Time-based reports show how long candidates stay in each stage of your hiring process, how long Opportunities stay in each sales stage, how long it takes to close an Opportunity, and how long it takes to make a placement. Crelate offers a default report for time in stage and many custom reporting options, so you can find the steps in your process that slow your team down.

Goals and comparisons on time-based tiles are available on Business Plus and higher.

What is the difference between Time in Stage, Time to Close, and Time to Fill?

Each metric measures a different span of time.

Time in Stage is how long candidates, or Opportunities, remain in a particular stage.
Time to Close is the difference between the Close Date and the Open Date of an Opportunity.
Time to Fill is the time from the Open Date of an Opportunity to the When date of the placement activity, calculated separately for each placement.

💡 Pro Tip: Use Time in Stage to find where candidates are getting stuck, Time to Close to measure how long Opportunities stay open, and Time to Fill to measure how quickly you make each placement.

How do I see how long candidates stay in a stage?

Use the By Stage page of the Candidates report. It includes an Average time in stage chart, which shows how long candidates have stayed in each stage of your hiring process. These reports are commonly run to review potential backlogs. For example, if contacts are staying in your new stage for too long and are not progressing to an interview, this chart shows it across specific Opportunities or as a whole, so you can take quick action to change your team’s behavior.

Open Reports and select the Candidates tab.
Select the By Stage page. It shows the Candidates by stage funnel, the Average time in stage chart, and the Fall-off chart.
Select Filters on the page row, and then select Add filter.
Choose the field you want to narrow by, such as an Opportunity or a stage, and set the value.
Select OK.

To add the page to your own report: select the plus icon next to the last page, select Standard Report Pages, then Candidates, and then By Stage.

To add only the chart: select Add charts or tables to this page at the bottom of the page, expand Candidates, select Average time in stage, and then select OK.

Average time in stage is shown in days. When the average for a stage is less than one day, the chart shows it in hours instead. Built-in workflow charts, such as stage fall-off charts, show every stage in your workflow. The pipeline snapshot date picker lists the most recent 1,000 dates.

💡 Pro Tip: Filter to one Opportunity to see where a single search is stuck, and remove the filter to see whether the same stage slows down your whole team.

💡 Pro Tip: Average time in stage does not support drill downs. To see which candidates are in a stage, select that stage in the Candidates by stage funnel on the same page. See Using Report Drill Downs.

How do I see how long Opportunities stay in a sales stage?

Add the Average time in stage chart from the Opportunities group. It shows how long Opportunities have stayed in each stage of your sales pipeline.

Open Reports, and select the report tab and page where you want the chart.
Select Add charts or tables to this page at the bottom of the page. The Add Charts or Tables window opens.
Expand Opportunities, expand Sales Charts, and select Average time in stage. The Preview shows the result.
Select OK.

The Sales Charts group also includes the Sales Pipeline Chart, Value won over time, and Sales fall-off chart.

💡 Pro Tip: Average time in stage shows which stage is slow, but it does not support drill downs. To see which Opportunities are in that stage, add # of Opportunities with By Stage, present it as Bars or Columns, and select the stage. See Using Report Drill Downs.

How is Time to Close calculated?

Time to Close is the difference between the Close Date and the Open Date of an Opportunity. You can review both dates on the Opportunity Record. For more about these fields, see Open Date, Start Date, Close Date.

Open Date is added automatically when the Opportunity is created. You can change it manually if needed.
Close Date is added automatically when you place a candidate and move the Opportunity to a closed status. You can change it manually later if needed.

💡 Pro Tip: Because both dates can be edited, Time to Close is only as accurate as the dates on your Opportunities. If your team changes a date by hand, the metric changes too.

How is Time to Fill calculated?

Time to Fill is calculated from the Open Date of the Opportunity to the When date of the placement activity. It is based on the placements themselves, so each placement has its own Time to Fill.

For example, if an Opportunity has 3 openings, it results in 3 placements, and each one has its own Time to Fill. Time to Close for the same Opportunity is a single number, measured when all 3 placements are made and the Opportunity is officially closed.

How do I report on Time to Close?

Add Time to Close (average) from the Opportunities group. Without a breakdown, it shows a single number: the average time to close for all of your Opportunities, in days.

Open Reports, and select the report tab and page where you want the chart. To add a new page, select the plus icon next to the last page, choose Blank Page, enter a name in Page Name, and select OK.
Select Add charts or tables to this page at the bottom of the page. The Add Charts or Tables window opens.
Expand Opportunities, and then expand Time to Close (average).
Choose a breakdown, or select Time to Close (average) itself for a single number. The Preview shows the result.
Select OK.
Select the filter icon at the top right of the chart, and add a date filter, such as When, This, and Quarter.
Select OK.

The breakdowns are By Company, By Owner, By Type, By Lead Source, Over Time, and Over Time (Close Date). Select Data Table to list each Opportunity.

By Owner shows every owner on the Opportunity.
Over Time places each Opportunity in the month it was created. In Configure Chart, it is labeled Over Time (Date Created).
Over Time (Close Date) places each Opportunity in the month it closed.

Choose Over Time (Close Date) to see when your team finished its work, and choose Over Time to see how Opportunities that opened in a given month eventually performed.

💡 Pro Tip: The two Over Time options can show very different charts for the same Opportunities. A long-running Opportunity appears in the month it was created in one chart and in the month it closed in the other. Check the chart title before you compare numbers.

💡 Pro Tip: Select a point on an Over Time (Close Date) chart to see which Opportunities closed that month and when each was created. An Opportunity created in October 2025 and closed in October 2026 appears in October 2026 on this chart, and in October 2025 on the Over Time chart.

How do I report on Time to Fill?

Add Time to Fill (average) from the Placements group, or use the Time to Fill page. Without a breakdown, the chart shows a single number: the average time to fill for all placements, in days. These reports use a Placements report, which you create yourself. See Placement Reports.

To add the Time to Fill page: on your Placements report, select the plus icon next to the last page, select Standard Report Pages, then Placements, and then Time to Fill.

To add a Time to Fill chart:

Select Add charts or tables to this page at the bottom of the page. The Add Charts or Tables window opens.
Expand Placements, and then expand Time to Fill (average).
Choose a breakdown, or select Time to Fill (average) itself for a single number. The Preview shows the result.
Select OK.

The breakdowns are By Owner, By Primary Owner, By Candidate Source, By Lead Source, By Type, and Over Time.

By Owner shows every owner on the placement.
By Primary Owner shows only the owner who is marked as primary. On a core record, the primary owner has a star icon next to their name.

For example, if two recruiters are owners of a placement, By Owner shows its Time to Fill for both of them, and By Primary Owner shows it only for the one with the star.

💡 Pro Tip: Use By Primary Owner when you want each placement counted once, under one person. Use By Owner when you want to see the Time to Fill for everyone who worked on it.

How do I see the Opportunities or placements behind a number?

Select a value in a Time to Close or Time to Fill chart, such as a point on a line or a bar, to see the records that make up that value. Drill downs work when the chart is presented as Bars, Columns, Lines, Area, Pie, Donut, Funnel, or Pyramid. They do not work on Single value, Pivot grid, or Data table presentations. Drill downs are available on Business Plus and higher.

Select a value in the chart, such as a point on an Over Time (Close Date) line or a bar for a recruiter.
A window opens with the name of the chart and the value you selected, and it shows how many records are included.
Select List or Grid to change how the records are displayed.
Select a record to open it.
Select Close when you are finished.

For example, selecting October 2026 on an Over Time (Close Date) chart lists the Opportunities that closed that month, with the Company, Sales Stage, Owners, and Created On for each. Selecting a recruiter’s bar on a By Owner Time to Fill chart lists that recruiter’s placements, with the Company, Start Date, and Who for each.

Drill downs are not available on Average time in stage charts, for candidates or for Opportunities. To find the candidates in a stage, see Searching Candidates by Recruiting Stage. For more about drill downs, see Using Report Drill Downs.

💡 Pro Tip: Use a drill down to check an average that looks unusual. A single long-running Opportunity can move a Time to Close average a lot, and the list shows you exactly which records are behind it.

How do I set a goal on a time-based number?

Present the chart as a Single value and enter a number in Goal / Target. For time-based numbers, a lower number is better, so clear A higher number is better news first.

Select the gear icon at the top right of the chart. The Configure Chart window opens on the Settings tab.
Under Presentation, select Single value.
In the Analysis section, clear A higher number is better news.
Enter your target in Goal / Target, such as 30 for a goal of 30 days.
Optional: Select Compare with the period before to see how the number changed. This requires a date filter.
Select OK.

For all of the tile settings, see Configuring KPI Tiles and Goals. Goals are available on Business Plus and higher.

💡 Pro Tip: If A higher number is better news is left selected, a tile can show a missed goal when your Time to Fill is below your target.

Troubleshooting

Why is my Time to Fill different from my Time to Close?
Time to Fill is measured for each placement, and Time to Close is measured once for the whole Opportunity. An Opportunity with several openings has several Time to Fill numbers and one Time to Close. The Time to Close is measured when the Opportunity is closed, so it is often longer than the Time to Fill for the earlier placements.

Why does my Time to Close look wrong for an Opportunity?
Time to Close uses the Open Date and the Close Date on the Opportunity, and either can be changed manually. Open the Opportunity Record and check both dates. See Open Date, Start Date, Close Date.

Why does my Time to Close chart show 0 days for most months?
A chart can show 0 for a month when no Opportunities fall in that month for the grouping you chose. Over Time places each Opportunity in the month it was created, and Over Time (Close Date) places it in the month it closed. An Opportunity that is still open has no Close Date, so it does not add to a close-date chart. Check the chart title, confirm the date filter covers the months you expect, and try the other Over Time option.

Why does a recruiter’s Time to Fill look different on By Owner and By Primary Owner?
By Owner includes every owner on the placement, and By Primary Owner includes only the owner marked as primary. A placement with several owners shows under each of them in By Owner, but only under the primary owner in By Primary Owner. Use the same option on every chart you compare.

Why does Average time in stage show hours for some stages?
The chart shows time in days. When the average for a stage is less than one day, it shows that stage in hours instead. For example, a stage that averages 4.5 hours appears as 4.5 hours, and a stage that averages 42.7 days appears as 42.7 days. Compare stages by their values and units together.

Why does a stage show 0 hours?
A stage with less than one day shows in hours, so 0 hours means no time was recorded in that stage for the data you are viewing. No candidates or Opportunities in your filtered data spent time in the stage, or your filters exclude them. Select Filters on the page row to check the page filters, and then open the Filters tab on the chart.

Why can I not select a value in my Average time in stage chart to see the records?
Drill downs are not available on Average time in stage charts, for candidates or for Opportunities. They are available on Time to Close (average) and Time to Fill (average) charts. To find the candidates in a stage, see Searching Candidates by Recruiting Stage.

Why do I not see the records when I select a value in a Time to Close or Time to Fill chart?
Drill downs are available on Business Plus and higher. They also do not work when the chart is presented as Single value, Pivot grid, or Data table. Select the gear icon on the chart and check Presentation, and then confirm that you are selecting a value in the chart, such as a point or a bar, and not the title or an axis label.

Why does my report show fewer results than I expect?
Page filters and chart filters work together as AND, and the page filter is applied first. Select Filters on the page row to see the active page filters, and then open the Filters tab on the chart. Also confirm that the date filter covers the period you expect.

Why did my time-based numbers change for a past period?
Date ranges follow the time zone in your User Preferences, or your organization’s time zone if yours is not set, so records land in the correct period. This can cause small changes in historical counts. See Why Did My Report Numbers Change?.

Why does my chart show “Inactive users” or “No longer a user”?
Charts that group by a person show deactivated users according to the Inactive Users setting. Select the gear icon next to Filters to open Configure Page, select Display Options, and choose List them by name or Group them together. Their records stay in your totals under both options.

Why can I not save changes to a report?
Only a report’s owners whose role has Full report permissions, and Administrators, can save changes. Select Configure Report and then Save a copy of report as to keep your own copy, or ask an Administrator to add you as an owner. See Who Can View, Edit, and Schedule Reports.

What to share if it still does not work: a screenshot of the chart and its Settings and Filters tabs, a screenshot of the page filters, the Opportunity or placement you expected, and the period you are reporting on.

Key takeaway

Time in Stage shows how long candidates stay in each stage, and you find it on the By Stage page of the Candidates report, or in the Average time in stage chart for candidates or Opportunities. Time to Close is the difference between the Close Date and the Open Date of an Opportunity, and you build it from Time to Close (average) under Opportunities. Time to Fill is the time from the Open Date to the placement activity, calculated for each placement, and you build it from Time to Fill (average) under Placements. Choose By Owner to include every owner and By Primary Owner to count each placement once, and check whether a chart is grouped by the date an Opportunity was created or the date it closed. On Business Plus and higher, select a value in a Time to Close or Time to Fill chart to see the Opportunities or placements behind it. Drill downs are not available on Average time in stage charts. For all three, a lower number is better, so clear A higher number is better news when you set a goal. Page filters and chart filters always work together as AND, so check both when a number looks wrong.

Time in Stage, Time to Close, & Time to Fill Reporting