Oyster HR Pricing 2026: EOR Cost Per Employee

Oyster HR EOR runs $699 per employee per month flat, with an annual seat-based billing option at a reduced unpublished per-seat fee and reusable seats. Contractor management is $29 per contractor per month; US PEO is $114/EE/month; People Partner Services is $300 per hour. The published rate includes zero setup, onboarding, offboarding, or termination charges. Oyster covers 120+ countries for EOR and is B Corp certified.

Last verified: Sep 16, 2026.

At a glance

• EOR: $699/EE/mo flat (annual seat billing option)
• Contractor mgmt: $29/contractor/mo
• US PEO: $114/EE/mo
• People Partner Services: $300/hour (white-glove HR advisory)
• Coverage: 120+ countries EOR; 180+ contractor
• Setup / offboarding / termination: None published
• Required deposit: Refundable; amount unpublished
• B Corp certified: Yes (procurement differentiator)

The pricing model is unusually flat

Unlike Deel, Remote, or Globalization Partners, Oyster publishes a single flat per-employee rate with no per-country variation across its 120+ country footprint. Most EOR vendors have country-specific rates for markets with high employer cost (Brazil, India, Philippines) and lower-cost markets (Vietnam, Mexico). Oyster's flat $699/EE/month rate is the same regardless of where the employee sits — a meaningful simplification for budgeting and procurement (Oyster pricing page, August 2026).

The annual seat-based billing option lowers the per-seat fee (amount not published; reportedly 10-20% off the monthly equivalent for 12-month commitments). Unused seats are reusable for backfills within the contract period, which materially improves utilization for companies with seasonal or project-based hiring.

Cost comparison: Oyster vs Deel and Remote

At the published rate, Oyster at $699/EE/mo is $100 more than Deel and equal to Remote's month-to-month rate. For 1-20 hire teams, the gap is meaningful — Deel saves $1,200 per employee per year vs Oyster. For 25+ seat engagements, however, the calculation flips: Deel and Remote negotiate aggressively off their published rates while Oyster's published rate has limited movement.

What the $699 actually covers

Oyster's published rate is genuinely all-in for standard EOR scope — that is rare in the category. The $699 per employee per month includes: compliant local employment contract drafting, country-specific onboarding paperwork, local-currency payroll, statutory benefits administration, monthly tax filings, paid leave tracking, employment-law compliance updates, offboarding processing, and standard HR support via the platform.

What is NOT included in the $699 base: (1) equity administration for stock-option grants (added scope, custom pricing); (2) immigration and visa sponsorship (custom scope); (3) white-glove advisory beyond standard support (People Partner Services at $300/hour); (4) benefits above statutory minimums (often included, but confirm in the MSA); (5) Workday/SAP/Oracle native integrations (limited — Oyster is a point solution rather than an enterprise suite).

Hidden line items to surface in the MSA

Three line items are not on the public pricing page but appear in the MSA negotiation. First, the refundable security deposit: the amount is unpublished and varies by country mix and headcount; for a 50-employee engagement across the US, Germany, and Brazil, expect a deposit in the $50,000-$150,000 range. The deposit is refunded at contract end net of any unpaid obligations.

Second, FX conversion fees on currency mismatch. If your home currency is USD and you pay a Brazil-based employee in BRL, the FX rate is calculated at the time of each payroll run with an undisclosed spread above mid-market. Negotiate the basis points into the MSA (Oyster Help Center, August 2026).

Third, annual escalators on multi-year contracts. Oyster's published rate has been flat since 2024, but multi-year contracts include 5-10% annual escalators — less transparent than Deel and Remote which publish their rate cards openly (Pillar Procurement analysis, August 2026).

B Corp status and ESG procurement

Oyster's B Corp certification is a procurement checkbox that Deel and Remote cannot match. Certified B Corps meet verified standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability. For enterprise buyers with ESG mandates — particularly European public-sector buyers, large financial institutions with sustainability procurement standards, and consumer brands with B Corp or Fair Trade supply-chain commitments — Oyster's B Corp status can be the deciding factor in vendor selection.

The certification is also meaningful for talent branding: candidates increasingly research their prospective employer's employer-of-record partner, and a B Corp partner signals values alignment that a Series E startup cannot. The premium for B Corp status over a non-certified competitor is typically 10-20% on the EOR fee — at $699/EE/mo vs Deel's $599, the premium is $100/EE/mo, or roughly 17% (B Corp directory, August 2026).

What enterprise buyers should do next

1. Validate the deposit and FX terms in writing before signing. Both line items are not on the public pricing page. Negotiate the deposit amount, refund trigger conditions, and FX basis points into the MSA.
2. Compare the flat-rate economics against Deel/Remote volume floors at your actual headcount. For 25+ seats, Deel or Remote will likely beat Oyster's published rate after negotiation.
3. Weigh the B Corp procurement premium. If your organization has ESG mandates, the $100/EE/mo premium over Deel may be worth it for vendor narrative and ESG reporting.

What to watch next

Three datapoints that move Oyster's pricing in late 2026 and 2027. First, the 2027 Oyster pricing refresh — Oyster has held the $699/EE/mo published rate since 2024; a refresh would signal margin pressure or expansion of services included. Second, annual billing discount uptake — current uptake is approximately 30% of customers per G2 reviews; broader adoption would shift Oyster's revenue mix toward longer contracts and lower churn. Third, B Corp renewal cycle — Oyster is mid-cycle on its B Corp certification; any renewal criteria changes (likely stricter on climate and DEI metrics) will surface in 2027.