Attrition Rate Calculator
Calculate attrition as exits divided by average headcount, annualised, split into voluntary, involuntary and regretted. Average headcount is the denominator — using opening headcount overstates a growing team's attrition.
Free · No sign-up · Nothing leaves your browser · Figures reviewed 22 September 2026
Your details
People who chose to leave.
Performance exits, restructuring, end of a fixed term.
Of the voluntary exits, the ones you would have kept. The number worth reporting upward.
Shorter periods are annualised so the figure is comparable.
Annual attrition rate
15.8%
34 exits against an average headcount of 215.
- Voluntary · 82%
- Involuntary · 18%
The calculation
- Opening headcount
- 200
- Closing headcount
- 230
- Average headcountOpening plus closing, halved — the standard denominator
- 215
- Total exits
- 34
- Attrition in the year
- 15.8%
- Annualised
- 15.8%
Split
- Voluntary28 persons chose to leave
- 13%
- Involuntary6 persons exited by the company
- 2.8%
- Regretted18 persons you would have kept
- 8.4%
Voluntary attrition is the number that says something about you as an employer. Total attrition mixes it with restructuring and performance exits, which are decisions rather than symptoms.
Movement
- Net change
- +30
- Implied hiresClosing minus opening, plus exits
- 64
- Replacement ratioHires per exit. Below 1 means the team is shrinking
- 1.88
Compare against average headcount, not opening headcount. A team that grew fast during the period looks far worse on an opening-headcount denominator, which is why the two figures are often quoted against each other.
Attrition is only readable alongside tenure. Twenty per cent attrition concentrated in first-year hires is a hiring or onboarding problem; the same figure spread evenly is a market one.
Attrition is exits over average headcount for the period, annualised. The denominator is where most published figures diverge: measuring against opening headcount makes a team that grew during the year look far worse than it was.
The split matters more than the headline. Voluntary attrition says something about you as an employer; involuntary attrition is a decision you made. Reporting them together hides both.
The formula, and the denominator argument
Attrition rate = exits ÷ average headcount × 100, where average headcount is the opening plus closing figure halved.
Some organisations use opening headcount instead. On a team that grew from 200 to 230 with 34 exits, that is 17% against 15.9% — the difference is not enormous, but it grows with the growth rate, and it is the commonest reason two teams cannot reconcile their numbers.
Reading the number
Attrition is only interpretable alongside tenure. Twenty per cent concentrated in first-year hires is a hiring or onboarding problem with a short feedback loop. The same figure spread evenly across tenure bands is a market or compensation problem, and a much slower one to fix.
Regretted attrition is the number worth taking to a board. Total attrition mixes in the exits you wanted, and a restructuring can make a healthy team look like a failing one.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the formula for attrition rate?
- Exits during the period divided by average headcount for the period, multiplied by 100. Average headcount is the opening plus the closing figure, halved.
- What is a good attrition rate?
- It depends entirely on the industry. Indian IT services has historically run in the high teens to mid twenties; manufacturing and back-office roles vary widely. The more useful comparison is your own trend and your voluntary-versus-regretted split, not an industry average.
- What is the difference between attrition and turnover?
- They are used interchangeably in most Indian HR reporting. Where a distinction is drawn, attrition tends to mean roles that are not backfilled and turnover means all exits including replacements.
- Should attrition be calculated on opening or average headcount?
- Average headcount. Opening headcount overstates attrition in any team that grew during the period, which makes year-on-year comparisons unreliable exactly when growth changes.
About this tool
Built by the ViniOffice team. Figures and rules last reviewed 22 September 2026 against the statutory reference this team maintains. Indian statutory rates are date-effective and change by notification — confirm against the current one before running payroll or filing.
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