Hiring Cost Planner
Model the full cost of hiring including salary, benefits, recruiting, equipment, and ramp time. See first-year investment, monthly payroll impact, and when new hires pay for themselves.
Hiring Inputs
1 to 10 new hires
1.0x = no benefits, 1.25x typical, 1.5x generous
1 to 12 months
One-Time Costs (per hire)
Leave blank to skip breakeven and ROI analysis
How It Works
Enter Hire Details
Input salary, benefits multiplier, one-time costs, and ramp time for each new hire.
See Full Cost
Get monthly fully-loaded cost, first-year total, and ongoing annual cost per hire.
Assess ROI
Add expected revenue per employee to see months to breakeven and ROI timeline.
Example: First Sales Hire
A SaaS startup is hiring its first Account Executive. The employee cost calculator shows the base cost, but the hiring cost planner reveals the full first-year picture including ramp time.
Inputs
Results
The hire becomes profitable by month 10, factoring in 4 months of ramp time. This impacts burn rate by $8,125/month immediately.
Who Should Use This
Startup Founders
Model the cash impact of your next hire before committing. Understand how hiring affects your runway and when you will see returns.
Hiring Managers
Build a business case for headcount requests with data on total investment, expected ROI timeline, and payroll impact.
Finance Teams
Plan hiring budgets accurately by including often-overlooked costs like recruiting fees, equipment, and productivity ramp time.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a fully-loaded employee cost?
A fully-loaded employee cost includes base salary plus all benefits and overhead: health insurance, retirement contributions, payroll taxes (FICA, FUTA), workers comp, and any perks. This typically adds 25-50% on top of base salary. For a $80,000 salary with a 1.3x multiplier, the fully-loaded annual cost is $104,000 or $8,667/month. See the employee cost calculator for a detailed breakdown of each cost component.
What costs are included in the first-year total?
First-year total includes 12 months of fully-loaded salary plus all one-time costs: recruiting fees (agency or job board costs), equipment (laptop, monitor, desk), and onboarding/training expenses. This number is always higher than ongoing annual cost because it includes these one-time investments. For multiple hires, multiply by headcount. Read the true cost of an employee for a comprehensive breakdown.
How does ramp time affect hiring ROI?
Ramp time is the period before a new hire reaches full productivity. During ramp, you pay full cost but receive partial output. A 3-month ramp means the employee generates roughly 33%, 67%, then 100% of expected revenue in months 1-3. This delays breakeven significantly: a hire that would break even in 6 months with no ramp might take 8-9 months with a 3-month ramp. Sales roles typically have 3-6 month ramps, while engineering roles can take 2-4 months. Read when to hire your first employee for timing guidance.
What is a typical benefits multiplier?
Benefits multipliers range from 1.0x (contractor, no benefits) to 1.5x (generous package). In the US, 1.2-1.3x is typical for startups (basic health insurance + payroll taxes). Established companies often run 1.3-1.4x with 401k matching, dental, vision, and PTO accruals. Enterprise companies with comprehensive packages may reach 1.5x or higher. Use the contractor vs employee calculator to compare hiring an employee vs a contractor.
How does hiring affect my burn rate?
Each hire increases your monthly burn by the fully-loaded cost immediately, but revenue contribution is delayed by ramp time. For a startup burning $50K/month, adding a $8K/month hire increases burn by 16% on day one. With 18 months of runway, this single hire reduces runway to 15.5 months. Multiple hires compound this effect. Always model hiring plans against your burn rate and runway before committing to new headcount.
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