The 'head effect' in online recruitment is emerging, and AI is expected to drive service improvements.

Since 2025, the "head effect" in the online recruitment sector has become more pronounced, with leading platforms leading the way in terms of user scale, revenue, and technology application. Additionally, with the accelerated implementation of AI, the recruitment industry is entering a new competitive cycle of "scale × efficiency".

01 Increasing Users Without Increasing Costs: The Brand Effect of Leading Platforms Stands Out

This year, metrics such as monthly active users, user engagement duration, and revenue of online recruitment apps have shown a significant "centripetal effect" of traffic and the advantages of leading brands.

QuestMobile data shows that in April 2025, the total monthly active users of job-seeking apps reached approximately 113 million, a year-on-year increase of 5.5%.

Among the top three platforms, BOSS Zhipin had 51.65 million MAUs, Zhaopin had 26.58 million, and 51job had 17.65 million, with a cumulative unduplicated user base of 95.88 million.

The latest QM data shows that after the 2025 spring recruitment season, online recruitment users further concentrated towards the top platforms. In June 2025, the cumulative unduplicated users of BOSS Zhipin, Zhaopin, and 51job reached 97 million, an increase of 1.12 million from April 2025.

Among them, BOSS Zhipin maintained its upward trend after the spring recruitment season, reaching 54 million MAUs in June 2025.

From the perspective of cumulative user engagement duration, in April 2025, the top three platforms accounted for 94.1% of the total engagement time of mainstream recruitment apps. By June 2025, this proportion further increased to 94.6%.

The top-ranked BOSS Zhipin saw its share rise from 62% in April 2025 to 64.5% in June 2025.

Notably, while active users and engagement duration increased, the customer acquisition costs of leading online recruitment platforms were effectively controlled.

BOSS Zhipin's Q2 financial report showed that while monthly active users increased by 16.5% year-on-year, its sales and marketing expenses decreased by 23% year-on-year, reaching a record low as a percentage of revenue.

Industry insiders believe this phenomenon is a natural result of the "head effect" in the online recruitment industry. In any industry, market, or field, leaders can leverage first-mover advantages, economies of scale, resource accumulation, and brand influence to acquire more users and traffic at lower costs, thereby building a moat.

Additionally, a certain degree of revenue concentration is also evident among leading platforms.

Zhaopin's revenue for fiscal years 2024 and 2025 was AUD 635 million and AUD 561 million, respectively, a year-on-year decrease of 13.2%. During the same period, BOSS Zhipin reported revenues of RMB 6.807 billion and RMB 7.761 billion, a year-on-year increase of 14%.

Furthermore, Liepin recorded revenue of RMB 2.08 billion in 2024, a year-on-year decrease of 8.8%. During the same period, BOSS Zhipin reported revenue of RMB 7.35 billion, a year-on-year increase of 23.6%.

Insiders believe that BOSS Zhipin's growth stems from companies tightening budgets and preferring leading platforms, as well as its brand effect, which has allowed it to transition from a white-collar recruitment platform in major cities to a comprehensive platform covering white-collar, blue-collar, and all-tier markets. Blue-collar and lower-tier markets have become key drivers of its recent revenue growth.

02 AI Drives Service Upgrades, Leading Brands Gain Competitive Edge

In 2025, the internet industry's focus on "AI" is akin to its focus on "mobile internet" in 2013. Online recruitment is no exception.

Recruitment platforms are essentially a two-sided market for job seekers and employers. The core value of platform services lies in reducing transaction costs and improving matching efficiency. AI is key to achieving this.

Industry insiders believe that leading platforms have first-mover advantages in technology investment, resources, and application scenarios when it comes to AI.

First, AI performance depends on data volume and quality. Leading platforms have larger user pools (vast resumes and job postings), enabling better model training and iteration.

Second, leading platforms cover the entire service chain from job recommendations to interviews, allowing AI to be implemented in more stages and accumulate more data, creating a flywheel effect.

Finally, AI competition is also about resource investment. Beyond strengthening cash flow, leading platforms are also attracting more attention from capital markets.

$Kanzhun(BZ.US) recently announced an $80 million dividend and a $250 million share repurchase plan to boost investor expectations and attention. Prior to this, the company raised HKD 2.2 billion by issuing 34.5 million new shares in Hong Kong.

Additionally, governance and compliance of online recruitment platforms must be considered. In recent years, regulations like the "Online Recruitment Service Management Rules" have imposed higher compliance standards. At the same time, information authenticity has become a key concern for users.

From information security and privacy protection to complaint handling, platforms must continuously invest in risk control models and manual reviews. Leading platforms with longer and greater compliance investments also have an advantage in this regard.

Insiders believe that AI will further shift the recruitment industry from "traffic competition" to "efficiency competition." Leading platforms have advantages in user scale, organizational efficiency, and cash returns. Mid- and long-tail platforms must seek differentiation in niche markets, regional services, and specialized offerings.