Providers package co-employment into named plans, and the names carry no industry meaning at all. One provider's essential is another's complete. Because nobody publishes a price, the plan name is often the only thing a buyer can compare, which makes it the least useful comparison available and the one most buyers make.
What is usually in every tier
Payroll processing and payment, employment tax filing under the provider's identification number, basic onboarding paperwork, workers' compensation cover, and access to the provider's benefit programmes. If a proposal excludes any of those it is not a co-employment arrangement and should not be priced as one.
What the tiers actually differ on
Depth of HR support rather than payroll: whether you get a named contact or a queue, whether handbooks are drafted or supplied as templates, whether recruiting or training tools are included, whether there is on-site or scheduled review time, and what the advice line's response commitment is. Ask for the response time in writing, because it is the single most variable item and the one that most affects how the relationship feels.
Comparing two plans honestly
Ask both providers to quote the same scope at the same headcount and to state the fee in the same shape, per employee per month or percentage of payroll, not one of each. Then ask what is passed through on top: benefit costs, workers' compensation premium, state unemployment charges, setup and exit. The plan name will tell you nothing; those two lists will tell you everything.
Questions people ask about peo plans
What is included in a PEO plan?
Payroll, employment tax filing under the provider's identification number, onboarding paperwork, workers' compensation and access to its benefit programmes. Anything short of that is not a co-employment arrangement.
How do PEO plan tiers differ?
Mostly in HR support depth rather than payroll: named contact against a queue, drafted handbooks against templates, and the advice line's response commitment. Get that commitment in writing.
How do I compare two PEO plans?
Make both quote the same scope at your headcount in the same fee shape, then compare the pass-through items: benefits, workers' compensation premium, state unemployment, setup and exit charges.