Hiring cost calculator · Updated October 2026

What will your next remote hire really cost?

Pick a role and the hours you need. You get three receipts: an in-house hire, someone you hire directly abroad, and an agency, with every line item sourced.

Hours a month
In-house in
Adjust the numbers (your own quotes, fees, your time)

Published by Outsourcing Insider, a VA MASTERS company. The agency example uses VA MASTERS' published rates; type in any agency's quote to compare. About us

In-house in the US

A virtual assistant on your payroll

Per month

  • Wages180 hrs × $18.67–$27.89/hr$1,494–$2,231
  • Paid leave2$125–$187
  • Supplemental pay (overtime, bonuses)2$66.52–$99.37
  • Health and other insurance2$127–$190
  • Retirement plans2$46.36–$69.25
  • Payroll taxes and required insurance2$159–$238

Monthly total$2,018–$3,014

One-time

  • Average cost per hire3$5,475

First year$29,687–$41,644

  • Benefit costs are the average for private employers with 1–49 workers; your own package may differ.

Hire directly in the Philippines

Someone you find, vet and manage yourself

Per month

  • Pay480 hrs × $1.65–$2.63/hr$132–$210
  • Platform fee0% for now: add yours under Adjust$0
  • Transfer fees0% for now: add yours under Adjust$0

Monthly total$132–$210

One-time

  • Your time to find and vetNot counted: add it under Adjust$0

First year$1,584–$2,525

About 93% less than in-house, at mid-range

  • You find, vet, pay and manage the person yourself.
  • If it doesn't work out, the search starts again.
  • Pay range = what local employers pay, from published salary data. Someone working remotely for a foreign business may quote differently: type their quote under Adjust.

An agency, e.g. VA MASTERS Parent company

Administrative & Operations Support rate card

Per month

  • Rate, all-inclusive580 hrs × $6.50–$10.00/hr$520–$800
  • Recruitment or setup fee5$0
  • Bank transfer fee5$0

Monthly total$520–$800

First year$6,240–$9,600

About 74% less than in-house, at mid-range

  • Includes recruitment, contract and payments, time tracking and an account manager (as published).
  • Replacement at no extra cost; 30-day trial with each new hire.
  • A refundable advance payment, credited against your first invoices, is due once you choose your hire.
Monthly cost, 80 hours of a virtual assistant's time
In-house in the US$2,018–$3,014
Hire directly in the Philippines$132–$210
An agency, e.g. VA MASTERS$520–$800
  1. United States pay: O*NET OnLine (U.S. Department of Labor), national wages for SOC 43-6014, BLS OEWS May 2025 (May 2025 (BLS 2025 wage data)); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025, news release Table 1 (May 2025). Checked Oct 2026.
  2. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, June 2026, Table 6. Checked Oct 2026.
  3. SHRM, 'SHRM Releases 2025 Benchmarking Reports' press release (Oct 15, 2025). Checked Oct 2026.
  4. Philippines pay: Indeed Philippines, 'Virtual Assistant' salary page (updated Oct 19, 2026); JobStreet Philippines, 'Virtual Assistant' salary page (October 2026); Indeed Philippines, 'Administrative Assistant' salary page (updated Oct 19, 2026); PayScale, 'Administrative Assistant' salary in the Philippines (last updated Aug 27, 2026); Philippine Statistics Authority, 2024 Occupational Wages Survey, Table 5 (General Office Clerks) (2024 survey (reference month Aug 2024)). Checked Oct 2026. Converted at 1 USD = 63.5 PHP (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Reference Exchange Rate Bulletin, 23 October 2026 (BSP Reference Rate), rate for 23 Oct 2026).
  5. VA MASTERS pricing page: published hourly rates by role category, all-inclusive. Checked Oct 2026.

How each line is worked out, and every assumption: where our numbers come from. Monthly pay is converted to hourly at 40 hours a week unless the source country's own full-time hours are given.

Hourly pay at a glance

The lowest and highest published figures we found per role, across the countries we cover, next to the US baseline.

By country: Philippines · India · Latin America · Eastern Europe · South Africa · United States · United Kingdom · Australia

Templates for hiring well

Questions people ask

How much does it cost to hire a remote employee?

It depends on the role, the country and how you hire. For 80 hours a month of a virtual assistant's time, the calculator above shows $132–$210 a month to hire someone directly in the Philippines, $520–$800 through an agency (VA MASTERS' published rates, as one example), and $2,018–$3,014 for an in-house hire in the US, including benefits and payroll taxes. Change the role, hours and countries to see your own numbers.

Is it cheaper to hire a freelancer directly or go through an agency?

Hiring directly is usually cheaper per hour, because you pay only the person. An agency charges more per hour, and in return it finds, screens and replaces the hire and handles contracts and payments. The calculator shows both side by side, plus a line for the hours you'd spend hiring yourself, so you can put a price on that time.

Where do these numbers come from?

Pay figures come from government statistics offices, job boards and salary-data platforms. Each one is listed with its source and the date we checked it. We show ranges, not single numbers, and write 'Not published' where we couldn't find a sourced figure.

Does the calculator include taxes and benefits?

For in-house hires in the US, UK and Australia, yes: each slip lists the employer costs on top of wages (benefits and payroll taxes in the US, employer National Insurance and pension in the UK, superannuation in Australia), each with its source. For hires abroad it shows pay and fees only; local employer costs there depend on how you engage the person.