“Is January a good time to look for a new job?”
As a career coach, I frequently encounter job seekers eager to kick off the new year with fresh opportunities. However, many express frustration when they don’t receive responses to their queries from prospective employers.
Determining the optimal time to search for a new job can be challenging, particularly when you’re met with silence from recruiters.
This lack of feedback can lead you to question your job search strategy and even contemplate pausing your efforts until a more favorable time of year.
In this article, I share:
- Whether January is a good time to look for a new job
- The best (and worst) times of year to pursue new opportunities
- What you must know if you’re searching for roles in January
Important note: While I draw on my personal experiences as a tech career coach, this article is also informed by years of data (pre- and post-pandemic) sourced from various trusted datasets. My goal is to provide you with valuable data and insights into the best and worst times of the year in which to secure a new job.
Is January A Good Time To Look For A New Job?
The beginning of January can often feel challenging for job seekers.
For starters, you might experience significant silence from prospective employers during the first few weeks of the month. Many recruiters are busy catching up after the holiday rush and wrapping up projects from the previous year. Plus, the hustle and bustle of the new year can make searching for a new role feel like just another daunting task on an already packed to-do list.
That said, January is actually a great time to look for a new job. In particular, the second half of the month tends to be exceptionally busy, particularly in the tech industry.
Historically, many companies post a large number of job openings in January, making it an ideal time to seek out new opportunities.
What Time Of Year Is Best For Getting A New Job?
Given this uptick in available opportunities, the beginning of the year tends to be one of the best times to land a new role.
Companies often ramp up their hiring in the new year, making the first few months of Q1 (particularly January and February) a fabulous time to look for an opportunity.
What Is The Easiest Month To Get A Job?
Historically, January tends to be one of the easiest months in which to land a new job. The Covid pandemic undoubtedly impacted hiring trends in the last few years, both within the tech industry and beyond. Nonetheless, January remains one of the best months to secure a new role.
There are a few reasons for the uptick in hiring in the new year, such as many companies starting fresh budgets and recruiters and hiring managers playing catch-up after the holidays.
September is also a busy time for hiring, partially because companies are catching up from summer vacations and preparing for the winter holidays. They also have more clarity regarding their budgets as they head into Q4 (especially at most publicly traded companies in the U.S.).
Best Months To Land A New Job
Based on available data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the ADP National Employment Report, the following are the most common months in which professionals landed a new job in recent years:
- January
- February
- September
What Is The Most Difficult Time Of Year To Get A Job?
While there are advantages of job searching during the holidays, the winter months (especially November and December) can be more challenging for securing a new position.
Depending on your role and industry, December can be particularly tough for landing land a new role, unless you’re pursuing seasonal or contract work. This difficulty arises from several factors: organizations typically reduce hiring as the year comes to a close, staff members often take vacations that can delay interview and hiring decisions, and budgets tend to tighten as executives strive to meet monthly, quarterly, and annual goals.
The prime summer months (June and July) can also be challenging for job seekers. Many recruiters and hiring managers take vacation during this time, which can prolong the interview and hiring processes.
Worst Months For Landing A New Job
According to available data from the BLS and ADP Employment Report, the following months are among the least common for professionals to land new jobs in recent years:
- June
- July
- December
Advantages Of Looking For A Job In January
The beginning of the year is often one of the best times for securing a new role for several reasons:
Lots of job opportunities.
One of the primary reasons that January is an excellent time to look for your next opportunity is straightforward: companies tend to open additional roles in the new year. The increased number of openings provides you with more chances to land your next position.
Re-engaged recruiters and hiring managers.
When January arrives, recruiters and hiring managers are often eager to fill roles that may have been put on hold during the holidays. Many positions may have been paused due to staff being out of the office, closing out the previous year, or waiting for additional budget approvals, making hiring managers keen to fill these roles.
New budgets.
The start of the new year typically means new budgets for companies. This can create more wiggle room when negotiating your salary and total compensation with prospective employers.
In fact, approximately two-thirds of publicly traded companies in the U.S. begin their fiscal year in January. This includes large tech giants like Alphabet (Google’s parent company), Amazon, Meta, and Netflix.
Many large tech companies, such as Nvidia, Salesforce, and Workday, start their fiscal year in February, helping maintain the momentum through the beginning of the year.
Renewed motivation.
If you’re like many people, January is a time of reflection, goal-setting, and action. You can harness this energy to propel your job search forward.
Networking opportunities.
January is an ideal time to reconnect with your network for support in your job search efforts. You can easily use the excuse that you’re circling back “in the new year.”
Moreover, many people have just set New Year’s resolutions to be more social and helpful, which may lead to increased responses from both your network and cold messages.
As a strong advocate for networking in modern job searches, this is one of the key reasons I recommend that you start (or accelerate) your job hunt in January.
Disadvantages Of Looking For A Job In January
While January offers many benefits for job seekers, there are compelling reasons to delay your job search until later in the year.
Increased competition.
One of the biggest challenges in January is the surge of job seekers.
As a career coach, Jan. 1 has historically been my busiest day of the year—by a landslide—for the last decade.
The new year is filled with people setting resolutions that often include landing promotions and new jobs. This means you’re competing against a massive increase in both internal and external applicants eager to secure new roles.
Lengthier hiring processes.
This increased competition can lead to significantly longer hiring timelines. Recruiters and hiring managers must review additional applications and interview more candidates, which extends the overall selection process.
[Read: “How Long Does It Take To Hear Back After An Interview?” Answered]
More selective hiring managers.
With a larger applicant pool, hiring managers become more selective about who they interview and hire. Conversely, during less busy months like November and December, they might extend interviews and offers to candidates they would typically overlook.
This is one reason I advise job seekers to stay active during the winter holidays, as it’s easier to stand out in a smaller crowd.
Professional and personal overwhelm.
Beginning a job hunt in January can feel like an additional burden during an already hectic time. January often marks the start of a new fiscal year and new business goals at your current employer, which can be incredibly stressful.
Moreover, personal commitments like children returning to school can quickly consume your time and energy.
Potential bonus considerations.
If you’re expecting a bonus payout later in the year, January might not be the optimal time to start your job search. Retention or performance bonuses could be a compelling reason to delay your search.
When Should You Start Your Job Search?
I’m often asked how far ahead of time you should start your job search. Typically, you want to begin your search at least 3 to 6 months before you hope to land a role.
As a career coach specializing in tech executives, my clients sometimes dedicate additional lead time to landing a job so that they can make the most of their networks and take advantage of the “hidden job market.”
You need ample time to:
- Update your resume
- Optimize your LinkedIn profile
- Cultivate your network
- Prepare for lengthy interview processes
A bonus of starting your search early is the ability to adjust your resume, LinkedIn profile, and stories based on the responses (or lack of responses) you received from recruiters or hiring managers. The earlier you launch your search, the more time you give yourself to adapt to the job market.
Most importantly, starting your job search early minimizes your likelihood of ending up in a position where you feel forced to take a job you don’t want because you have no other options.
[Read: The 11 Dos And Don’ts Of A Successful Executive Job Search]
Summary
If you’re actively job hunting or considering a search for a new role, January is a great time to start. The market is ripe with opportunities, and you can take advantage of re-engaged recruiters and hiring managers during the post-holiday hiring rush, leveraging new budgets and your renewed motivation. Moreover, you can tap into your network and discover the “hidden job market.”
Whether you plan to begin your job search in January or at another time of year, and you would like the support of a trained professional, please feel free to schedule a consultation. As mentioned, it’s best to start your search at least 3 to 6 months before you hope to land your next opportunity, and I’d love to support you on the journey. I’m here for you! You’ve got this!
