Who is buying staffing agencies?
19 named consolidator platforms are actively acquiring US staffing businesses; 7 of them are private-equity-backed. The most recent named acquisition tracked on this page closed in August 2026.
Why staffing agencies are consolidating
- •Around 27,000 staffing and recruiting companies operated close to 54,000 offices in the US in 2021, according to the American Staffing Association.
- •The 241 firms with at least $100 million in 2023 US staffing revenue together generated $145.2 billion, about 69% of the US staffing market, according to Staffing Industry Analysts.
- •North America had 93 publicly announced staffing M&A deals in both 2024 and 2025, below the 2022 peak of 139, according to Staffing Industry Analysts.
- •Private companies made up 92% of staffing-firm buyers in 2025, while private equity firms and public companies were 4% each, down from 16% and 8% in 2024, according to Staffing Industry Analysts.
- •Healthcare was the most-acquired segment in 2025, at 26% of staffing firms acquired (24 deals). Place-and-search followed at 21%, and industrial and IT staffing at 13% each, according to Staffing Industry Analysts.
The platforms consolidating staffing agencies
The named groups acquiring US staffing businesses, with their current owner and a source for each. Most grow through individual partnerships that are not separately disclosed; where a platform publishes named deals, recent ones are listed.
| Acquirer | Owner / backer | Type | Headquarters | Latest named deal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Adecco Group (Adecco US) | Publicly listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (SIX: ADEN) | Strategic / public | Jacksonville, FL (North American HQ); group HQ Zurich, Switzerland | Jan 2026 |
| Kelly Services | Public (Nasdaq: KELYA, KELYB). Hunt Equity Opportunities (a Hunt Companies subsidiary) holds 92.2% of the voting power after buying the Adderley trust's Class B stake | Strategic / public | Troy, MI | Jun 2024 |
| CHG Healthcare | Leonard Green & Partners and Ares Management | Private equity | Midvale, UT | Aug 2026 |
| All Star Healthcare Solutions | Knox Lane (majority since May 2024; founders and management kept a significant minority stake) | Private equity | Deerfield Beach, FL (per its May 2025 release; the Jul 2026 release is datelined Boca Raton) | Jul 2026 |
| TrueBlue | Public (NYSE: TBI) | Strategic / public | Tacoma, WA | Jan 2025 |
| System One | Oaktree Capital Management (first invested Dec 2020) and StepStone Group (joined Sept 2026) | Private equity | Pittsburgh, PA | Apr 2026 |
| INSPYR Solutions | A&M Capital Partners | Private equity | Fort Lauderdale, FL | Sep 2025 |
| GHR Healthcare | MidOcean Partners (since Dec 2021) | Private equity | Blue Bell, PA | May 2025 |
| Elite365 Family of Brands | Regal Healthcare Capital Partners (growth equity partner); Havencrest Capital Management supporting alongside it since the Focus Staff deal | Private equity | Irving, TX and Tampa, FL | Feb 2026 |
| Ascend Staffing | Privately held (per LinkedIn); no outside investor named in any source read | Strategic / family-owned | North Salt Lake, UT | Mar 2026 |
| Partners Personnel | Private company led by CEO Paul Sorensen; no outside equity sponsor named in any source read | Strategic / family-owned | Santa Barbara, CA | Jul 2025 |
| Elwood Staffing | Elwood family (a privately owned corporation led by CEO John Elwood) | Strategic / family-owned | Columbus, IN | Jan 2024 |
| QPS Employment Group | Employees, through an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) completed in 2021 | Employee-owned (ESOP) | Brookfield, WI | Feb 2026 |
| Mitchell Martin | Employees (ESOP launched Oct 2023) | Employee-owned (ESOP) | New York, NY | Jun 2026 |
| Innovative Staff Solutions | Meinhart family | Strategic / family-owned | Mattoon, IL | Dec 2025 |
| HW Staffing Solutions | Walsh family-led (founded 1980 by Helen Walsh; CEO Ed Walsh) | Strategic / family-owned | South Easton, MA | Jun 2026 |
| Epitec | Family-owned | Strategic / family-owned | Southfield, MI | Jun 2026 |
| VeloSource | Interlock Equity (Los Angeles-based private equity firm) | Private equity | St. Louis, MO | Apr 2026 |
| Masis Staffing Solutions | Family-owned (Vaccaro family executives) | Strategic / family-owned | Worcester, MA | Jul 2026 |
The Adecco Group (Adecco US)
Strategic / public- Owner
- Publicly listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (SIX: ADEN)
- Headquarters
- Jacksonville, FL (North American HQ); group HQ Zurich, Switzerland
- Scale
- 100,000-plus clients worldwide (group statement, Feb 2026)
A Swiss parent buying US healthcare staffing. SIA says the Advantis deal closed Jan 23, 2026. This is the only US staffing deal by Adecco found for 2024-2026.
Kelly Services
Strategic / public- Owner
- Public (Nasdaq: KELYA, KELYB). Hunt Equity Opportunities (a Hunt Companies subsidiary) holds 92.2% of the voting power after buying the Adderley trust's Class B stake
- Headquarters
- Troy, MI
- Scale
- Connects more than 400,000 people with work each year (company statement, Jan 2026)
Still publicly traded, but control changed in early 2026: Kelly signed its agreement with Hunt on Jan 30, 2026, and Goodwin reported the closing on Feb 2, 2026.
CHG Healthcare
Private equity- Owner
- Leonard Green & Partners and Ares Management
- Headquarters
- Midvale, UT
- Scale
- One of the three largest US healthcare staffing firms, with Aya Healthcare and Jackson Healthcare (SIA, Sept 2026)
The owners date from the 2012 buyout. No 2025-2026 sale was found, and PE Hub still called CHG PE-backed in Aug 2026. Separately, the FT reported in Jul 2026 that Ares had held talks to buy Leonard Green itself.
All Star Healthcare Solutions
Private equity- Owner
- Knox Lane (majority since May 2024; founders and management kept a significant minority stake)
- Headquarters
- Deerfield Beach, FL (per its May 2025 release; the Jul 2026 release is datelined Boca Raton)
- Scale
- Serves all 50 states. Was the eighth-largest US locum tenens provider before adding Cross Country's locums business, which was ninth (SIA, Jul 2026)
Separately, Knox Lane took Cross Country Healthcare (Boca Raton, FL) private in a deal that closed Jul 21, 2026. SIA calls Cross Country the seventh-largest US staffing firm overall.
TrueBlue
Strategic / public- Owner
- Public (NYSE: TBI)
- Headquarters
- Tacoma, WA
- Scale
- Fifth-largest US industrial staffing firm (SIA, Feb 2025)
The board rejected HireQuest's unsolicited bids for the whole company (May 2025) and for the On-Demand segment of PeopleReady (May 2026). TrueBlue remains independent and listed.
System One
Private equity- Owner
- Oaktree Capital Management (first invested Dec 2020) and StepStone Group (joined Sept 2026)
- Headquarters
- Pittsburgh, PA
- Scale
- Over 50 locations and more than 10,000 professionals (Sept 2026); third-largest US engineering staffing provider (SIA, Jan 2026)
Cypress and Pathfinder are consulting firms, not staffing agencies, so only Tech USA appears in the deals list.
INSPYR Solutions
Private equity- Owner
- A&M Capital Partners
- Headquarters
- Fort Lauderdale, FL
- Scale
- No. 14 on SIA's 2026 Largest IT Staffing Firms list and No. 55 on its Largest US Staffing Firms list (company statement, Jun 2026)
GHR Healthcare
Private equity- Owner
- MidOcean Partners (since Dec 2021)
- Headquarters
- Blue Bell, PA
- Scale
- Five offices nationwide (MidOcean portfolio page)
No 2025-2026 sale of GHR was found.
Elite365 Family of Brands
Private equity- Owner
- Regal Healthcare Capital Partners (growth equity partner); Havencrest Capital Management supporting alongside it since the Focus Staff deal
- Headquarters
- Irving, TX and Tampa, FL
- Scale
- More than 3,000 facilities in its network (SIA, Apr 2025)
Regal is described as a growth equity partner, not a buyout owner. Havencrest had owned Focus Staff since Nov 2023. The dates above are closing dates; the deals list uses announcement months for Critical Connection (Jul 2024) and Wilderness (Aug 2025).
Ascend Staffing
Strategic / family-owned- Owner
- Privately held (per LinkedIn); no outside investor named in any source read
- Headquarters
- North Salt Lake, UT
- Scale
- 50 offices across the US (Sept 2025)
Medium confidence on owner type, because 'privately held' doesn't rule out an outside investor. SIA counted 14 Ascend acquisitions in seven years (Nov 2024).
Partners Personnel
Strategic / family-owned- Owner
- Private company led by CEO Paul Sorensen; no outside equity sponsor named in any source read
- Headquarters
- Santa Barbara, CA
- Scale
- More than 110 US locations (SIA, Jul 2025); No. 7 US industrial staffing firm with a 2.6% market share (SIA 2026, company statement)
Medium confidence on owner type. PitchBook lists it as private, with debt as its latest deal type, but no source states its cap table.
Elwood Staffing
Strategic / family-owned- Owner
- Elwood family (a privately owned corporation led by CEO John Elwood)
- Headquarters
- Columbus, IN
- Scale
- More than 215 offices and more than 70 vendor-on-premise locations in 33 states after the BelFlex deal (SIA, Jan 2024)
BelFlex's CEO called Elwood 'a fellow family-owned business'. BelFlex was Elwood's 20th acquisition, and no later deal was found.
QPS Employment Group
Employee-owned (ESOP)- Owner
- Employees, through an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) completed in 2021
- Headquarters
- Brookfield, WI
- Scale
- Not disclosed
American Staffing was QPS's 10th acquisition since 2006. QPS still described itself as employee-owned in Jun 2026.
Mitchell Martin
Employee-owned (ESOP)- Owner
- Employees (ESOP launched Oct 2023)
- Headquarters
- New York, NY
- Scale
- Not disclosed
It called itself employee-owned in its May 2026 CC Pace announcement. Earlier deals include TransTech IT Staffing (2022), per SIA.
Innovative Staff Solutions
Strategic / family-owned- Owner
- Meinhart family
- Headquarters
- Mattoon, IL
- Scale
- 25 offices (Jan 2026)
HW Staffing Solutions
Strategic / family-owned- Owner
- Walsh family-led (founded 1980 by Helen Walsh; CEO Ed Walsh)
- Headquarters
- South Easton, MA
- Scale
- Nearly 20-plus offices, mostly in New England (SIA, Jul 2026)
Medium confidence on owner type. Main Street Capital's 2015 recapitalization is marked 'Realized' on its portfolio page, but no source states the current cap table.
Epitec
Strategic / family-owned- Owner
- Family-owned
- Headquarters
- Southfield, MI
- Scale
- No. 206 on SIA's list of largest US staffing firms (Jul 2026)
VeloSource
Private equity- Owner
- Interlock Equity (Los Angeles-based private equity firm)
- Headquarters
- St. Louis, MO
- Scale
- Not disclosed
Added in this check. Both deals closed in April and were announced Jun 16, 2026. The Quest brand is due to be retired later in 2026. Syncx is technology, not a staffing agency, so it is left off the deals list.
Masis Staffing Solutions
Strategic / family-owned- Owner
- Family-owned (Vaccaro family executives)
- Headquarters
- Worcester, MA
- Scale
- Operates in more than 27 states; first appeared on SIA's Largest US Staffing Firms list in 2026
Added in this check; the draft had dropped this deal because the owner couldn't be sourced. Only one 2024-2026 deal was found.
Selling in your state?
What staffing businesses sell for, who is buying, and how many there are, state by state.
Frequently asked
How many staffing agencies get sold each year?
Staffing Industry Analysts counted 93 publicly announced staffing M&A deals in North America in both 2024 and 2025, down from a peak of 139 in 2022. Healthcare was the most-acquired segment in 2025, at 26% of firms acquired (24 deals). Place-and-search followed at 21%, and industrial and IT staffing at 13% each.
Is private equity buying staffing agencies?
Yes, mostly through platforms it already owns. Knox Lane took Cross Country Healthcare private in July 2026 and moved Cross Country's locums division into its All Star Healthcare Solutions. A&M Capital Partners' INSPYR Solutions bought BGSF's professional division for $99 million in September 2025. MidOcean's GHR Healthcare, Regal-backed Elite365, Oaktree-backed System One, CHG Healthcare (owned by Leonard Green and Ares) and Interlock Equity's VeloSource also added firms. Even so, SIA found that private equity firms made only 4% of direct purchases in 2025, down from 16% in 2024. Private companies made 92%.
Who buys light industrial staffing firms?
Mostly private operators. Ascend Staffing bought PDQ Staffing and Darby Day Staffing in Texas and The Temp Connection in Tucson. Partners Personnel bought Chicago's ClearStaff in July 2025. Family-owned Elwood Staffing bought Cincinnati's BelFlex. Employee-owned QPS Employment Group bought American Staffing of Maryland Heights, MO. The Meinhart family's Innovative Staff Solutions bought JMJ Talent Solutions and Inter-Connect Employment Services.
Who buys healthcare staffing firms?
Recent buyers include: - Adecco: Advantis Medical Staffing (Dallas, January 2026) - TrueBlue: Healthcare Staffing Professionals (Reseda, CA, January 2025) - CHG Healthcare: KREWE Anesthesia (August 2026) - GHR Healthcare: Barton Associates' nurse and allied business (May 2025) - All Star Healthcare Solutions: Integrity Locums (May 2025) - VeloSource: Quest Locum Tenens (Atlanta, April 2026) Elite365 has made four healthcare staffing acquisitions since 2024.
Can I sell to an employee-owned or family-owned company instead of private equity?
Yes. Employee-owned QPS Employment Group bought American Staffing in October 2025 and Next Level Technician in February 2026. Mitchell Martin, which launched its ESOP (employee stock ownership plan) in 2023, bought CC Pace Systems in June 2026. Family-owned Elwood Staffing, Epitec, Innovative Staff Solutions and Masis Staffing Solutions have each bought staffing firms since 2024.
Will my company keep its name after a sale?
It depends on the buyer. Elwood kept BelFlex running under its own brand as a subsidiary, Elite365 kept the Proxi Dental Staffing brand, and TrueBlue said Healthcare Staffing Professionals would keep operating under its own brand. QPS retired the American Staffing name, and Ascend moved PDQ onto the Ascend brand. The TalentBurst businesses that Epitec bought now use the Epitec brand, and VeloSource plans to retire the Quest brand later in 2026.
Methodology & sources
Compiled in October 2026 from three kinds of source: Staffing Industry Analysts deal coverage, press releases from buyers and PE firms, and SEC filings. An adversarial pass then re-checked every platform's owner, HQ, scale and acquisitions, and every deal's target, acquirer, month and location, against a page read in that pass. Every platform's owner was checked for a 2025-2026 sale, recap or change of control. A deal is listed only where the acquirer's ownership type could be sourced, so the 38 deals here are a sample of the roughly 93 North American staffing deals SIA counts each year, not a census. Platform revenue figures are left out on purpose.
Market sources
- American Staffing Association, Staffing Industry Statistics ↗
- Staffing Industry Analysts, Largest Staffing Firms in the United States: 2024 Update ↗
- Staffing Industry Analysts, Staffing M&A stayed flat in 2025 (Sept 23, 2026) ↗
Last updated October 6, 2026. Platform ownership last verified October 6, 2026. Ownership in this sector changes frequently; figures reflect the most recent public sources available and are not investment, legal, or tax advice.
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