What should payroll and HR help cost you?

Pick your headcount and see the typical monthly range for all four models, side by side. Benchmarks, not quotes.

The short answer

Typical US market rates: payroll software runs $40 to $60 per month plus $6 to $12 per employee, a payroll bureau runs $30 to $150 per month plus $4 to $12 per employee per pay run, an ASO runs $30 to $100 per employee per month, and a PEO runs $40 to $160 per employee per month in admin fees. The calculator below applies those ranges to your headcount.

Employees on payroll

Payroll software You run it yourself; the tool files the taxes. Cost details

Payroll bureau A firm runs payroll and files taxes for you. Assumes two pay runs per month. Cost details

ASO Payroll plus HR administration. You stay the sole employer. Cost details

PEO Full employment back office under co-employment. Admin fees only; benefits premiums separate. Sometimes priced as 2% to 12% of payroll instead. Deeper PEO calculator

Typical published US market ranges as of 2026. Every provider quotes differently; use these to sanity-check, not to negotiate. The cheapest column is not automatically the right one, and neither is the fullest.

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What should payroll and HR help cost you?

Price is half the decision