Employer Payroll Cost Calculator
Enter the gross salary and country to get the employer's share of social contributions, the total annual cost and the break-even hourly rate of a freelancer for comparison.
About this tool
What an Employee Really Costs
See the employer's total cost for a salary in Germany, Austria or France, and compare it with hiring a freelancer instead.
Both Sides of the Payslip
Employee net pay, income tax and social security next to the employer's contributions and total employer cost.
Contribution Breakdown
Pension, health, unemployment and other contributions split into employee and employer shares, plus the tax and contribution wedge.
Employee vs. Contractor
Enter a contractor's hourly rate, hours and extra costs to see which is cheaper for the company and the break-even hourly rate.
How to use it
- Choose the country: Germany, Austria or France.
- Enter the gross salary per year; the monthly gross is shown alongside.
- Read the total employer cost and the contribution breakdown for employee and employer.
- Under Employee vs. contractor, enter the contractor's hourly rate, hours per week, weeks per year and extra yearly cost, such as tools or an agency fee.
- Compare the two yearly costs and the break-even hourly rate before you decide how to staff the role.
Frequently asked questions
Is my financial data uploaded to any server?
No. Every calculation, PDF and XML file is produced inside your browser tab with JavaScript and WebAssembly. Nothing is uploaded, stored or logged — the tool also keeps working offline.
What is included in the total employer cost?
Gross salary plus the employer share of pension, health, unemployment and nursing-care contributions, statutory accident insurance and country-specific levies.
Is the tool really free to use?
Yes. The calculators, the invoice studio and the e-invoice tools are free to use, with no account and no watermark. The free plan has fair-use limits. Optional paid plans add higher limits and features such as customer management, reminders and bookkeeping.
Is a freelancer always cheaper?
Not necessarily. A day rate looks high next to a salary, but the company saves social contributions, holiday pay and sick days. The break-even rate shows where the two cost the same — and long, exclusive contracts can raise the risk of false self-employment.