The best Employer of Record services let you legally employ team members around the world without having to worry about local employment laws, contracts, onboarding, taxes, and benefits. By outsourcing the hiring process to an EOR, you minimize compliance risks and save thousands of dollars and a ton of valuable time, leaving you with more resources to focus on the key operations of your business.
In this guide, we’ve reviewed and compared the best and most prominent Employer of Record companies, so you can see exactly what different providers offer and choose the one that best aligns with your organization’s needs.
The 7 Best EOR Services for Global Hiring
Here’s a quick rundown of the top seven EOR services for hiring a global workforce:
- Deel — Overall, the best HR platform for hiring EOR employees, with an in-house immigration team that facilitates employee relocation.
- Multiplier — Lets you process global payroll in over 120 currencies and makes it easy to track time off and holidays for your global workforce.
- Remofirst — Intuitive, easy-to-use global HR platform with new employee cost calculation, same-day onboarding, and personalized private medical insurance.
- Papaya — Super-fast global payroll processing in over 160 countries, with localized benefits and stress-free global immigration capabilities.
- Oyster — Helps you hire FTEs and contractors in over 180 countries and pay them in over 120 native currencies.
- Rippling — Flexible HR platform that lets you run global payroll in minutes and create custom, country-specific processes, policies, benefits, and holidays.
- FoxHire — Intuitive EOR platform with built-in new hire cost calculation, automatic timesheet collection, thorough background checks, and drug screening.
Reviews of the Top Employer Of Record Services
To learn more about individual EOR providers and see how their services differ, read our in-depth reviews below so you can make an informed decision.
1. Deel — Overall, the best HR Platform for Hiring EOR Employees
Deel is a renowned HR platform that facilitates global hiring and management, helping over 15,000 businesses hire and retain top-performing employees in over 90 countries.
What’s unique about Deel is that it’s more than just a global employer of record service. In addition to helping you hire employees internationally, Deel also facilitates contractor management by offering built-in compliance and automated invoicing, ensuring you pay everyone the correct amount on time.
Best for | Price | Free Version | Number of Countries | Key Clients |
Global payment management, employee relocation, compliance, merger and acquisition | Contractors — From $49/month
EOR Employees — From $599/month Direct Employees — Free plan available |
Free plan only available for hiring direct employees | 90+ for EOR and direct employees
150+ for contractors |
Norton, Zapier, Nike, RedBull, Calvin Klein, Dropbox, Shopify, Forever 21, Reebok |
With Deel, you can also send equipment to your remote workforce, such as laptops, desks, chairs, headphones, and more, without any hassle. Everything can be done with a single click through the Deel platform, and you’ll get global coverage with transparent pricing — including shipping, customs, and exchange rates. The platform also helps you manage repairs, replacements, and collection upon employee termination.
Another crucial aspect Deel can help you with is employee relocation. The company offers in-house VISA support – including sponsorship, the application process, and compliance – for employees in 25+ countries and will handle all the intricate administrative tasks required, freeing up a ton of valuable time for your HR team.
You can also leverage the platform to offer your remote employees country-specific benefits at competitive rates. This helps you stay compliant while giving potential new employees a great reason to choose your company over the competition, helping you penetrate different markets more easily.
To top it all off, Deel gives you valuable insight into employer costs across your entire organization, so you can proactively manage compensation levels, see your total headcount, and keep an eye on your company’s churn rates.
Pros
- Unified HR platform that provides a complete overview of all your employees
- An in-house immigration team that handles employee relocation
- Lets you equip remote workers in 25+ countries with all the tools they need
- Excellent customer support, available 24/7
Cons
- Deel charges a monthly service fee – and will charge you for the full calendar month, even if your first month includes only a few days of service
2. Multiplier — Lets You Process Global Payroll in Over 120 Currencies
Multiplier is another trusted EOR company that helps you employ overseas workers legally, whether they’re EOR employees, contractors, or freelancers. The company manages everything from hiring and payroll to taxes and benefits, ensuring your organization remains compliant and free of risk.
In addition to enabling you to compliantly hire and onboard a global workforce, the Multiplier platform gives you peace of mind by adhering to all the required data protection and compliance standards.
Best for | Price | Free Version | Number of Countries | Key Clients |
Global payroll, time off tracking, employee onboarding, and self-service | Full-time employees — From $300/month
Freelancers — From $40/month |
N/A | 150+ | The Economist, Darwinbox, Graphisoft, Aspire, Sonoco, STAHL, Uber |
Another key feature of Multiplier is its time-off management. You’ll be able to see time off reports and efficiently manage paid and sick leave for your employees, as well as access country-specific holiday calendars, so you can plan your projects and distribute the workload accordingly.
Multiplier handles new employee onboarding, providing essential equipment like business laptops and IT accessories to remote workers in over 50 countries. All you need to do is issue the equipment with a single click, and Multiplier will handle the end-to-end logistics.
If you opt for Multiplier, you’ll also be able to provide a self-service portal to all your employees. This lets them access their payslips, review their contracts, and track expense requests, bonuses, and benefits with ease.
Pros
- Ability to process global payroll in more than 120 currencies
- Easy-to-use time-off tracker and holiday calendar
- Highly secure platform that adheres to all data protection and compliance standards
- Employee self-service portal
Cons
- You might be required to pay a deposit for future salaries
- Users report that currency conversion is typically made in Multiplier’s favor
3. Remofirst — New Employee Cost Calculation and Same-Day Onboarding
Remofirst is an all-in-one platform for hiring and managing employees in over 150 countries around the world. Same-day onboarding is available, meaning your teams can get started without delay.
What we love about Remofirst is that it gives you a clear overview of your entire workforce in a single, easy-to-understand dashboard. You can see your workforce distribution – across full-time staff, contractors, onboarding, and new hires – as well as the number of workers and payroll expenses allocated per country.
Best for | Price | Free Version | Number of Countries | Key Clients |
Global payroll management, international benefits, personalized private healthcare | EOR Employees — From $199/month per employee
Contractors — From $19/month per contractor |
N/A | 150+ | Zocdoc, Insured Nomads, Labster, Microsoft, MasterCard, inDrive |
This information is crucial, especially if you’re sourcing multiple candidates from different locations for the same position, so you can hire the one that’s the most cost-effective.
Furthermore, Remofist makes it easy to set up and roll out international benefits, provide premium health insurance with RemoHealth, and distribute essential equipment — laptops, chairs, and monitors, for example. All you need to do is fill out a simple form, and the company handles the rest.
Another strong suit of Remofirst is the fact that it offers bulletproof compliance. With professional legal and HR teams that actively monitor the ever-changing global and local regulations, Remofirst minimizes compliance risks and eliminates the possibility of costly employee misclassification mistakes.
Pros
- Intuitive global HR platform
- Same-day new employee onboarding
- Offers personalized private medical insurance through RemoHealth
- Ensures bulletproof compliance
Cons
- Relatively young EOR service, established in 2021, so the platform is still missing some features and integrations from the roadmap
4. Papaya — Super-Fast Global Payroll Processing in Over 160 Countries
Papaya offers fast and error-free global payment processing, so it’s a great choice for companies with an established global workforce as well as organizations looking to hire new remote workers.
This EOR service prides itself on being one of the fastest to implement. Rather than working with other third-party apps, Papaya offers a full-fledged, integrated, and licensed payroll and payments system, so you can go live in just a few weeks with no extra fees or hidden costs.
Best for | Price | Free Version | Number of Countries | Key Clients |
Fast global payroll, global benefits, enterprise connectivity | EOR Employees — From $770/month per employee
Contractors — From $25/month/employee Benefits Packages — From $250/month/employee |
N/A | 160+ | Toyota, Shopify, Canva, Vimeo, Wix, Microsoft |
If you don’t hold said wallets, you can open them with the help of Papaya in as little as two business days. The main advantage of processing payments through your Papaya e-wallets is that your employees will receive their paychecks in three days at the latest. This makes Papaya one of the fastest options, which is always a huge plus in your employees’ eyes.
Another reason to opt for Papaya is its connectors, which let you easily integrate the HR platform with your existing tools like Workday and Oracle Netsuite to unify crucial data and processes, facilitate collaboration between HR and Finance, and establish a single source of truth for your entire organization.
With Papaya, you can also easily distribute localized benefits, provide personalized medical insurance, and facilitate employee relocation.
Pros
- Payments are processed within three days
- Supports a dozen different currencies and payments in over 160 countries
- Adheres to industry-leading security standards regarding data protection and compliance
Cons
- Requires you to connect an existing or open a new e-wallet
- Expensive per-person pricing plans
5. Oyster — Helps You Hire FTEs and Contractors in Over 180 Countries
Oyster offers the most comprehensive coverage out of all the EOR services on our list, letting you hire, pay, and distribute benefits to employees in over 180 countries.
The intuitive Oyster platform lets you create fully compliant employment agreements, set up payroll, and create a benefits structure for each employee in a matter of minutes. This not only drastically reduces your time-to-hire but it also facilitates onboarding and ensures a five-star experience for every new hire.
Best for | Price | Free Version | Number of Countries | Key Clients |
Compliant employment agreements, benefits packages, global payroll | Contractors — From $29/month per contractor
EOR Employees — From $499/month per employee Scale — Custom quote |
Free plan with limited features available | 180+ | FormAssembly, Badoo, Payhawk, Bloom, Spryker |
With Oyster’s Total Rewards system, you can offer competitive salaries that align with your budget, as well as provide enticing benefits packages that will help you attract and retain top talent. You’ll also be able to clearly see all your expenses and adjust compensation and benefits accordingly, as well as create additional incentives for your top-performers.
Another reason to choose Oyster as your Employer of Record services provider is that it allows you to make payments in over 120 different currencies. In addition to providing salaries in their native currencies, you can also handle expenses, bonuses, and reimbursements and ensure everyone gets paid the right amount on time.
Oyster can also be integrated with your accounting software, such as Quickbooks or Bamboo HR, ensuring that all your payroll data is synced.
Pros
- Supports over 120 currencies
- Lets you offer competitive benefits packages that align with your budget
- Easy to integrate with your accounting software
Cons
- Local benefits packages are a paid add-on
- Dedicated hiring support only available on the highest tier, with custom pricing
6. Rippling — Flexible HR Platform That Lets You Run Global Payroll in Minutes
Rippling is a robust HR platform that can help you handle every aspect of global workforce management, as well as help you automate HR, IT, and Finance processes with custom workflows.
With Rippling, onboarding new hires takes minutes. You can provide new hires with everything they need, from equipment to training, simply by assigning the appropriate items to the new hire on the platform.
Best for | Price | Free Version | Number of Countries | Key Clients |
Fast global payroll, seamless employee onboarding, workflow automation | Must contact the company to get a free quote | N/A | 50+ | Superhuman, Chess.com, Highnoon, Double Good, Compass Coffee |
When it comes to global payroll, Rippling lets you pay your employees in local currencies in a matter of minutes. You’ll also have all the financial data at your fingertips, including every employee’s gross pay, commissions, bonuses, and deductions. You can preview payroll with a single click and make any necessary changes or simply approve invoices with a single click.
Compared to other EOR solutions, Rippling offers the most flexibility regarding global payroll. You’ll have the option to change your payment schedule, pay hourly wages, natively manage PTO, process equity tax withholdings, and more.
Another benefit of Rippling is that it enables you to custom-tailor your processes, policies, benefits, and holiday calendars to specific countries to ensure the complete satisfaction of your international workforce and drastically improve employee retention rates.
Pros
- Seamless new hire onboarding
- Quick and easy global payroll
- Native PTO management
- Custom processes and benefits for specific countries
Cons
- No pricing information available on the website
- Only supports EOR employees from 50+ countries
7. FoxHire — Intuitive EOR Platform With Built-in New Hire Cost Calculation
FoxHire offers an intuitive, easy-to-use EOR platform that takes the stress out of global hiring. It is a great choice for people who have no previous experience with Employer of Record services, given that the company walks you through the entire process and takes care of 95% of the setup.
With FoxHire, you can automate the bulk of administrative HR and Finance tasks and save a ton of valuable time and money without having to worry about compliance or employee misclassifications.
Best for | Price | Free Version | Number of Countries | Key Clients |
Automatic timesheet collection, new hire cost calculation, background checks | N/A | N/A | 100+ | FoxHire doesn’t disclose client information |
One of the key selling points of FoxHire is the platform’s automatic cost calculation for new hires. Whether you’re planning on hiring a full-time employee, a contractor, or a freelancer, you can add the candidate you’re interested into the platform, and FoxHire will provide you with an accurate estimate of the hiring costs before you commit to hiring them.
Another advantage of FoxHire is the fact that the company performs thorough background checks on all new hires before they’re onboarded, runs drug screening tests, and handles all the paperwork regarding licensing for industries with strict rules and regulations.
Pros
- Professionals help with setting up the EOR platform
- Automates tedious HR and Finance tasks
- Lets you calculate the cost of hiring employees before you commit
- Offers a fully optimized mobile app
Cons
- No pricing information, so it’s impossible to forecast the costs
The Best EOR Companies Compared
Here’s a quick reference table of the best EOR companies on the market, so you can see how they compare head-to-head:
EOR Service | Best for | Price | Free Version | Number of Countries | Key Clients |
Deel | Global payment management, employee relocation, compliance, merger and acquisition | Contractors — From $49/month
EOR Employees — From $599/month Direct Employees — Free plan available |
Free plan only available for hiring direct employees | 90+ for EOR and direct employees
150+ for contractors |
Norton, Zapier, Nike, RedBull, Calvin Klein, Dropbox, Shopify, Forever 21, Reebok |
Multiplier | Global payroll, time off tracking, employee onboarding, and self-service | Full-time employees — From $300/month
Freelancers — From $40/month |
N/A | 150+ | The Economist, Darwinbox, Graphisoft, Aspire, Sonoco, STAHL, Uber |
Remofirst | Global payroll management, international benefits, personalized private healthcare | EOR Employees — From $199/month per employee
Contractors — From $19/month per contractor |
N/A | 150+ | Zocdoc, Insured Nomads, Labster, Microsoft, MasterCard, inDrive |
Papaya | Fast global payroll, global benefits, enterprise connectivity | EOR Employees — From $770/month per employee
Contractors — From $25/month/employee Benefits Packages — From $250/month/employee |
N/A | 160+ | Toyota, Shopify, Canva, Vimeo, Wix, Microsoft |
Oyster | Compliant employment agreements, benefits packages, global payroll | Contractors — From $29/month per contractor
EOR Employees — From $499/month per employee Scale — Custom quote |
Free plan with limited features available | 180+ | FormAssembly, Badoo, Payhawk, Bloom, Spryker |
Rippling | Fast global payroll, seamless employee onboarding, workflow automation | Must contact the company to get a free quote | N/A | 50+ | Superhuman, Chess.com, Highnoon, Double Good, Compass Coffee |
FoxHire | Automatic timesheet collection, new hire cost calculation, background checks | N/A | N/A | 100+ | FoxHire doesn’t disclose client information |
What is an EOR Service?
An Employer of Record (EOR) service refers to HR-related tasks and responsibilities related to hiring a global workforce. For a growing business, it can be just as important as having an effective project management tool in place.
One thing to note is that your organization retains full control over the candidate selection process, establishes the level of compensation for the role, and handles all of the day-to-day management tasks. You get to define the role and position duties, the projects the person will be working on, and who they’ll report to, as well as the level of performance expected.
Put simply, an EOR acts as a legal, registered employer for your global workforce, letting you tap into a global workforce without having to set up foreign subsidiaries or risk violating the employment laws of different countries. You’re essentially outsourcing the hiring function of HR while maintaining control over all other aspects of the relationship with new employees.
Here’s a quick breakdown of the key services EOR companies offer:
- Drafting and handling employment contracts
- Onboarding new employees
- Running payroll in different countries
- Ensuring compliance with local employment laws
- Handling taxes and benefits
- Distributing employee stock options
In addition to letting you engage a global workforce, EOR services can also help you employ people from different states within the same country. For example, if your company is based in Virginia, you can use an EOR to legally employ workers in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, New York, or any other state within the US.
What’s the Difference Between EOR and PEO Services?
Both EOR and PEO services help you hire and manage a team of international workers. You can also outsource most hiring-related HR activities to both, so you can have more time to dedicate to day-to-day business operations. However, there are a few key differences between them that you should be aware of.
To understand the difference between these two fairly similar services, we first need to answer the question: “What is a PEO?”
What Does PEO Stand For?
A PEO, or Professional Employer Organization, is a partner company that takes over HR duties from your organization and helps you hire full-time employees from around the world. The services PEOs offer typically include:
- Payroll processing
- Tax filing
- Benefits distribution
- Regulatory compliance
- Background checks
Put simply, working with a PEO requires you to have a company branch in a foreign country or establish one. Additionally, you cannot hire part-timers, independent contractors, or freelancers through a PEO, only FTEs (Full-Time Employees).
Now that you know what a professional employer organization is let’s see how it differs from an EOR.
Key Difference Between PEO and EOR
To help you better understand where the key differences between PEO employment and EOR services, here’s an easy-to-understand comparison table:
PEO | EOR | |
Acts as | Partner/co-employer | Full legal employer |
Liability | Shares liability | Assumes liability for the entire hiring process |
Scope | Lets you outsource HR-related duties | Completely takes over the employer role and all hiring-related duties |
Setting Up a Legal Entity | Required | Not required |
Types of Employees You Can Hire | FTEs only | FTEs, independent contractors, freelancers |
Long-term Cost | More expensive | More cost-effective |
Why Should I Use An EOR Service?
If you’re running a remote or a hybrid company, hiring an international workforce is certainly an enticing concept.
Compared to a US-based worker, hiring an international employee is much more cost-effective, due to the fact that you can offer lower compensation based on the difference between the cost of living in the two countries. Additionally, you have a much larger, international pool of candidates to choose from, so it’s infinitely easier to find and hire top talent for virtually any role.
That said, hiring internationally is not as easy and straightforward as you might think. At a bare minimum, you need to be familiar with the labor laws in the country and figure out how you’re going to set up payroll, contributions, and benefits.
Additionally, you need to be aware of potential compliance risks, as well as the risk of employee misclassification, which can lead to hefty financial repercussions.
In order to legally employ people overseas, you either need to establish a legal entity in the country, engage employees as contractors, or work with an EOR service. While hiring contractors is certainly viable, keep in mind that you can’t treat them as FTEs with fixed schedules and fixed pay since they might claim that they’re misclassified and request full-time employee benefits.
With an EOR, you don’t have to worry about any of this. As a full legal employer, an EOR company will handle every aspect of global hiring, including compliance, licensing, payroll, tax filing, contributions, benefits, insurance, and more.
In addition to effectively negating all the risks associated with global hiring, an EOR is both faster and more cost-effective than establishing a legal entity in every country you want to hire in, so it saves you a ton of valuable time and money in the long run. It’s a similar rationale as to why you would use a business password manager – ensuring you can operate efficiently and effectively.
Factors to Consider When Choosing the Best EOR Solution
Every EOR company essentially offers the same base service — helping you hire international workers. However, the coverage, additional services, HR platforms, and prices can differ significantly from one provider to the next.
Here’s a breakdown of the key factors you need to consider when choosing which EOR you want to work with:
Services
As the full legal employer of your global workforce, an EOR assumes complete legal responsibility for the hiring process. As such, every EOR handles contracts, payroll, taxes, benefits, and background checks, at a bare minimum.
That said, some EORs go above and beyond and offer many additional services that are invaluable for managing global employees and ensuring their satisfaction. These can include onboarding, providing essential equipment, distributing training materials, etc.
Another thing to consider is how well the EOR supports you in managing the workforce. For example, some Employer of Record platforms let you easily manage everyone’s time off, automatically collect everyone’s timesheets, and let you automate HR and IT workflows to save valuable time.
Countries Supported
When comparing different EOR solutions, pay close attention to how many and which countries are supported. If you’re planning on hiring employees from specific countries or regions, make sure that the EOR has established entities in those countries before you commit.
The last thing you want is to start paying for an EOR service only to discover that your choice of countries to hire from is extremely limited.
The Platform’s Ease of Use
You’ll be processing payments, tracking time off, and managing your global workforce through an EOR/HR platform, so it’s a good idea to choose one that’s intuitive and easy to use.
Most EORs let you schedule a demo and will walk you through the entire platform to showcase how it works in practice before asking you to commit to a monthly or annual pricing plan. We strongly recommend setting aside 30 minutes to an hour for a demo, as you’ll get a much better idea of what the platform can do and how easy or difficult it is to utilize effectively. You should also consider whether you want a package that integrates with other products in your technology stack, such as your CRM.
Pricing
EOR services can get pretty expensive, especially since most of them charge you per employee every single month. That’s why it’s crucial to be fully aware of what’s included in each pricing plan, so you don’t get unpleasantly surprised by additional fees or realize that the true price of the service with all the add-ons is much higher than you’ve anticipated.
That’s why we recommend getting in touch with the EOR first and scheduling a demo or a consultation quote, explaining the needs of your business, and getting a direct quote from the company’s representative. This will help you accurately forecast the costs so that you can plan your budget allocation accordingly. Now all you have to worry about is your VoIP line.
EOR FAQs
What are the main services on offer with EOR services?
Can I hire globally without an Employer of Record?
How is an EOR different from a staffing agency?
Are there limitations to working with an EOR service?
Do my employees work for me or the EOR?
Conclusion – What’s the Best EOR Solution to Use for Outsourcing Global Hiring in 2023?
If you want to legally employ FTEs globally, working with an EOR is the best choice, both in terms of cost-effectiveness and legal risk mitigation. To choose the best EOR provider for your organization, you should carefully consider what services they offer on their different pricing plans and what countries they support.
Our choice for the best EOR solution is Deel, given that it helps you hire both global workers and direct employees, greatly speeds up the onboarding process, facilitates employee relocation, and can give you valuable insight into employer costs across your entire organization.
Click the button below to request a demo and see first-hand how Deel can help you hire top talent from more than 90 countries in the world.