Can I Afford to Hire an Employee?
A Beancount‑first guide to modeling the real cost, testing cash flow, and wiring it into your ledger.
Hiring your first employee is a massive step. It’s a bet on your future, but it’s also a significant financial commitment that goes far beyond the number on an offer letter. Too many founders and small business owners get this wrong by fixating on salary alone, only to be surprised by the true, "fully-loaded" cost.
This guide will walk you through how to model that cost accurately, test whether you can actually afford it, and then wire that model directly into your Beancount ledger to de-risk the decision before you post the job.
The TL;DR
- Don’t stop at salary. In the U.S., the real cost includes employer payroll taxes (Social Security, Medicare, FUTA/SUTA), benefits, insurance, tools, and recruiting. For private industry, benefits alone average ~30% of total compensation, which suggests a ~1.42× “fully loaded” multiplier on top of wages. This can vary widely by company and location.
- A quick rule-of-thumb to start:
Fully Loaded Cost ≈ Salary + Employer Payroll Taxes + Benefits + Insurance + Tools/Software + Recruiting/Ramp. - Use Beancount to de‑risk the decision. Model a monthly payroll budget in your ledger using Fava's budget feature. You can then run a forecast to check your runway, margins, and the payback period for the role before you commit.
1) What Actually Drives “Fully‑Loaded” Cost?
Think of an employee's salary as the tip of an iceberg. The visible part is straightforward, but the submerged costs are what can sink your cash flow if you're not prepared. Here’s the breakdown.
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Base Pay (Wages/Salary): This is the easy part—the agreed-upon annual salary or hourly wage. It's the biggest line item, but it's just the starting point.
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Employer Payroll Taxes (U.S.): You don't just pay your employee; you also have to pay taxes on their wages. As the employer, you are responsible for:
- Social Security (OASDI): You pay 6.2% of an employee's wages up to an annual cap. For 2025, that wage base is $176,100.
- Medicare (HI): You pay 1.45% of all employee wages, with no income cap.
- Unemployment Taxes (FUTA & SUTA): Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) is 6.0% on the first $7,000 of wages. However, most employers receive a credit for paying state unemployment taxes (SUTA), bringing the effective FUTA rate down to 0.6%. SUTA rates vary significantly by state and your company's history.
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Benefits: This is often the second-largest cost. It includes things like health insurance, retirement contributions (e.g., a 401(k) match), and paid leave. Across U.S. private industry, benefits average about 30% of total compensation. For perspective, the average annual premium for employer-sponsored health insurance in 2024 was $8,951 for single coverage and $25,572 for family coverage. While employees contribute, the employer typically covers the lion's share.
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Workers’ Compensation Insurance: This is legally required in nearly every state and covers medical costs and lost wages if an employee is injured on the job. The rates depend on your state, industry, and the employee's role (an office worker is much cheaper to insure than a roofer). Don't budget zero for this.
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Tools & Overhead: Your new hire needs the right equipment to do their job. This includes a laptop, software licenses (SaaS seats), a desk if you have an office, and payroll processing software itself. A typical payroll service for a small business runs around $49–$50 per month as a base fee, plus $6–$10 per employee.
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Recruiting & Ramp-up: Don't forget the one-time costs. This includes fees for job postings, your own time spent interviewing, and most importantly, the ramp-up period. A new hire may take 1–3 months to reach full productivity, during which you're paying their full cost for partial output.
2) A Concrete Example
Let's make this tangible. Imagine you're hiring a U.S.-based employee at an $80,000 salary. You plan to offer single-coverage health insurance, covering the national average employer share of ~84% of the premium.
Here’s how the annual cost breaks down:
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Employer Payroll Taxes:
- Social Security (OASDI): $80,000 \times 6.2% = $4,960$
- Medicare: $80,000 \times 1.45% = $1,160$
- FUTA (at effective rate): $7,000 \times 0.6% = $42$
- Total Employer Payroll Taxes: $6,162
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Health Insurance (Your Share):
- Using the 2024 average premium for single coverage ($8,951) and your 84% contribution: .
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Payroll Software & Tools:
- Payroll Software: ($50 base + $6/employee) × 12 months = ~$672 per year.
- Tools/Laptop/SaaS (estimated): $2,000 per year.
Let's add it all up:
| Item | Annual Cost |
|---|---|
| Salary | $80,000 |
| Employer Payroll Taxes | $6,162 |
| Health Insurance | $7,519 |
| Payroll Software | $672 |
| Tools & Laptop | $2,000 |
| Total Annual Cost | $96,353 |
| Monthly Cost | ~$8,029 |
In this scenario, the fully-loaded cost is $96,353, which is 1.20× the base salary. This is a relatively lean benefits package. If you offered a 401(k) match, more generous paid leave, or family health coverage, you could easily approach the national average multiplier of ~1.42×. For an $80k salary, that would imply a total cost closer to $113,800.
The Takeaway: Your true cost will likely be between 1.20× (lean) and 1.40×+ (richer) of the base salary. Run your own numbers to find out.
3) “Can I Afford It?”—Three Pragmatic Tests
Now that you have a realistic monthly cost (~$8,029 in our example), how do you know if you can sustain it?
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Gross-Margin Coverage: Does the role pay for itself? If your business has a 65% gross margin, your new hire needs to generate at least $12,352 in new monthly revenue ($8,029 ÷ 0.65) just to break even. If the role is designed to save costs, it needs to find equivalent, durable expense reductions.
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Payback & Runway: How long until the hire generates a positive return, and can you survive until then? Aim for a 6–12 month payback period on the role's business case—the shorter, the safer. Crucially, you should have at least 3–6 months of the fully-loaded cost in cash as a buffer after accounting for the ramp-up period.
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Ramp Reality: A new hire won't be 100% effective on day one. Budget for 1–3 months of onboarding and lower productivity. If your cash cushion can't cover both their salary and the initial productivity dip, you're not ready. Consider starting with a contractor or part-time employee to validate the need first.
A U.S.-Specific Note: If this is your first hire or your first hire in a new state, double-check your compliance requirements. FUTA credit reductions can apply in certain states, and SUTA rates vary wildly. Workers' compensation laws also differ. Getting this wrong can lead to penalties.
4) Make the Model Real in Beancount
The best way to know if you can afford a hire is to see the impact directly in your books. Here’s how to do it with Beancount.
A. Set a Payroll Budget with Fava
Before anything else, add the projected monthly costs to your ledger using Fava's custom "budget" directive. This lets you visualize the new expense against your income.
; Budgeting for one employee at ~$96k/year fully-loaded cost
2025-09-01 custom "budget" Expenses:Payroll:Wages "monthly" 6666.67 USD
2025-09-01 custom "budget" Expenses:Payroll:Taxes:Employer "monthly" 513.50 USD
2025-09-01 custom "budget" Expenses:Benefits:HealthInsurance "monthly" 626.57 USD
2025-09-01 custom "budget" Expenses:Tools:PayrollSoftware "monthly" 55.00 USD
Once added, Fava’s Income Statement and Changes reports will automatically show you how you're tracking against this new, higher expense level.
B. Record an Actual Payroll Run
When you run payroll, you have two common ways to record it.
- Detailed (with Liabilities): This is the most accurate method. It separates your employer taxes from employee withholdings, treating the latter as liabilities that you hold temporarily before remitting them to the government.
2025-09-30 * "Payroll - Alice (September)" ; Example withholdings for illustration
Expenses:Payroll:Wages 6666.67 USD
; Employer-side taxes (your direct cost)
Expenses:Payroll:Taxes:Employer:SocialSecurity 413.33 USD
Expenses:Payroll:Taxes:Employer:Medicare 96.67 USD
Expenses:Payroll:Taxes:Employer:FUTA 3.50 USD
; Employee withholdings (held as liabilities)
Liabilities:Payroll:Withholding:Federal -1000.00 USD
Liabilities:Payroll:Withholding:State -300.00 USD
Liabilities:Payroll:FICA:Employee:SocialSecurity -413.33 USD
Liabilities:Payroll:FICA:Employee:Medicare -96.67 USD
; Cash out to bank (net pay to employee)
Assets:Bank:Checking -4853.54 USD
Later, when your payroll provider withdraws the taxes, you'll record a separate transaction to clear the liabilities (e.g., Liabilities:Payroll:Withholding:Federal -> Assets:Bank:Checking).
- Simplified (Lump-Sum): If your payroll provider debits your account in one combined transaction and you don't need to track the detailed liabilities, this is a simpler approach.
2025-09-30 * "Gusto payroll run - Alice"
Expenses:Payroll:Wages 6666.67 USD
Expenses:Payroll:Taxes:Employer 513.50 USD
Expenses:Payroll:Fees:Provider 55.00 USD
Assets:Bank:Checking -7235.17 USD
C. Forecast Your Runway
Structure your chart of accounts with a top-level Expenses:Payroll account. Use tags like employee: "Alice" on transactions to filter reports by person. With your budget in place, you can use Fava to overlay your plan versus actuals each month. If you find yourself consistently over budget, it’s time to rerun your affordability tests.
5) When Hiring Does and Doesn't Make Sense (Quick Checklist)
It likely makes sense if... ✅
- You are turning away profitable work or delaying product launches due to a lack of capacity.
- You can clearly define a revenue target or cost-savings goal that the new hire will be responsible for.
- Your cash runway comfortably covers the 1–3 month ramp-up period plus an additional 3–6 months of the fully-loaded cost.
You should probably wait if... 🛑
- Demand for your work is spiky and unpredictable. Start with a contractor or part-time help to manage the variable workload first.
- You can achieve the same goals by buying a better tool or automating a process for a fraction of the cost.
- You can't tie the role to a measurable business outcome. "I'm feeling busy" is not a business case.
Reference Numbers (U.S., 2025)
- Social Security Wage Base: $176,100
- Employer Tax Rates: 6.2% for Social Security (on wages up to the base), 1.45% for Medicare (no cap).
- FUTA Tax Rate: 6.0% on the first $7,000 of wages, but typically 0.6% effective after state tax credits.
- Benefits as Share of Compensation: Averages ~29.7% in U.S. private industry, implying a ~1.42× average multiplier on wages.
- Avg. Health Premiums (2024): $8,951 for single coverage / $25,572 for family.
- Workers’ Comp: Required in nearly every state; rules and rates vary.
- Payroll Software Cost: Ballpark $49–$50 base fee + $6–$10 per employee, per month.
A Note on Compliance
This guide is for modeling financial costs. Actually hiring an employee involves legal and administrative compliance. You'll need to set up federal and state payroll tax accounts, verify employment eligibility (Form I-9), have employees fill out tax forms (W-4), and comply with state-specific new-hire reporting and local tax laws. Always consult official resources from the IRS, SSA, and your state's department of labor.
Final Thought
Hiring is an investment, and the best investors do their homework. Before you write the job description or post on LinkedIn, put the hire into your Beancount ledger. Model it as a budget and forecast the impact on your cash. If the numbers hold up in your own books, you’re ready to hire with confidence.
Recent Reporting & Context
