Payroll and EOR software, costed by stage
What payroll, PEO and employer-of-record tools cost a startup at 3, 12 and 40 people, next to the employer taxes and benefits they sit on, using prices read on each vendor's own page.
Adlega makes financial forecasting software and is not one of these tools. No vendor here pays us: no affiliate or sponsored links. How we verify prices · Price changes and corrections
What payroll costs per year, by stage
| Team | Employer taxes, benefits, on-costs | Cheapest US payroll | Gusto Plus | Rippling (from) | Justworks PEO Basic | EOR fees abroad | Runway days the fees use |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-seed 3 in the US, 1 state | $51,363 | $636 (Square Payroll) | $1,392 | $1,128 | $2,844 | - | 2 |
| Pre-seed 2 in the US + 1 abroad | $51,484 | $564 (Square Payroll) | $1,248 | $912 | $1,896 | $4,788-$8,388 | 17 |
| Seed 12 in the US, 2 states | $214,418 | $1,188 (Paychex Flex Essentials) | $2,688 | $3,072 | $11,376 | - | 2 |
| Seed 8 in the US + 4 abroad | $180,689 | $948 (Paychex Flex Essentials) | $2,112 | $2,208 | $7,584 | $19,152-$33,552 | 27 |
| Series A 40 in the US, 2 states | $764,313 | $3,300 (Square Payroll) | $6,720 | $9,120 | $37,920 | - | 1 |
| Series A 28 in the US + 12 abroad | $686,414 | $2,436 (Square Payroll) | $4,992 | $6,528 | $26,544 | $57,456-$100,656 | 29 |
Annual USD at list price, read on vendor pages on October 13, 2026. US staff in California plus Texas or New York at $110,000 / $120,000 / $135,000 with single health cover (KFF 2025 employer average); people abroad in Germany, the UK, Canada, India, Poland and Brazil at illustrative local salaries via an employer of record. Runway days use Gusto Plus and Deel EOR, with $0.5M / $3M / $12M in the bank. Rippling publishes only starting prices on its marketing pages; Justworks PEO needs two or more W-2 employees.
The pattern: for a US team, employer taxes and benefits are the bill and payroll software is a rounding error, one or two days of runway a year on any payroll-only plan (a PEO, which bundles benefits, uses more). People abroad change that: at $399 to $699 a month each, employer-of-record fees use close to a month of runway a year once four people work outside the US. Run your own team in the payroll cost calculator.
Recent changes most comparison pages still miss: Gusto closed its Contractor Only plan on October 1, 2026 and has referred new employer-of-record customers to Remote since May 1, 2026; Justworks PEO Plus is $124 a month since June 2026; Rippling removed prices from its pricing page around September 2025; Omnipresent is now part of Deel and Velocity Global is now Pebl.
Verified entry prices
US payroll and PEO
| Tool | Entry plan | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Gusto | Simple: $49/mo + $6/mo per person | Active |
| Justworks | Payroll: $8/month/employee + $50/month base fee | Active |
| Rippling | Platform (Core HRIS): From $8 per user/month + $40/month base fee | Active |
| OnPay | Payroll Essentials: $49 base + $6/worker per month | Active |
| Square Payroll | Full-service payroll: $35/mo + $6 monthly fee per person paid | Active |
| Paychex Flex | Paychex Flex Essentials: $39/mo + $5 per employee | Active |
| RUN Powered by ADP | Essential / Enhanced / Complete Payroll & HR+ / HR Pro: Get pricing (quote) | Quote only |
| QuickBooks Workforce (Payroll) | Workforce Payroll + Simple Start (bundle): $88 + $7/employee; promo $44/mo for 3 months | Sold with QuickBooks bundles |
| TriNet | TriNet PEO: Quote | Quote only |
Employer of record and contractors abroad
| Tool | Entry plan | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Deel | Employer of Record (EOR): $599/mo | Active |
| Remote | Employer of Record: from $599/mo | Active |
| Multiplier | EOR Core: $499/mo ($459/mo billed yearly) | Active |
| Papaya Global | Employer of Record (EOR): from $499/mo | Active |
| Oyster | Employer of Record: $699/mo | Active |
| Pebl (formerly Velocity Global) | Employer of Record: $399/mo | Renamed Pebl (2025) |
| Omnipresent | No published plan | Acquired by Deel (2025) |
Each price read on the vendor's pricing page or, for Rippling, its own marketing pages; latest check October 13, 2026. Weekly monitoring flags changes; see price changes.
Comparisons in this category
Gusto Alternatives (2026): Cheaper Payroll, PEO and Global Options for Startups, With Costs
Why startups leave Gusto in 2026 (one-state Simple, Contractor Only closed, EOR handed to Remote), six alternatives with verified prices, and what each costs at 3, 12 and 40 people.
Read the comparison → DeelDeel Alternatives (2026): Remote, Rippling, Multiplier, Papaya, Oyster, Pebl Priced by Stage
Six live alternatives to Deel with published EOR prices, what each costs for 1, 4 and 12 people abroad, and when a contractor setup is the honest answer instead.
Read the comparison → GustoGusto vs Justworks (2026): Payroll Software or PEO for a Startup, With Costs by Stage
Gusto is payroll software; Justworks sells both payroll software and a PEO. Which one a startup should pick at pre-seed, seed and Series A, with full-team costs and the hiring-abroad catch on each side.
Read the comparison → DeelDeel vs Rippling for Startups: EOR at $599 vs From $499, Contractors, US Payroll and the Lawsuit
Deel publishes its EOR and contractor prices and bills month to month; Rippling quotes, starts EOR at $499 and signs annual terms. Costs by stage, the extra EOR lines in Deel's help center, and where the lawsuit stands.
Read the comparison → DeelDeel vs Remote (2026): EOR Price, Deposits, Contractor Fees and Cost by Stage
Deel and Remote charge about the same headline EOR fee. The real differences are deposits, contractor pricing, Remote's startup discount and a Remote price that its own pages state two ways.
Read the comparison → RipplingGusto vs Rippling for Startups: Price Transparency, Multi-State Payroll, Contracts and Hiring Abroad
Gusto publishes its prices and runs month to month; Rippling quotes every deal and signs annual terms. What each costs at pre-seed, seed and Series A, and what changes when you hire in a second state or abroad.
Read the comparison → GustoGusto Pricing (2026): Plans, Per-Person Fees and What Payroll Really Costs a Startup
Gusto's three plans, the one-state limit that pushes most startups onto Plus, the Contractor Only closure and the EOR hand-off to Remote, with cost at pre-seed, seed and Series A.
Read the comparison → DeelDeel Pricing 2026: $599 EOR Headline vs the Real Invoice (Deposits, Accruals, Fees)
Deel's $599 EOR price has not moved since 2024, but its help center adds a deposit, severance accruals, an Employer Liability Cost line and a currency fee. US Payroll, PEO and HR prices went up.
Read the comparison → JustworksJustworks Pricing (2026): Payroll vs PEO Basic and Plus, Price Rises and Startup Cost
Justworks sells cheap payroll software and a PEO that costs four to seven times more. Current prices, the 2024-2026 increases most pages miss, and what each costs a startup.
Read the comparison → RipplingRippling Pricing 2026: No Price on Its Pricing Page, What Rippling Says Elsewhere, and What Buyers Report
Rippling quotes every deal. What its own marketing pages and blog still state (and where they disagree), the Startup Stack fine print, what buyers report paying, and what Rippling costs at pre-seed, seed and Series A.
Read the comparison →Calculators
- Payroll cost calculator: 2026 employer taxes by state, benefits, people abroad via EOR or as contractors, and the runway the fees use.
- Headcount and hiring plan: build the team role by role and see burn and runway.
- Runway calculator: cash, burn and the month you run out.
How we compare these tools
Every price comes from the vendor's own pricing page and help center and is dated; quote-only plans are marked, never estimated, and third-party figures are labelled as reported. Stage costs use the three team sizes we apply across all comparisons and the 2026 statutory rates in the calculator. None of these tools has been hands-on tested by us yet, and each page says so. Full rules on the methodology page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best payroll software for a startup?
It depends on where your people are. For a small all-US team in one state, the published plans from Square Payroll, Paychex Flex Essentials, OnPay and Gusto Simple all cost under $1,000 a year at three people. A second state rules out Gusto Simple. Hires abroad need an employer of record or a contractor platform, and that fee, $399 to $699 a month per person, is far larger than any US payroll plan.
How much does an employer of record cost?
Published starting prices run from $399 a month per employee (Pebl, formerly Velocity Global) to $699 (Oyster); Deel lists $599, Rippling starts at $499, Multiplier at $499 billed monthly or $459 billed annually, and Remote shows $599 today after showing $699 in August to October 2026. Employer social contributions in the country come on top, plus deposits at some providers.
What is the difference between payroll, a PEO and an EOR?
Payroll software runs pay and tax filings while you stay the employer. A PEO (Justworks, Rippling PEO, Deel US PEO) becomes co-employer of your US staff so you can use its benefits plans; it costs $79 to $125 per employee per month. An employer of record is the legal employer of your hire in another country, where you have no company.
Does a Delaware C-corp pay payroll taxes in Delaware?
Only for people who work in Delaware. State unemployment tax follows where the employee works, so a Delaware company with staff in California registers and pays in California.
Related: SaaS headcount planning, burn rate and cash runway, revenue per employee.
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