Payroll Outsourcing Cost Calculator
Compare outsourced payroll at a per-employee-per-month fee against running it in-house — staff, software and compliance — including the internal effort outsourcing does not remove.
Free · No sign-up · Nothing leaves your browser · Figures reviewed 22 September 2026
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Full-time equivalents. Somebody still owns inputs, exceptions and the provider relationship.
Filings, audits, professional advice.
Outsourcing is cheaper
₹6,60,000
₹5,40,000 outsourced against ₹12,00,000 in-house, a year — ₹367 an employee a month either way.
- Outsourced · 31%
- In-house · 69%
Outsourced
- Per employee per month
- ₹150
- Monthly fee150 employees
- ₹22,500
- Annual fee
- ₹2,70,000
- Retained internal effort0.3 full-time equivalents
- ₹2,70,000
- Set-up, one-off
- ₹50,000
- Steady-state annual cost
- ₹5,40,000
- Year one
- ₹5,90,000
Outsourcing payroll does not remove payroll work entirely. Someone still owns inputs, exceptions and the relationship, which is what the retained line covers.
In-house
- Payroll staff1 full-time equivalents at ₹9,00,000
- ₹9,00,000
- Software
- ₹1,80,000
- Compliance and advisoryFilings, audits, professional advice
- ₹1,20,000
- Annual cost
- ₹12,00,000
Per employee
- OutsourcedPer employee a month
- ₹300
- In-housePer employee a month
- ₹667
Cost is rarely the deciding factor. Liability is: outsourcing moves the processing, not the legal obligation — the employer remains responsible for statutory compliance whoever runs the calculation.
Outsourcing is usually cheaper below roughly a hundred employees, where an in-house specialist is not fully occupied, and the comparison tightens as headcount rises.
Multi-state operations change the arithmetic. Every additional state adds registrations, returns and professional tax schedules, and that complexity is what outsourcing is genuinely good at absorbing.
Outsourcing is usually cheaper below roughly a hundred employees, where an in-house payroll specialist is not fully occupied, and the comparison tightens as headcount rises.
The line people forget is retained effort. Outsourcing moves the processing, not the inputs: somebody still owns attendance data, exceptions, new joiners and the relationship with the provider.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does payroll outsourcing cost in India?
- Typically quoted per employee per month, with a contractual monthly minimum. The minimum is what matters for a small payroll — below a certain headcount you pay it regardless of how few payslips you issue.
- Is outsourcing payroll cheaper than doing it in-house?
- Usually below about a hundred employees, where a dedicated payroll person is not fully occupied. Above that the comparison tightens, and multi-state complexity rather than headcount often becomes the deciding factor.
- Does outsourcing payroll transfer legal liability?
- No. The employer remains responsible for statutory compliance — deductions, remittances, returns — whoever runs the calculation. Outsourcing transfers the work, not the obligation.
About this tool
Built by the ViniOffice team. Figures and rules last reviewed 22 September 2026 against the statutory reference this team maintains. Indian statutory rates are date-effective and change by notification — confirm against the current one before running payroll or filing.
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