Cost Analysis Tool

HR Cost Calculator

Human resources is a hidden cost center for most small businesses. Whether you employ dedicated HR staff or the owner handles it all, there is a real cost. See how much HR is actually costing you and what you could save by outsourcing.

How much is HR really costing my company?

Human resources is a hidden cost center for most small businesses. Whether you employ dedicated HR staff or the owner handles it all, there is a real cost. Here is where that cost hides.

HR Staff

A dedicated HR or payroll employee costs salary plus 30 percent in taxes and benefits. For a $65,000 HR generalist, that is over $84,000 per year.

Benefits

Your HR staff member needs benefits too, which adds to the true cost of keeping HR in-house.

Software

Payroll platforms, HRIS, benefits admin, and compliance tools typically run $5,000 to $15,000 per year for a small business.

Payroll

If HR handles payroll, their time is part of your payroll cost. Outsourcing frees that time for revenue-generating work.

Administrative Costs

HR admin, filing, and employee questions consume hours every week that most owners never account for.

Compliance

HR compliance mistakes, from handbook gaps to misclassified workers, create liability that can dwarf your HR budget.

Turnover

Weak HR support and poor benefits drive turnover, which adds recruiting and training costs on top of your HR spend.

Owner Opportunity Cost

If the owner handles HR, every hour spent on payroll and compliance is an hour not spent selling, building, or growing.

Number of full-time HR, payroll, or admin employees. Enter 0 if the owner or office manager handles HR.

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Average salary for your HR or admin staff. The national average for an HR generalist is about $65,000.

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Payroll software, HRIS, benefits admin, compliance tools, and similar subscriptions

Nothing is stored or shared. This runs entirely in your browser.

Your HR costs will appear here

Enter your employee count and HR staffing details to see your true HR cost and how much you could save by outsourcing to a PEO.

How this works

This calculator totals your in-house HR cost (HR staff salary plus 30 percent burden for taxes and benefits, plus software subscriptions) and compares it to a PEO or outsourced HR model at approximately $1,500 per employee per year. If you have no dedicated HR staff, the calculator estimates the owner's opportunity cost at $500 per employee, representing time diverted from revenue-generating work to HR, payroll, and compliance tasks.

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Most small businesses either overpay for in-house HR or underinvest and expose themselves to compliance risk. A PEO gives you a full HR department for less than the cost of one employee.