Salary is only part of the price. See what a hire really costs: contributions, benefits and setup included.
The rule of thumb: a hire costs 1.15 to 1.4 times their base salary. On top of gross pay, the employer covers mandatory contributions (social security, unemployment insurance, pension and payroll taxes, commonly 10% to 30% depending on the country), benefits like health insurance and retirement matching, and one-time costs such as equipment and onboarding.
The employer contribution rate is the variable that moves the number most. On a $60,000 base salary with $3,000 in annual benefits and $500 in one-time setup, the first-year total runs from $69,500 where contributions are 10% to $84,500 where they reach 35%. That single variable produces the whole 1.15 to 1.4 range, which is why a total cost quoted without a country attached does not mean much.
Based on a $60,000 base salary, $3,000 in annual benefits and $500 in one-time setup costs.
Include everything you pay because that person is on your team: gross salary, mandatory employer contributions, benefits and allowances, equipment, and any one-time setup. Leave out what you would spend anyway. Recruiter fees belong to the cost of hiring, not the cost of employing, and software seats you already own are not a per-employee cost.
Two things get missed most often. The first is that contributions are frequently capped or banded, so the effective rate on a senior salary can land well below the headline rate, which makes a flat percentage a poor estimate at the top end. The second is currency. When you pay someone in another country, the amount that leaves your account and the amount that arrives in theirs are not the same once transfer fees and conversion are applied, so a budget built on gross salary quietly understates what the hire costs and overstates what the person receives.
Ontop is a global payroll and payments platform that lets companies hire and pay teams in 150+ countries, so the amount you budget is the amount that lands. You can see what that costs on the pricing page, and the people you pay hold their money in an Ontop Global Account instead of losing a slice to a forced conversion.
Plan for 1.15 to 1.4 times the base salary, once employer contributions, benefits and setup costs are included. The default scenario in this calculator, 15% contributions plus $3,000 in benefits and $500 in setup, puts a $60,000 salary at $72,500 in the first year. The multiplier rises with the contribution rate of the country you hire in.
Mandatory payments on top of gross salary: social security, unemployment insurance, pension and payroll taxes. Rates vary by country, commonly 10% to 30%.
Health insurance, retirement matching, allowances and stipends: everything paid per employee beyond salary and mandatory contributions.
Yes. Employer contribution rates differ widely by country, so the same salary can carry a very different total cost depending on where the person is hired. Ontop is a global payroll and payments platform that lets companies hire and pay teams in 150+ countries.
Hire compliantly in 150+ countries. Ontop handles contributions, contracts and payouts. See it live in 20 minutes.