- Open data used: Official labour cost in Spain for comparison: EUR 3,388.15 per worker per month in Q2 2026 (industry, construction and services), of which EUR 2,512.68 wages and EUR 807.69 mandatory social security contributions (Coste laboral por trabajador, comunidad autónoma, sectores de actividad. ETCL (table 6061), INE, on datos.gob.es, CC BY 4.0)
Employer of Record in Spain: what one employee really costs
Spain, Europe. One software engineer at $45,000 gross per year, priced through 12 providers with a published fee, on the ECB reference rates of 30 Oct 2026. Change the salary and headcount below.
- Employer on-cost
- +32.2%
- statutory charges on top of gross
- All-in per month
- $5,155 – $5,655
- salary + charges + published fee, cheapest to dearest listed provider
Hiring one software engineer in Spain at $45,000 gross a year costs about $1,206 a month in statutory employer charges (+32.2%), plus an EOR fee of $199 to $699 per month depending on the provider: $5,155 to $5,655 all-in, before deposits, FX margins and add-ons. Prices checked 2 Oct–3 Nov 2026.
Disclosure Some provider links on this page are affiliate links: if you become a customer after clicking, the provider may pay us a referral fee. It never changes the price you pay, and it never changes the numbers on this page, which come from official sources and are dated. How we are paid
Cost engine · preset to Spain
Price your own hire, line by line.
≈ EUR 40,279 gross / year · EUR at ECB reference rate, 30 Oct 2026
| Per employee | Rate | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| Gross salary | $3,750 | |
| Common contingencies (contingencias comunes) | 23.60% | $885 |
| Unemployment insurance (desempleo) | 5.50% | $206 |
| Wage Guarantee Fund (FOGASA) | 0.20% | $8 |
| Vocational training (formacion profesional) | 0.60% | $23 |
| Intergenerational Equity Mechanism (MEI) | 0.75% | $28 |
| Occupational accidents and diseases (AT y EP) | 1.50% | $56 |
| Employer on-cost | +32.2% | $1,206 |
| Cost of employment, before EOR fee | $4,956 |
$5,155/ month · 1 employee
- Fee / mo
- from $199
- Per year
- $61,856
- Fee share
- 3.9%
Checked 3 Nov 2026
Get a RemoFirst quote$5,455/ month · 1 employee
- Fee / mo
- from $499
- Per year
- $65,456
- Fee share
- 9.1%
Checked 3 Nov 2026
Get a Papaya quote$5,555/ month · 1 employee
- Fee / mo
- from $599
- Per year
- $66,656
- Fee share
- 10.8%
Checked 3 Nov 2026
Get a Deel quoteEmployer charges from official sources; provider fees are list prices on the dates shown; deposits, FX margins and add-ons are not included. Not legal or tax advice. Methodology
14 providers, one scenario, all-in totals.
| Provider | EOR fee / employee / mo | All-in / mo, 1 hire | Countries | Checked | Quote |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RemoFirst | from $199 | $5,155 | 185+ | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from RemoFirst· $5,155/mo |
| Rivermate | from $349 | $5,305 | 180+ | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from Rivermate· $5,305/mo |
| Pebl | from $399 | $5,355 | 185+ | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from Pebl· $5,355/mo |
| Playroll | from $399 | $5,355 | 180+ | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from Playroll· $5,355/mo |
| Multiplier | from $499 $459 billed annually | $5,455 | 150+ | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from Multiplier· $5,455/mo |
| Papaya Global | from $499 | $5,455 | 160+ | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from Papaya Global· $5,455/mo |
| Borderless AI | $579 | $5,535 | — | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from Borderless AI· $5,535/mo |
| Atlas HXM | from $599 | $5,555 | 160+ | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from Atlas HXM· $5,555/mo |
| Deel | from $599 | $5,555 | 130+ | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from Deel· $5,555/mo |
| G-P | from $599 | $5,555 | 180+ | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from G-P· $5,555/mo |
| Remote | from $599 | $5,555 | 90+ | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from Remote· $5,555/mo |
| Oyster | $699 | $5,655 | 120+ | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from Oyster· $5,655/mo |
| Rippling | Quote only | — | — | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from Rippling |
| Safeguard Global | Quote only | — | 187+ | 3 Nov 2026 | Get a quote from Safeguard Global |
Deposit, FX and contract terms: open a provider's name for its file, or see every provider's terms side by side.
Same salary and statutory charges in every row; only the fee segment changes.
What Spain adds on top of the salary, and where each rate comes from.
Rates apply to the base named in each line; capped lines stop growing above the ceiling.
| Line | Employer rate | Base & ceiling | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Common contingencies (contingencias comunes) | 23.60% | Gross salary , capped at EUR 61,214 / yr, floor EUR 23,872 / yr Employer share of the main Regimen General contribution; employee pays an additional 4.70% (28.30% combined). Applied to the monthly contribution base, capped at EUR 5,101.20/month (group 1 floor: EUR 1,989.30/month for titled engineers/graduates). | Seguridad Social2026-09-02 |
| Unemployment insurance (desempleo)Rate for open-ended contracts (contrato indefinido), incl. part-time and fijo-discontinuo — employee pays 1.55% (7.05% combined). Fixed-term (temporal) contracts pay a higher 6.70% employer / 1.60% employee (8.30% combined). | 5.50% | Gross salary , capped at EUR 61,214 / yr, floor EUR 23,872 / yr Official table shows this rate under the indefinite-contract column of the 2026 unemployment section. | Seguridad Social2026-09-02 |
| Wage Guarantee Fund (FOGASA) | 0.20% | Gross salary , capped at EUR 61,214 / yr, floor EUR 23,872 / yr Employer-only contribution (0% employee share) funding wage/severance guarantees in case of employer insolvency. | Seguridad Social2026-09-02 |
| Vocational training (formacion profesional) | 0.60% | Gross salary , capped at EUR 61,214 / yr, floor EUR 23,872 / yr Employee pays an additional 0.10% (0.70% combined). | Seguridad Social2026-09-02 |
| Intergenerational Equity Mechanism (MEI) | 0.75% | Gross salary , capped at EUR 61,214 / yr, floor EUR 23,872 / yr Pension-sustainability levy on the common-contingencies base. Total MEI rate is 0.90% (employer 0.75% / employee 0.15%) in 2026, up from 0.80% (0.67%/0.13%) in 2025 — it rises 0.1 pt/year through 2029 per the 2021 pension reform. | Seguridad Social2026-09-02 |
| Occupational accidents and diseases (AT y EP)Varies by CNAE economic activity (tarifa de primas, Real Decreto-ley 3/2026 amending LGSS disposicion adicional 61). The rate shown (1.50% = 0.80% IT + 0.70% IMS) applies to CNAE 62, 'Programacion, consultoria y otras actividades relacionadas con la informatica', one of the lowest-risk tiers and the classification used for the example software-engineer role. | 1.50% | Gross salary , capped at EUR 61,214 / yr, floor EUR 23,872 / yr The 1.50% figure is corroborated by three independent secondary sources: a legal-database mirror of the relevant LGSS provision, Deel's Spain payroll-cost page, and the mutua Fraternidad-Muprespa. The official Social Security tariff PDF and BOE table were not directly retrievable when checked, so this line is high-confidence but not primary-source verified. | Deel2026-09-02 |
| Two extra payments (pagas extraordinarias) not in total | — | Article 31 ET grants employees two extra payments a year (Christmas + one set by collective agreement), which can be prorated over 12 monthly payments by collective agreement. In practice Spanish salaries are quoted, and this engine's example_salary_usd is treated, as an ANNUAL GROSS that already includes these two extra payments — they are not added on top of the 12 monthly base salaries. | Estatuto de los Trabajadores, Real Decreto Legislativo 2/20152026-09-02 |
| Severance pay — objective/economic dismissal (despido objetivo) not in total | — | 20 days' salary per year of service, prorated by month for periods under a year, capped at 12 monthly payments. Statutory minimum for a lawful objective/economic dismissal only (Article 53.1.b ET); not an automatic annual accrual, so it is NOT added to the yearly employer-cost total by default — shown here as a contingent termination-cost reference only. | Estatuto de los Trabajadores, Real Decreto Legislativo 2/20152026-09-02 |
| Employer on-cost at $45,000 | +32.2% | $14,468 a year, $1,206 a month |
EOR or your own entity
Fees scale with headcount. An entity does not.
Below roughly 5-10 employees, or for a first hire testing the Spanish market, an EOR is almost always cheaper and faster than incorporating. A Sociedad Limitada (SL) now needs as little as EUR 1 in share capital (Ley 18/2022 reform, down from EUR 3,000) but still takes several weeks for notary, Registro Mercantil, NIF and Seguridad Social employer registration, plus ongoing local payroll/accounting overhead — worth it once headcount, local benefits customization, or long-term commitment make the EOR per-employee fee less economical than running your own entity.
Fees grow with every hire; the charges line is owed under an entity too.
| Headcount | RemoFirst fees / yr | Borderless AI fees / yr | Statutory charges / yr |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $2,388 | $6,948 | $14,468 |
| 3 | $7,164 | $20,844 | $43,403 |
| 5 | $11,940 | $34,740 | $72,338 |
| 10 | $23,880 | $69,480 | $144,675 |
| 20 | $47,760 | $138,960 | $289,350 |
Statutory charges are owed either way; the provider fee is the only line an entity removes, against the cost of incorporating and running local payroll.
Employment terms that move the cost
- Paid leave
- 22 days
- Public holidays
- 14
- 13th month
- Mandatory
- Probation
- up to 6 months
- Notice
- 15 calendar days for an objective/economic dismissal (despido objetivo, Art. 53.1.c ET); no statutory notice is required to resign or dismiss during the probation period, or for disciplinary dismissal.
- Reviewed
- 2026-09-02
Get a quote for Spain.
The lowest published total here, next to the two providers searched for most often (the rule). Totals for 1 hire at $45,000. Ask each provider about deposits, FX margins and mandatory add-ons for Spain: those are the lines that move.
Disclosure Some provider links are affiliate links; they never change the numbers on this page. Details
Questions people ask before booking a demo
- How much does it cost to employ someone in Spain on top of their salary?
- Employer social security contributions in Spain add about 32% on top of gross salary for an office role: 23.60% common contingencies, 5.50% unemployment (indefinite contract), 0.75% employer share of the MEI, 0.60% vocational training, 0.20% FOGASA, plus a variable accidents-at-work premium (1.50% for IT roles). Contributions are capped at a monthly base of EUR 5,101.20 in 2026, so the percentage falls for salaries above about EUR 61,000 a year.
- What is the maximum Social Security contribution base in Spain in 2026?
- The maximum monthly contribution base (tope maximo) for the Regimen General is EUR 5,101.20 in 2026 (EUR 61,214.40/year), up from EUR 4,909.50/month in 2025. Salary above this cap is not subject to standard employer contributions, though a separate 'cuota de solidaridad' of 1.15%-1.46% applies to pay above the cap.
- Do EOR fees in Spain include the 14 payments (pagas extra)?
- Yes — an EOR's employer-cost estimate for Spain should already reflect that the agreed annual gross salary includes the two extra payments (pagas extraordinarias) required by law, whether paid separately in July/December or prorated across 12 months. There is no additional 14th/15th payment on top of the quoted annual gross.