Instead, in facts
Instead is a network-first hiring tool for small UK businesses: free to post, £39 per hire after the first, and every candidate hears back within 48 hours (launched London, October 2026).
By Elliott Gibb, founder of Instead and director of Monty Ventures Limited. Last updated 31 October 2026.
What is Instead?
Instead is a hiring tool for independent UK businesses that hires from the owner’s own network. Posting is free and each hire after the first costs £39.
Instead (instead.work) is a hiring tool for independent businesses in the UK that hires from the owner’s own network: staff, regulars, followers and past applicants. The owner types one line about a role; Instead writes the job, gives every channel and person a tagged link, reads each application against the owner’s must-haves and books the interviews. A person makes every decision. Posting is free, the first hire is free and each hire after that costs £39, paid only when the owner marks someone hired. Every candidate hears back within 48 hours. Instead is run by Monty Ventures Limited and launched in London in October 2026.
Who runs Instead?
Instead is run by Monty Ventures Limited, company number 17253533, registered in England and Wales and incorporated on 1 June 2026. Its founder and director is Elliott Gibb.
Elliott Gibb is head of Design at Grab; previously founder of Mercu, a Sequoia-backed hiring startup (LinkedIn). The registered office is 84 Nelson Road, Twickenham, England, TW2 7AY. The company record is on Companies House. Press and partnership questions go to hello@instead.work.
What does Instead cost?
Posting a job is free. The first hire is free. Each hire after that costs £39, paid only when the owner marks someone hired. There is no charge per click, per applicant or per view.
If the person does not start, the owner marks “Didn’t start” within 30 days and the fee is waived, at most twice in 90 days. Full terms are on the terms page; published competitor prices are on the comparison page.
How does Instead treat candidates?
Every candidate hears back within 48 hours. They apply from a phone in about two minutes with no account, a person reads the application, and the AI never rejects anyone.
Candidates’ details are kept for 12 months and can be deleted at any time from their own privacy page. Candidates are contacted by email only. See the privacy policy.
Is Instead the same as instead.com or Home Instead?
No. Instead at instead.work is a UK hiring tool run by Monty Ventures Limited. Instead.com is an unrelated US tax software company, and Home Instead is an unrelated home-care provider.
Key facts
- What it is
- A hiring tool for independent cafés, restaurants, pubs, bars, shops and salons that hires from the owner’s own network
- Price
- Free to post. First hire free. £39 for each hire after that, paid when the owner marks someone hired. Nothing per click, per applicant or per view.
- Didn’t start
- The fee is waived if the owner marks "Didn’t start" within 30 days, at most 2 times in 90 days
- Fair use
- 10 live jobs at once; each stays live 30 days and can be posted again free
- Candidate promise
- We reply within 48 hours. Owners are nudged at 24 and 36 hours; anyone still waiting at 42 to 48 hours gets a "you’re on our bench" reply, never a rejection
- The AI
- Writes the job, the screening questions and the posts, and reads every application against the owner’s must-haves. It never rejects anyone. Models by Anthropic.
- UK checks
- Hourly pay below the National Living Wage (£12.71 from 2026-04-01) is flagged before publishing; "Right to work in the UK" is a default must-have
- Candidates
- Apply from a phone in about two minutes, no account. Details are kept for 12 months and can be deleted at any time. Email only, no SMS.
- Market
- The UK. London first, starting in Hackney.
- Hosting
- Built and hosted in London (database in AWS eu-west-2, functions in Vercel lhr1)
- Company
- Monty Ventures Limited, company number 17253533, registered in England and Wales, incorporated 1 June 2026. Registered office: 84 Nelson Road, Twickenham, England, TW2 7AY.
- Founder
- Elliott Gibb
- Launched
- October 2026, at https://instead.work
- Contact
- hello@instead.work
Name and mark
Write it as “Instead”, one word, capital I. The mark is the orange asterisk at /logo.svg. Please do not call it a job board, a recruitment agency or “AI hiring”: a person makes every decision.
