Cost and ROI

What it really costs to recruit one patient into a clinical trial

By TrialNotice · Updated
Hand writing notes on a printed budget sheet next to a calculator, navy binder, and coffee mug
Short answerThere is no reliable single industry number. The widely quoted $6,533 per recruited patient repeats across vendor blogs, but we could not trace it to a primary study. Peer reviewed data varies widely by setting: a trial across 25 general practices averaged $277 per randomized patient, ranging from $74 to $797 by site, and a meta analysis found online recruitment cost $72 per enrollee versus $199 offline.

Where does the $6,533 figure come from?

Many recruitment articles state that recruiting one patient costs $6,533 and replacing a dropout costs $19,533 (example). We looked for the original study and found only pages citing each other or vendor sources. Treat it as an industry rumor, not a benchmark.

What does peer reviewed data show?

A study of a randomized trial run across 25 general practices in Victoria, Australia, measured recruitment cost directly. The mean cost per randomized patient was $277, and it ranged from $74 to $797 across sites. Recruitment took an average of 3.7 staff hours per randomized patient, and the sites with the lowest cost were more experienced in research and had strong nurse or administrative support (PMC).

$277
mean cost per randomized patient, 25 practice trial
10x
spread between the cheapest and most expensive site
3.7 hrs
staff time per randomized patient

A systematic review and meta analysis of online versus offline recruitment found online recruitment cost less per enrollee, $72 versus $199, while 69% of the studies that compared conversion found offline methods converted better (JMIR).

Why will your number be different?

Because cost per patient depends on the protocol, the setting, and the channel. The 10 fold spread between sites on the same trial is the key lesson: site processes and staffing move cost as much as any vendor. Industry sponsored trials with long eligibility lists and intensive screening will cost far more than these academic figures.

How do you calculate your own cost per patient?

  1. Add up recruitment spend for the study: advertising, vendor fees, mailing, and staff hours times their loaded hourly cost.
  2. Count randomized patients, not leads or screens.
  3. Divide spend by randomized patients.
  4. Repeat by channel, so you can see which source is cheapest per randomized patient, not per lead.

Then compare channels on return, not just cost: see how to calculate recruitment ROI for a research site.

Get your study in front of the right local physicians

TrialNotice builds a physician referral pipeline around one active study. We identify relevant local physicians within driving distance of your site, send study aligned direct mail, follow up by email and LinkedIn, track engagement with recipient level QR codes, and route warm responses into your site team's workflow.

Talk to TrialNotice

Sources

  1. MD Group, "The True Cost of Patient Drop Outs in Clinical Trials" (example of the widely repeated figure)
  2. "Site specific factors associated with clinical trial recruitment efficiency in general practice settings," PMC
  3. Brøgger Mikkelsen M. et al., "Online Patient Recruitment in Clinical Trials: Systematic Review and Meta Analysis," Journal of Medical Internet Research

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