Deel alternative
A Deel alternative for hiring in India
If India is your hiring market, you are paying a global platform for breadth you may never use, on a price you cannot see until you book a call. Saileor is an India-specialist Employer of Record at a flat, published fee. Same statutory compliance. A number you can read right now.
Saileor vs Deel for India hiring
| Saileor $99 flat | Deel | |
|---|---|---|
| EOR fee, per employee / month | $99 | $599 * |
| Pricing model | Published flat fee | Platform fee; India rate quote-based |
| India coverage | India specialist | 150+ countries |
| Legal entity | India-incorporated, Hyderabad | Global EOR |
| India statutory compliance | PF, ESI, PT, TDS, LWF, gratuity | Handled |
| Onboarding in India | 48 hours † | ~3 days ‡ |
| Upfront salary deposit | None | One month, reported § |
* Deel EOR Standard list price. Deel published pricing, accessed June 2026. India quotes are custom and may differ.
† Saileor stated time: signed offer to compliant employment.
‡ Deel’s stated average India onboarding time.
§ A one-month salary deposit and FX conversion markups are widely reported by third-party pricing analyses. Confirm current terms with the provider.
Where Deel makes sense
Deel is built for breadth. If you are hiring across ten countries at once and want one platform for everyone, that breadth is the product, and it is good at it. The contractor tooling and the free HR tier are genuinely strong. If India is one of many markets and not the main one, a global platform is a reasonable call.
Where Saileor fits
If India is where you are actually building, you do not need 149 other countries priced in. Saileor is incorporated in India, runs your statutory compliance directly, and updated its CTC structuring and PF logic for the November 2025 Labour Codes. You pay $99 per employee per month. The number is on this page because we publish it.
What the fee gap looks like at five hires
Take five full-time engineers in India. The statutory employer costs, PF, ESI, gratuity, professional tax, are set by Indian law and identical no matter who your provider is. The line you actually control is the service fee.
| 5 engineers, India | Saileor | Deel |
|---|---|---|
| Fee per employee / month | $99 | $599 |
| Monthly fee, 5 employees | $495 | $2,995 |
| Annual fee, 5 employees | $5,940 | $35,940 |
Fee math only. Salaries and statutory employer contributions are identical across providers and are not included here. Deel figure uses the $599 EOR Standard list price; India quotes are custom.
Questions buyers ask
Is there a cheaper alternative to Deel for hiring in India?
Yes. India-specialist Employers of Record publish flat fees well below global platform rates. Saileor is $99 per employee per month against Deel’s $599 EOR list price. The statutory employment costs underneath are the same either way, so the service fee is where the gap sits.
Why is Deel more expensive for India?
Deel prices for global breadth, brand, and a bundled platform across 150+ countries. For a company hiring only in India, much of that breadth is unused. An India-only provider carries less overhead and passes that through as a lower, published fee.
Does Deel charge extra fees for hiring in India?
Beyond the EOR fee, third-party pricing analyses commonly report a one-month salary deposit held per employee and a currency-conversion markup. These are not always itemised on invoices. Confirm the current terms directly with the provider before signing.
Do I need an Indian entity to use an EOR?
No. That is the entire point of an Employer of Record. The EOR is the legal employer in India and runs payroll, compliance, and benefits. You direct the work. You never register a local entity.
Is Saileor compliant with India’s 2025 Labour Codes?
Yes. Saileor updated its CTC structuring and provident-fund calculation logic for the wage-definition rules that took effect with the November 2025 Labour Codes, so contributions are computed on the correct base.
How fast can Saileor onboard someone in India?
48 hours from a signed offer to compliant employment, including statutory enrolment and payroll setup.
Hiring in India? See the number first.
$99 per employee per month. Flat. Published. No quote-on-request.