Turnover rate is the standard measure of how many employees left during a period, relative to your average headcount. Enter your numbers below for the overall rate, or split it into voluntary and involuntary turnover for a more useful diagnosis.
Turnover rate is calculated as (total separations during the period / average headcount during the period) x 100, where average headcount is simply (headcount at the start + headcount at the end) divided by 2. Using average headcount instead of just the starting or ending number matters more than it looks, since a team that grew from 80 to 120 people while losing 15 employees along the way has a meaningfully different story than the raw numbers alone suggest.
Any employee who leaves your organization during the measurement period, whether by resignation, termination, layoff, retirement, or end of a fixed-term contract. Internal transfers between departments within the same organization don’t count as separations for this purpose.
They point to different problems. High voluntary turnover (resignations) usually signals compensation, culture, or management issues worth investigating. High involuntary turnover (terminations, layoffs) more often reflects hiring quality, performance management, or business conditions. Lumping them together hides which one you actually need to address.
It varies heavily by industry; retail and hospitality commonly see turnover well above 30% annually, while more stable sectors like manufacturing or government often see single digits. Compare against your own industry’s benchmarks rather than a universal target.
Most sources use the terms interchangeably with this same formula. A more precise distinction some HR teams use is that turnover counts every exit while attrition specifically means roles that weren’t refilled, a real reduction in headcount. See our Attrition Rate Calculator if you want that more specific number.
Want to see what it’s actually costing you to replace people who leave? Try our Cost Per Hire Calculator.