When companies compare offshore rates to local salaries, they usually compare the wrong numbers. A $60,000 salary does not cost $60,000. Once you add employer taxes, benefits, equipment, office space and recruitment costs, the fully-loaded figure lands between 1.25x and 1.4x base salary.
The fully-loaded cost stack
- Employer payroll taxes: 7.65%+ (US FICA alone)
- Health insurance: $7,000–$22,000 per employee per year
- Recruitment: 15–25% of first-year salary via agencies
- Office & equipment: $3,000–$12,000 per year
- Paid leave, training and turnover costs
A realistic example
A mid-level bookkeeper in Denver: $58,000 base becomes roughly $76,500 fully loaded. An equivalent dedicated offshore professional with QuickBooks certification: $16,800 per year, management and equipment included. That is a 78% differential — before you count the recruiting time you did not spend.
When in-house still wins
Roles requiring physical presence, deep institutional strategy or client-facing trust in regulated industries often justify local hires. The smartest operators run a hybrid: strategic core in-house, execution capacity offshore.
Written by
hireinanydomain.com
Editorial Team at Hire In Any Domain