Employer cost calculator
- True annual cost of this employee
- $75,775
- Social Security, employer share (6.2%)
- $3,720
- Medicare, employer share (1.45%)
- $870
Every figure on this page is computed from the inputs you enter, by the method stated below it. The only constants HeadcountDesk supplies are the published federal payroll tax rates and the overtime multiplier, each cited where it is used. The defaults are a worked example to replace with your own.
An employer cost calculator answers the question the wage hides: what this employee costs the business per year and per hour worked, once the employer's share of Social Security and Medicare, unemployment insurance, workers' compensation, the benefits and the paid time are added and the total is divided by the hours actually worked. The true cost of employee calculator on this site is that calculator, free and without an account; HeadcountDesk Pro keeps the figure against each employee so hiring and pricing use the real number.
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The tax lines
The IRS gives the employer's share of Social Security as 6.2% of wages up to the $184,500 base for 2026 and Medicare as 1.45% with no limit, and FUTA as 6.0% on the first $7,000 of each employee's wages, reduced to 0.6% with the full 5.4% credit. These are the calculator's fixed lines, at the rates the IRS publishes.
The insurance and benefit lines
State unemployment at your experience rate, workers' compensation at the class code's rate, then health, retirement and paid leave at your real annual figures. Yours, not averages.
The division
Total cost over hours actually worked, which is paid hours minus holidays, PTO and training. That division is what turns a wage into an employer cost, and skipping it understates every quote.
The benchmark beside your number
The Bureau of Labor Statistics' March 2026 employer cost release puts total compensation for private industry workers at $46.60 per hour worked, of which wages and salaries are $32.60 and benefits $14.01. The free true cost of employee calculator on this site shows your figure against that split. From the vendors' own pricing pages: Homebase lists Essentials at $24 per location per month billed annually or $30 monthly, with a free Basic plan for one location of up to ten employees; BambooHR lists Core at $10 and Pro at $17 per employee per month; Deputy lists Core at $6.50 per user per month. HeadcountDesk Pro is $24 a month per location.
Employer cost calculator: common questions
What does an employer pay on top of salary?
The employer's share of Social Security and Medicare, FUTA and state unemployment, workers' compensation and the benefits offered.
Is the employer cost calculator free?
Yes. The free true cost of employee calculator on this site produces the annual and per-hour figures with no account.
What is the average employer cost?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics' March 2026 employer cost release puts total compensation for private industry workers at $46.60 per hour worked, of which wages and salaries are $32.60 and benefits $14.01.
Will it do what you need for Employer cost calculator?
Tell us what your business needs and we will tell you straight whether HeadcountDesk Pro does it today, whether it is coming, or whether you are better off with something else. A person reads these and replies.