True Cost of an Employee Calculator
Add employer taxes, workers' comp, and benefits to any wage to see the fully-burdened hourly and annual cost. No sign-up required.
True Cost of an Employee
7.65%
Social Security 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%, fixed.
Total Burden
16%
$2.87/hr on top of wage
Fully-Burdened Cost
$20.87/hr
$43,412/yr @ 2,080 hrs
FreshStaff's native payroll computes exactly these employer taxes (FICA, FUTA, SUTA) and feeds them into pay stubs, invoices, and ACA filing, no separate payroll system to reconcile. Rates are estimates; confirm your SUTA and workers' comp rates with your state and carrier.
How to Calculate Fully-Burdened Labor Cost
The wage on the pay stub is only part of what a worker actually costs you. Layer the employer-side burden on top and you get the number your bill rate has to clear before there's any margin.
Fully-Burdened Cost = Wage × (1 + FICA + FUTA/SUTA + Workers' Comp + Benefits)FreshStaff's native payroll computes employer FICA, FUTA, and SUTA on every check and carries them into invoices and ACA filing, so the burden you estimate here is the burden the platform actually runs.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is labor burden?
Labor burden is the employer's cost of an employee beyond their wage: payroll taxes (FICA, FUTA, SUTA), workers' compensation, and benefits. The fully-burdened cost is the wage plus that burden.
What is included in payroll burden?
Employer FICA of 7.65% (Social Security 6.2% up to the annual wage base, plus Medicare 1.45%), federal unemployment (FUTA, effectively 0.6% on the first $7,000), state unemployment (SUTA, which varies by state and experience rating), workers' compensation, and any benefits you provide.
What is a typical labor burden rate?
For light-industrial and hourly staffing, mandatory burden (FICA + FUTA/SUTA + workers' comp) commonly lands around 12–20%, and higher once benefits are added. Your exact SUTA and workers' comp rates depend on your state and class code.
Run the Real Numbers Natively
Gross-to-net payroll with employer taxes, ACA, and check printing built into your ATS, at $0 recruiter seats.