Best Employer of Record (EOR) Services in 2023

Papaya Global has been chosen as one of our recommended EOR solutions for three main reasons: a complete suite of services for global employment, a straightforward and flexible pricing structure, and distinctive customer service.

From our experience testing the platform, Papaya Global excels at providing a range of EOR services that businesses need to ensure their global employment is compliant without having to establish a local entity in the hire's country. The platform allows businesses to hire contractors and employees in 160+ countries. While the self-service portal is not new in this space, Papaya Global has made it helpful and engaging for end users. Employees can finish their country-specific onboarding, check their company org chart, time and attendance report, and access payslips, wage and tax statements, and employment documents. The platform has also rolled out its mobile app, with new features coming, to allow employees to access those features on the go.

Papaya Global's pricing is clear, and we appreciate the effort to make the product more flexible for businesses. In addition to the three plans (EOR, Contractor management, and Global expertise services), users can now pick and pay for the solutions they need from its standalone offerings: full-service payroll, payroll platform license, data and insights, and payments-as-a-service at an affordable price, starting from $3 per employee per month.

While we would like to see Papaya Global offer 24/7 customer support, its current support service is already impressive. The global support center and knowledge base are available for all plans. Those purchasing EOR and Payroll solutions will have dedicated experts working in country-specific time zones to provide local expertise regarding employment and payroll. However, compared to competing platforms, Papaya Global does have its drawbacks. For example, while Oyster allows businesses to sign up for an account and explore the platform, its HR tools, and resources for free (except for the cost calculator), Papaya Global does not offer that much to free users. Lacking local entities is another weakness of Papaya Global, and some businesses may find the platform less cost-effective, as its BI analytics reports and immigration services require extra fees.

Microsoft, Intel, Toyota, Wix, Fiverr, Johnson & Johnson, Deezer

• Employee of Record is one of Papaya Global plans. It enables businesses to manage their EOR locations on one platform. The platform’s in-country partners function as employers of record, being responsible for payroll, workforce management, benefits, compliance, and more. This plan costs between $770 and $1000 per employee per month.
• Other than the Employee of Record plan, Papaya Global offers Contractor Management (starts at $25 per employee per pay cycle) and Global Expertise Services (priced at $250 for an annual plan or $320 quarterly per location).
• PapayaGlobal has added four standalone services in addition to its three plans: Full-Service Payroll (starts at $12 per employee per month), Payroll Platform License (starts at $3 per employee per month), Data and Insights Platform License (starts at $150 per employee per location), and Payments-as-a-Service (starts at $3 per employee per month).

Remofirst effectively straddles the realms of a software platform and Employer of Record provider. It extends comprehensive compliance solutions to global teams seeking to recruit personnel and contractors in regions devoid of their own legal entities.

We’ve been lucky enough to witness their product evolution since its inception in 2021. After a demo and a couple of conversations with their product team, we’ve noted transformations like a revamped UI, expedited same-day onboarding, and enhanced 24/7 customer support.

On the services front, we’ve heard praise from several users for Remofirst’s transparent operations and exceptional customer service. They also boast extensive country coverage and a reasonably priced offering.

The notable clientele of Remofirst includes Microsoft, Mastercard, ZocDoc, QED, Labster, and Byrd.

Remofirst's pricing model is worth checking out. For EOR services, the pricing tier initiates at $199 per employee per month. Contract workers can start using the platform for $19 per month.

A conventional free trial is absent, but Remofirst is still a cost-friendly tool. For example, there are no monthly charges for hiring global contractors. Hence, you can perform a low-commitment evaluation of the platform's offerings before transitioning to full EOR services.

When it comes to global payroll, Deel is one of the pioneering companies. They offer a comprehensive solution that includes contractor and freelancer management, as well as EOR and PEO capabilities. Moreover, their sleek design makes them stand out in the category.

For EOR, they act as the legal entity that would hire your international teammates in their country of residence. They can do this in over 90 of the countries they currently operate in, so it’s best to check their exact list if you’re positive about wanting to go the EOR route.

Deel is used by companies such as Brex, Google, Homelight, Duffel, and Andela.

Deel offers an intriguing pricing structure that promotes exploration and adaptation. Users have the opportunity to sign up for free and fully experience the tool's functionalities before incurring charges, which begin once the first team member is paid. The pricing tiers for Deel are as follows:‍

• ‍Contractors: Priced at $49 per contractor per month, this plan ensures comprehensive management of payroll and compliance for contract engagements spanning 150 countries. Deel efficiently handles the intricacies of contractor payroll, streamlining operations across diverse jurisdictions.‍
• Full-Time Plan: Starting from $500, this plan proves highly advantageous for companies seeking to expand their workforce across international boundaries. This is where Deel acts as an Employer of Record, alleviating the complexities of establishing legal entities in new countries.

Multiplier’s Employer of Record solution helps you hire, onboard, manage, and pay employees, as well as manage taxes, allowances, bonuses, social contributions, and statutory deductions in over 150 countries.

For a company that was founded in late 2020, they have made significant strides in their industry, one of which is securing over $70 million in funding from 14 investors. Further, their PEO service stands as the middle-man employer to process payroll, benefits, and other expenses required to manage global workforces. Multiplier also helps businesses with local entities process local payroll in the specific markets they are hiring.

Multiplier is used by many companies with a global footprint, including Amazon, PWC, ServiceNow, Korn Ferry, and Orange Business Services.

Multiplier offers two price plans for their EOR services. They are flat rates priced on a per monthly basis. The amount stays the same regardless of the number of employees you manage. You get to cancel anytime, and no credit card is required for initial sign-up.

Note that, in addition to these plans, you will pay additional costs for the employee insurance package (also offered as a stand-alone tool). It starts from $20 per month for the basic coverage plan, and the prices vary with additional coverage. Prices may also vary with location.

Global Payroll is also offered as a stand-alone product for businesses with or without local entities - starting at $20 per employee per month.

Oyster is a flexible and user-friendly platform businesses can rely on to compliantly hire global contractors and employees and handle onboarding, house payroll, benefits, and employee information — all these things under one roof. We’re glad the platform didn’t lie when it said it’s designed with end users in mind. We found no difficulty navigating each of its service tools and were especially impressed with Oyster’s customer support. They got back within a few hours to our ticket and were very helpful in assisting with foreign employment law and regulatory aspects.

Diving into more details on Oyster’s EOR services, the first thing that stood out to us was its smooth onboarding process. There are no setup fees, but you’ll be expected to pay a security deposit (equal to one month of your total employment cost) by the first month of your team members. It will be used to fund the team member's payroll should any unexpected payment issues of the customer invoice and will be refunded once all final invoices have been settled, which does make sense.

We liked how Oyster could carry many services: from hiring to onboarding, benefits, time off management, payroll, and offboarding, while maintaining a comfy UI. Our experience with the platform’s cost calculator tool was also positive: it let us quickly estimate potential costs and risks of hiring employees and contractors in specific countries. Another reason for Oyster making it to this guide is the EOR’s remote work regulation guide: it provides remote work policies and regulations in different countries — very up-to-date, and even packs tips for hiring, paying, and managing global workers.

Our experience using Oyster was good overall, yet we still didn’t enjoy some parts of the EOR module. First, while the help center and customer service are punctual, there is currently no phone support. Dedicated account managers are also limited to the highest-tier plans. Another drawback is that you must pay for local benefit plans as add-ons, which cost $80 per month or more. We also expected to see a native time-tracking system, but the current Oyster only supports a time-off management service.

Quora, Wagestream, Impala, and Grover are some companies on Oyster’s long list of customers.

Oyster has three pricing plans:

• Contractor: Starts at $29 per contractor/month. It includes hiring contractors in 180+ countries, drafting, editing, signing compliant contracts, processing invoices, and paying contractors in 120+ currencies.
• Employee: Starts at $499 per employee/month billed annually. The plan enables you to hire full-timers in 130+ countries with compliance and liability coverage, get automation, and IP protection, set up global payroll, and manage expenses, allowances, and bonuses in 130+ countries.
• Scale: It has custom pricing and comes with a discounted rate, dedicated guidance, and support to navigate global employment and bulk hiring.
• Benefits packages are available as paid add-ons for Employee and Scale plans.
• You can create an account, explore the platform, and access Oyster’s global HR tools and resources for free. Fees will only kick in once you’ve engaged a contractor or employee.
• There are special discounts for nonprofits and businesses hiring refugees.

Remote is a globally-distributed HR hub where businesses can process payroll, perform salary simulations, onboard new hires, manage benefits, and take care of most of the administrative tasks of having an internationally distributed team. One of the best things about Remote is it wholly owns local legal entities in over 60 countries it covers, which frees them to offer more flexibility and speed in services and prices.

Their EOR services are not the most budget-friendly, but we appreciate the platform's flat fee structure. Users know exactly how much they’ll pay monthly, with no billing surprises. For businesses that meet their creditworthiness criteria (exact standards are unknown to all but Remote), no deposit is necessary.

Though Remote no longer offers free payroll for contractors, it does offer a couple of other benefits we appreciate. Some startups and nonprofits are eligible for discounts, and incentives are provided for businesses that employ refugees.

Arduino, GitLab, Paystack, Loom, cargo.one, Secureframe, Phaidra.

• Contractor Management plan: $29/contractor/mo
• Employer of Record plan: $599/employee/mo (when paid annually)
• Global Payroll and Remote Enterprise plans: Custom prices – contact Remote.
• Startup and nonprofit discount: Eligible startups and nonprofits can get 15% off EOR and Contractor Management services for 12 months.‍
• Refugee discount: Up to 10 employees free when hiring refugees

Globalization Partners offers a holistic approach by seamlessly integrating professional HR services and worldwide payroll solutions through an innovative AI-driven platform. Spanning a remarkable 187 countries, their comprehensive offering enables businesses to effortlessly onboard team members across the globe. Their platform extends its capabilities beyond the confines of payroll, providing invaluable support for diverse aspects such as onboarding, management, benefits administration, and compliance.

A distinguishing feature lies in their extensive presence, with a business entity established in nearly every country on the planet. This unique advantage facilitates the swift and efficient global talent acquisition process, often culminating within a matter of days. The most remarkable aspect is that this entire process unfolds devoid of any burdens related to legal, tax, or HR intricacies, as Globalization Partners shoulders these responsibilities seamlessly.

Zeeto

While specific pricing details are not disclosed by Globalization Partners, their commitment to tailored solutions shines through. For those interested, the most prudent path forward is to engage in a demo.

GoGlobal started providing EOR services in Asia Pacific, quickly becoming highly sought-after experts in the region by companies from the West wanting to hire top talent there. They’ve been expanding rapidly while sticking to their credo of doing things themselves. For that reason, their country count of 50+ countries with direct operations may seem reduced in comparison to the 150+ boasted by several companies, but that’s because they rarely turn to third-party firms to establish a presence in a new territory; they actually have people in most places they operate in.  They continue to grow rapidly, adding new countries virtually every week.

While it’s a relatively new and therefore smaller firm compared to the others mentioned here, GoGlobal turns their size into an asset, allowing them to be nimble, responsible, and adapt easily to what their clients need. Their workforce of approximately 100 passionate and fully remote individuals spans the entire globe.

They have worked with some of the most well known companies across various industries including social media companies, food delivery technology companies, streaming companies and one of the largest liquor producers.

GoGlobal’s pricing is custom-based, since it varies depending on the number of people you’re looking to hire and the location. One thing we can say is that they tend to be very transparent about their pricing, consistently providing breakdowns and very open about what is charged.

Rippling's platform can manage every element of the compensation process for a company. This goes from monitoring employees' and contractors' working hours to performing tax and PTO calculations. This has long been the case with the US-based company, but they can now do this internationally. When processing payroll globally, you as the HR manager or business owner get to choose how to pay employees overseas. You can run payroll through Rippling’s own EOR entities in the country of destiny, or have them help you set up your own local entity and manage everything through the platform.

This contrasts with most global payroll companies; since the majority only act as intermediaries between multiple third-party vendors. What they do is unify all those processes in a single platform, so you get to see everything on a dashboard that's way easier on the eye. Don't get us wrong, that was quite novel not so long ago, and it's still a useful way of employing people internationally while making sure you're abiding by all local tax regulations.

Rippling’s approach, however, is new in the sense that local EOR entities are set up and handled by themselves. They provide the local contracts and thus avoid acting as an intermediary. This approach also lets them offer benefits management, stock options, and global support, with more flexibility; and all this on top of the entire HR suite they are famous for. We were happy to demo it once again in late 2022, and can confirm that their global payroll and EOR offering is worth looking into if you're also in the market for a new HRMS.

Rippling starts at $8 per user per month. However, the final fee you'll pay is determined by the specific modules you choose to use. The full platform includes the HR cloud but also their IT and Finance products. It's easy to get a free quote via the pricing page of their website.

Atlas is a 100% direct employer of record (EOR) and international payroll platform that enables companies to hire and pay talent almost anywhere in the world. They’ll assume the role of legal employer on your behalf; this means once you find employees that you want to hire, they’ll help you manage those employees’ lifecycle, from onboarding to payroll processing - all while keeping you compliant with local labor laws. They can

Atlas is used by over a thousand companies, including Toyota, CACI, Bath & Body Works, Coupa, PAE, and Namely.

• Essential: For $99 per month, this plan encompasses features and services that help users navigate the labor & employment laws in over 160 countries (+50 US States), manage employee lifecycle, compliance information between countries, be compliant with their accounting for travel and business expenses, receive personalized notifications, as well as have moderate access to expert insights and HR templates (which are priced separately). 
• Premium: For $149 per month, this plan packs everything in the Essentials plan, plus compliance audit interactive checks, people analytics and planning features as well as dedicated account management.
• Enterprise: The pricing of this plan varies according to the number of purchased licenses and customer needs. You can reach out to Atlas’ Sales team for a custom price quote. 

Add-ons:

• Contractor Pay: Starting at $49 per contractor per month
• Employer of Record: $595 per employee per month‍
• Visa & Mobility Sponsorship: Starting at $2,500 per visa