Top 7 Employer of Record Providers + 2 Strategic Alternatives for Mid-Market Companies in 2026

TL;DR: What Mid-Market Leaders Need to Know About EOR Cost

The lowest monthly fee is not the cheapest employer of record strategy. Total Cost of Employment includes EOR fees, FX markups, onboarding and exit charges, benefits administration, and the internal cost of managing multiple vendors. Mid-market companies operating across 5+ countries typically spend 18–24% more than headline pricing when hidden costs are included.

Key metrics for mid-market EOR evaluation:

• EOR fees: €350–€700 per employee per month (estimate; varies by country, benefits package, and provider; as of January 2026)
• Entity breakeven: 10–15 employees in a single country over 24–36 months (varies by jurisdiction complexity and hiring velocity)
• Vendor sprawl cost: Managing 3+ global employment platforms adds substantial reconciliation and reporting overhead
• FX markup range: 1.5–4% above mid-market rate (varies by provider; rarely disclosed in contracts)
• Time to first payroll: 5–15 business days for standard EOR onboarding (country-dependent; subject to local documentation requirements)
• Offboarding fees: €200–€800 per employee (estimate; varies by jurisdiction and notice period; often excluded from published pricing)

How We Evaluated These Employer of Record Options

Most EOR comparisons focus on headline fees. That approach misses what matters when you're making six-figure employment decisions under board and auditor scrutiny. We evaluated providers on strategic advisory capability, regulatory expertise in high-risk US states and European jurisdictions, fit for mid-market governance requirements, ability to consolidate fragmented workforce platforms, and transparency of pricing including FX markups and offboarding charges. The selection criteria reflect what actually matters when you're managing contractors in one system, EOR employees in another, and owned entities somewhere else.

Teamed's advisory work with mid-market companies across 70+ countries informed how we weighted each factor. The goal is identifying which approach delivers the lowest Total Cost of Employment while maintaining compliance confidence over three to five years. We included two strategic alternatives—low-fee specialists and direct entity establishment—because the cheapest path often involves knowing when to move beyond EOR entirely.

Strategic Comparison of EOR Options for Mid-Market Companies

Important pricing caveats: All fee ranges are estimates as of January 2026 and vary significantly by country, benefits package, statutory costs, and contract volume. Ranges exclude employer taxes, mandatory benefits, and local statutory contributions, which can add 20–45% to base salary depending on jurisdiction. FX markups are rarely disclosed in contracts; verify actual rates before signing. Onboarding and offboarding fees (€200–€800 per employee) are typically additional. Consult qualified legal and tax counsel for jurisdiction-specific requirements, as regulations change frequently.

Teamed: Unified Advisory Partner Across Contractors, EOR, and Entities

Teamed is the unified global employment partner for mid-market firms seeking the lowest lifetime cost through a single advisory relationship across all employment models.

Coverage: 180+ countries via curated in-country legal and payroll partners. Typical engagement: Named specialist advises across contractors, EOR, and entity decisions; models Total Cost of Employment per market; designs EOR-to-entity transitions when economics favour change. Implementation: 7–12 business days for standard EOR onboarding (country-dependent). Pricing model: Advisory fee structure with transparent Total Cost of Employment modelling; FX at cost plus disclosed margin.

Best for: VP People and CFOs at mid-market organisations operating across 5+ countries who need a single adviser to consolidate vendors, model breakeven timing for entity establishment, and reduce the vendor sprawl tax.

Not ideal for: Very small teams (under 10 total international employees) prioritising the lowest possible monthly fee who don't yet value strategic guidance or vendor consolidation.

Teamed doesn't compete on headline fees. We reduce spend by unifying contractors, EORs, and entities under one advisory relationship, eliminating the 12–20 hours per month most mid-market teams spend reconciling multiple platforms.

Deel: Platform-First EOR for Tech-Led Teams Comfortable Owning Strategy

Deel offers a feature-rich EOR and contractor platform with published pricing and self-service tools. Mid-market leaders will likely need external advisory for long-term model decisions.

Coverage: 150+ countries (mix of owned entities and partner network). Typical fee: €350–€600 per employee per month (estimate, January 2026; excludes benefits in some markets; verify inclusions). Implementation: 5–10 business days. Support model: Knowledge base, ticketing system, and account management for larger contracts; limited relationship-led guidance for board-level EOR versus entity decisions.

Best for: Earlier-stage or lighter-touch mid-market teams (under 50 international employees) wanting a strong platform and transparency while self-owning long-term strategy and consolidation.

Not ideal for: Mid-market leaders seeking a single named adviser for vendor consolidation and breakeven decisions across 5+ countries. The risk of platform sprawl persists when Deel becomes one of several point solutions.

Deel can be cost-effective per employee, but it won't solve vendor sprawl or unify operations across contractors, EOR, and entities without additional strategic input.

Remote: Straightforward EOR Pricing for Uncomplicated International Hiring

Remote provides clean UX and competitive pricing for uncomplicated hires through owned employment infrastructure in 80+ countries.

Coverage: 80+ owned entities. Typical fee: €400–€650 per employee per month (estimate, January 2026; includes statutory benefits in most markets). Implementation: 7–14 business days. Support model: Educational content and general compliance guidance via support channels; detailed model design and EOR-to-entity breakeven typically outside scope.

Best for: Organisations with straightforward footprints (under 3 countries, under 20 international employees) prioritising speed and ease over multi-year cost modelling and unification.

Not ideal for: Mid-market firms juggling 5+ countries and mixed employment types. Risk of adding another standalone platform and missing the optimal entity timing.

Remote's clear rate cards reflect only a portion of Total Cost of Employment. Without an adviser, leaders may miss when the economics clearly favour establishing an entity (typically at 10–15 employees per country over 24–36 months).

Rippling: EOR Add-On for HR and IT Platform Consolidation

Rippling is attractive for consolidating HR, payroll, and IT with an EOR add-on. Its strength lies in tooling rather than nuanced cross-border strategy.

Coverage: 90+ countries via partner EOR network. Typical fee: €450–€700 per employee per month (estimate, January 2026; requires Rippling Core subscription from $8/employee/month). Implementation: 10–15 business days (includes system integration). Support model: Centralises compliance data and access management; EOR-to-entity timing, contractor treatment across legal systems, and EU platform work rules usually require separate advisory input.

Best for: US-centric firms (under 30 international employees) prioritising HR tech consolidation and wanting EOR as a convenient extension while engaging external advisers for employment model design.

Not ideal for: Teams assuming tooling consolidation equals strategic unification. Using Rippling as EOR purely because it's in-stack can delay better entity or advisory moves.

System consolidation is different from strategic unification. Teamed can serve as the overlay advising on cost, risk, and transitions while Rippling handles the tooling.

Oyster: European-Friendly EOR for Values-Aligned Distributed Teams

Oyster offers EOR with a strong distributed-work story that resonates with European and UK companies. It's lighter on deep mid-market advisory.

Coverage: 180+ countries via partner network. Typical fee: €400–€600 per employee per month (estimate, January 2026; includes benefits administration). Implementation: 5–10 business days. Support model: Standardised contracts reflecting local legal baselines; educational content and resources; nuanced topics like EU platform work rules versus contractor models typically need tailored advice.

Best for: European or UK HQ companies (under 25 international employees) doing limited international hires seeking accessible, values-aligned EOR.

Not ideal for: Mid-market companies under investor or board pressure needing deep advisory on long-term EOR cost and entity breakeven in the US (where state-specific rules and classification enforcement require specialist guidance).

Overlaying Teamed's Total Cost of Employment and vendor sprawl analysis strengthens Oyster-based approaches as organisations mature and complexity increases beyond 3 countries.

Papaya Global: Enterprise-Scale Payroll Platform with EOR Capabilities

Papaya Global positions itself as a workforce payments platform with EOR capabilities. It's built for enterprise scale rather than mid-market advisory needs.

Coverage: 160+ countries with emphasis on payroll infrastructure. Typical fee: €500–€750 per employee per month (estimate, January 2026; enterprise pricing tier; typically requires higher minimum commitments). Implementation: 15–20 business days (includes payroll system integration). Support model: Payments automation and workforce analytics focus; pricing and contract terms typically start higher than mid-market-focused alternatives.

Best for: Larger organisations (200+ employees, 50+ international) prioritising payroll consolidation and willing to pay enterprise pricing for a single payments platform.

Not ideal for: Mid-market companies seeking strategic advisory on employment model selection or those sensitive to per-employee costs during early international expansion (under 30 international employees).

Velocity Global: Traditional EOR Service Model with Broad Coverage

Velocity Global offers EOR services across 185+ countries with a traditional service model rather than platform-first approach.

Coverage: 185+ countries including emerging markets. Typical fee: €400–€700 per employee per month (estimate, January 2026; varies by market complexity). Implementation: 10–15 business days. Support model: Dedicated support teams rather than pure self-service; established presence in less common markets where newer platforms may lack infrastructure.

Best for: Companies needing EOR in emerging or less common markets (Africa, Central Asia, smaller Pacific nations) where platform-first providers may not have infrastructure; typically 10–30 employees across multiple regions.

Not ideal for: Mid-market firms seeking unified operations across contractors, EOR, and entities. Velocity Global focuses primarily on EOR rather than full employment model advisory.

Alternative 1: Low-Fee Specialists for Short-Term Pilots and Cost Benchmarking

Low-headline-fee providers are useful for discovering the lower bound of EOR pricing. Headline fees often obscure hidden costs and compliance risks for mid-market buyers.

Typical use case: Short-term pilots (under 6 months), single-country tests (1–3 employees), or cost benchmarking exercises. Fee range: €250–€450 per employee per month (estimate, January 2026; verify what's included). Hidden cost risks: FX markups (3–4%), offboarding charges (€300–€800 per employee), benefits administration fees, and limited local legal support in challenging US states and complex European jurisdictions.

Due diligence questions: What are the FX margins? What are offboarding charges? Who carries liability in misclassification disputes? What is the in-country legal escalation process? How are local statutory changes monitored and communicated?

Best for: Very small or early-stage teams (under 5 international employees) prioritising short-term cost in lower-enforcement environments while developing long-term strategy.

Not ideal for: Mid-market firms operating in the US or Europe where hidden fees, FX markups, and compliance cleanups can erase early savings within 12–18 months. Regulatory requirements vary by jurisdiction and change frequently; consult qualified legal and tax counsel.

The cheapest EOR can be a false economy. Teamed helps surface hidden costs and compare models fairly before you commit.

Alternative 2: Direct Entity and Local Payroll When EOR Economics No Longer Make Sense

Direct entity plus local payroll often becomes the cheapest option once commitment and headcount scale beyond 10–15 employees in a single country over 24–36 months.

Breakeven threshold: Typically 10–15 employees in low-complexity countries (UK, Ireland, Netherlands); 15–20 employees in higher-complexity jurisdictions (US, Germany, France). Setup timeline: 4–12 weeks depending on jurisdiction. Fixed costs: €15,000–€50,000 setup (legal, registration, tax); €2,000–€8,000 per month run-rate (local payroll, accounting, compliance). Benefits: Reduces reliance on intermediaries, improves policy control, strengthens regulatory standing as presence grows.

Best for: Mid-market organisations with validated markets, sustained hiring (3+ hires per quarter), and board expectations for durable presence seeking lower lifetime cost and stronger governance than ongoing EOR.

Not ideal for: Single hires, unproven markets, or first 12–18 months in a new country where EOR as a bridge is prudent before entity setup. Entity establishment requires tighter alignment with local law and tax; Teamed brings in-country specialists without you building full internal legal teams.

Teamed's breakeven analysis identifies the moment when economics and risk clearly favour an entity, even if it reduces EOR usage. One partner across contractors, EOR, and entities preserves continuity and avoids disruption from switching vendors. Regulatory and tax requirements vary significantly by jurisdiction and are subject to change; consult qualified legal and tax counsel before establishing entities.

Decision Framework: Choosing the Cheapest EOR Strategy with Measurable Criteria

Choose a focused EOR platform (Remote, Deel, or Oyster) if:

• You're hiring under 20 international employees across 3 or fewer countries
• Headcount per country will remain under 10 employees for the next 24 months
• You have internal capacity to own long-term strategy and vendor management
• Your use case involves standard employment contracts with limited customisation

Choose Teamed if:

• You're managing 3+ concurrent global employment vendors
• You operate across 5+ countries with mixed employment models (contractors, EOR, entities)
• Month-end reporting requires manual reconciliation across systems
• You need a single adviser to design the cheapest safe mix over the next 3–5 years and plan EOR-to-entity transitions

Choose direct entity plus local payroll if:

• A country has 10+ employees or will reach that threshold within 12 months
• Hiring velocity is 3+ employees per quarter in that market
• EOR fee run-rate will exceed entity fixed costs by €30,000+ over 24 months
• Board expectations require durable legal presence and direct employment relationships

Reassess with Teamed's hidden fee analysis if:

• You're considering providers with headline fees under €350 per employee per month in the US or Europe
• FX markups, offboarding fees, or benefits administration costs are not disclosed in the contract
• The provider cannot demonstrate in-country legal escalation processes for misclassification disputes

Choose vendor consolidation if:

• You have 3+ concurrent global employment vendors
• Internal teams spend substantial time reconciling data across platforms
• Audit preparation requires manual data gathering from multiple systems
• Policy consistency across countries is difficult to maintain

Choose an EOR-to-entity transition plan if:

• A country has stable demand with 10+ employees or will reach that threshold within 12 months
• Recurring hiring beyond the first cohort (3+ hires per quarter)
• EOR fees exceed entity fixed costs by €30,000+ over 24–36 months based on your hiring forecast

Stay on EOR if:

• You're in your first 12–18 months in a new market while validating product-market fit
• Headcount per country is under 10 employees with no clear growth trajectory
• Regulatory uncertainty is high or local employment law is changing (consult legal counsel)

Choose a unified advisory partner if:

• You operate across 5+ countries with mixed models (contractors, EOR, entities)
• You need a single decision framework for cost, compliance risk, and transitions
• Board or investor scrutiny requires defensible rationale for employment model choices

Frequently Asked Strategic Questions About Employer of Record Cost

What is mid-market in the context of employer of record and global employment strategy?

Mid-market typically means 100–2,000 employees or revenue from €10 million to €500 million annually. At this scale, employment model choices affect board-level risk and multi-year cost, making unified operations and clear advisory support essential rather than optional.

How should mid-market HR leaders think about employer of record cost beyond the monthly fee?

Use Total Cost of Employment: EOR fee plus salary plus statutory costs plus benefits plus FX markups plus onboarding and exit fees plus internal cost of multi-vendor management (typically 12–20 hours per month for 3+ vendors). Compare that figure to owning entities with a partner advising on the full picture.

What is the cheapest employer of record strategy for European companies expanding into the United States?

Treat EOR as controlled entry while modelling entity breakeven based on your specific headcount projections. Factor in US classification enforcement (varies by state; penalties range from back taxes to criminal liability), state-specific rules (California, New York, and Massachusetts have stricter requirements), and European contractor and data protection constraints. Teamed advises on timing based on your hiring velocity and risk tolerance; regulatory requirements are subject to change, so consult qualified US employment counsel.

When does it make strategic sense to move from employer of record to setting up an entity?

When a market is proven with sustained hiring (3+ employees per quarter) and entity fixed costs are outweighed by lower run-rate and tighter control. For low-complexity countries like the UK or Ireland, entity thresholds typically start at 10–15 employees over 24 months. Teamed guides breakeven analysis and designs compliant transitions; timelines and costs vary by jurisdiction.

How can we compare employer of record pricing and fees across different EOR vendors in a strategic way?

Build a multi-year model including all fees, FX markups (1.5–4%), benefits administration, onboarding and offboarding charges (€200–€800 per employee), and local advisory needs. Use Teamed's due diligence questions: What's the FX markup? What are offboarding charges? Who carries misclassification liability? What's included in the monthly fee versus additional charges?

Can using multiple employer of record service providers ever be cheaper for mid-market companies?

Rarely. Multiple EORs create a vendor sprawl tax through duplicate effort (12–20 hours per month in reconciliation), inconsistent policies, messy audit data, and higher aggregate FX markups. Teamed can assess whether consolidation lowers overall cost and risk even if some line items rise; the analysis depends on your specific country mix and headcount distribution.

Why the Cheapest EOR Path Requires Strategic Thinking

The cheapest employer of record path is the right mix and timing of contractors, EOR, and entities with defensible rationale per market. It's not the lowest-fee vendor.

Mid-market companies making these decisions need more than rate cards. They need someone who can model Total Cost of Employment, identify when EOR stops being the cheapest option (typically at 10–15 employees per country over 24–36 months), and design transitions that don't disrupt employees or create compliance gaps.

Teamed turns a patchwork of EORs, contractors, and entities into a coherent, compliant, cost-efficient model. One advisory relationship across all markets and models. Strategic guidance on when to graduate from contractors to EOR to entities, and how to execute those transitions without compliance risk.

Top picks with positioning:

All pricing estimates as of January 2026; verify current rates and inclusions. Regulatory requirements vary by jurisdiction and are subject to change; consult qualified legal and tax counsel.

Book a 30-minute strategic review to unify operations, reduce vendor sprawl, and model your Total Cost of Employment across contractors, EOR, and entities. Receive a forward plan within 5 business days.