Question 1

How much does an employer of record cost?

Accepted Answer

Platform fees across the providers we compare range from about $199/employee/month (RemoFirst) to $770/employee/month (Papaya Global), with most majors clustered around $599. On top of that, you pay the employee's gross salary plus statutory employer contributions (social security, healthcare, pension), which add roughly 15–35% depending on country. A €60k hire in Germany works out to roughly €6,400/month all-in on our estimates; the same gross in India is closer to $5,800/month.

Question 2

What does an EOR fee actually include?

Accepted Answer

The monthly fee covers legal employment in-country, payroll processing, statutory tax filing, benefits administration, employment contracts, and compliance updates. It does NOT include the employee's salary, statutory employer contributions, optional benefits (private health, equity), or FX conversion spread (typically 1–3%).

Question 3

Are there hidden EOR fees to watch for?

Accepted Answer

Yes, three big ones. (1) FX spread: most platforms quote in USD but pay in local currency at a 1–3% markup over mid-market rates. (2) Deposits: 1–2 months of salary held as security. (3) Offboarding fees: some vendors charge $500–$2,000 to terminate. Always ask for the all-in monthly cost in your billing currency.

Question 4

Is there a cheaper alternative to an EOR?

Accepted Answer

For 1–10 hires per country, EOR is almost always the cheapest option. Above ~15–20 employees in one country, opening your own entity can become cheaper despite roughly $15k–$40k setup and $10k–$25k/year compliance overhead (varies widely by jurisdiction). For pure cost arbitrage, contractors look cheaper than EOR but carry serious misclassification risk in most countries.

Question 5

Why is the EOR cost in some countries so much higher?

Accepted Answer

It's not the EOR fee — that's roughly flat globally. The difference is statutory employer contributions. France adds ~45% on top of gross salary; the US adds ~10%; Singapore adds ~17%. The platform fee is the smallest line item; the country's tax regime drives the total.

Cost line	Typical range	What it is
Platform fee	$199 – $770 / employee / month	Flat fee across compared providers (RemoFirst to Papaya Global)
Gross salary	Whatever you offered the employee	Paid in local currency by the EOR
Statutory employer contributions	+10% (US) to +45% (France)	Social security, healthcare, pension, unemployment
FX spread	+1% to +3%	Markup on USD → local currency conversion
Deposit	1–2 months of salary	Held as security; refunded on offboarding
Optional benefits	+$50 to +$400 / month	Private health, equity admin, pension top-ups
Setup / offboarding	$0 to $2,000	Most major platforms don't charge; some do

Country	Gross salary	All-in / month	What's driving it
Germany	€60,000	~€6,400 / mo	Employer contributions ~20%, platform fee ~$599
United Kingdom	£55,000	~£5,300 / mo	NI + pension ~15%, lower-friction market
India	$30,000	~$3,300 / mo	PF + ESI ~12%, low-cost country
Brazil	R$ 200,000	~R$ 26,500 / mo	Heavy social charges ~28%
United States	$120,000	~$11,800 / mo	Lower statutory load (~10%), high salary

What an Employer of Record actually costs

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EOR cost by country

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