls in a professional manner and reroute as necessary. Organize and tidy reception and common areas (café, coffee areas, supply room, copy rooms, conference rooms, etc.) daily. Order weekly groceries for café area and office supplies as needed. Management of conference rooms (room reservation, catering needs and general maintenance). Upkeep company contact lists and jobsite directory. Organize and process incoming/outgoing mail, faxes, messenger service and package deliveries. Manage communication with building services and open tickets as necessary. Assist Human Resources department for all event planning including: holiday parties, company gatherings, conferences, trainings, external meetings, etc. Perform other administrative duties as requested.
   
   POSITION REQUIREMENTS:
   
   Must be able to work from 7:30 AM to 4:30 PM, Monday - Friday. Out-going, service-oriented personality and professional appearance. Must be courteous and diplomatic in dealing with external contacts. Position has continual contact with owners, labor, and subcontractors. Proficient computer/typing skills and use of Microsoft Office suites. Must be a self-starter with solid written and verbal communication skills. Must be attentive to details, organized, reliable and punctual. Ability to lift a minimum of 40lb for project drawing and UPS purposes. Additional marketing savvy is a must.
   
   Other details
   Job Family Non-Union Pay Type Hourly
   Apply Now

   Copy This Example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find receptionists for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your receptionist job on Zippia to find and recruit receptionist candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting receptionists requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new receptionist

   Once you've selected the best receptionist candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a receptionist?