How much do benefits cost per employee
- 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.
How much benefits cost per employee has a measured national answer and an answer for your business, and they are different numbers. The national one comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' employer cost survey; yours comes from your wage, your employer taxes, your health contribution, your retirement match, your paid leave and your workers' compensation, added up. The true cost of employee calculator on this site produces yours from those figures, free and without an account; HeadcountDesk Pro keeps it against the employee.
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The measured national figure
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. That is the average across private industry; it is not your number, but it is the honest benchmark for it.
The legally required part
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. Those are in every employer's benefit cost before a single voluntary benefit is offered.
The voluntary part
The health contribution, the retirement match, the paid leave, the other benefits, each as a cost per year. Your figures, not an average. The free true cost of employee calculator on this site adds them to the required part and gives the total and the per-hour figure.
Why it matters at hiring
The wage is the number the employee sees; the total is the number the business pays. Hiring on the wage alone is how a fifth employee costs more than was budgeted. Pro keeps each employee's true cost with their record. 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.
How much do benefits cost per employee: common questions
What do benefits cost per employee on average?
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.
What benefits are required by law?
The employer's share of Social Security and Medicare, federal and state unemployment, and workers' compensation; the rest is voluntary.
Is the calculator free?
Yes. The free true cost of employee calculator on this site produces the total from your figures with no account.
Will it do what you need for How much do benefits cost per employee?
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.