Recruit
Top 8 Papaya Global Alternatives
Let RemotePeople handle payroll, compliance, and HR admin worldwide so you can focus on building your team.
If you’ve always wanted to hire a team composed of top talent from around the world, now’s your chance. The tools you need to work across international borders – file-sharing, cloud computing, video conferencing – are all in place. The only thing that was missing until recently was the legal framework that would allow you to hire workers in other countries without an entity. Now that’s changed, and there are lots of service providers offering global hiring solutions.
One of these is Papaya Global, a software-as-a-solution (SaaS) provider that offers Employer of Record (EOR) services around the world. This growing company continues to expand its services and customer base, but that doesn’t mean that it’s the best choice for all organizations to partner with. There are plenty of options, however, for companies that have other needs.
In this review, we’ll present the services and details of this provider as well as our list of the top 8 Papaya Global alternatives.
Papaya Global as an Employer of Record
Papaya Global was founded in 2016, making it one of the longest-established EOR providers in the market. Headquartered in New York City, Papaya Global offers SaaS services that include global hiring, payroll management, and mobility services.
All of these services are delivered through Papaya Global’s online cloud-based platform that now includes embedded AI features.
As an EOR provider, Papaya Global lets you hire employees in over 160 countries, even if you don’t have entities in any of them. Instead, it uses its own entities or those of its third-party partners to enter into contracts with employees on your behalf. This makes Papaya Global their full legal employer while also giving it the responsibility for maintaining compliance with all relevant tax and labor laws.
It also takes on the role of managing HR for these employees while you, as the work site employer, only have to manage their schedules and work tasks. Papaya Global manages payroll, mandatory benefits administration, leave management, and all other HR concerns they might have. It also provides additional benefits if you want to reward your employees with more than just their salaries.
Finally, Papaya Global helps you hire and manage payments for contractors in over 160 countries as well. This provider’s fees for EOR services start at $599/employee per month and $30/person per month for contractor management.
Papaya Global's Main Advantages
A look at the main advantages you can gain from partnering with Papaya Global will help you understand how this provider is different from its competition:
Global Coverage
Papaya Global has good global coverage with EOR and contractor hiring services in over 160 countries worldwide.
Benefits
This provider manages mandatory benefits for your employees, like social security contributions and paid annual leave for your employees around the world. However, it also offers packages for additional benefits as well. These include equity and retirement savings as well as private health, dental, and life insurance.
Extensive Platform
Papaya Global’s platform receives high ratings for ease of use and setup. It includes numerous features and tools like expense reporting, workforce management, time and attendance, and more to help you manage most of your HR functions in one place.
Employee Portal and Mobile
This platform features a convenient employee portal that can be accessed through its website or mobile app. Employees can manage their payment details and personal documents and receive support through these access points.
Papaya Global's Main Drawbacks
While working with Papaya Global can create several advantages for your business, you may also be missing out on some of the advantages you might gain with other partners. The main drawbacks to using Papaya Global include:
Pricing
Papaya Global’s EOR fees start at $599 per employee per month, and its contractor price starts at $30 person per month. Both of these prices are moderate and place Papaya Global in the mid-range of global hiring providers. However, many other providers offer prices that are less than half of what Papaya Global charges.
Recruitment
While Papaya Global has an extensive platform with lots of useful tools and features, it’s missing out on recruitment tools like an applicant tracking system (ATS) that can help clients manage their own recruitment function. This provider also doesn’t offer active recruitment services so clients are left having to source their own talent globally.
Integrations
Other competitors offer dozens and even hundreds of pre-built integrations to the apps you’re probably already using. Papaya Global can integrate out-of-the-box with just 15 apps. However, it does feature “connectors” that can help it pull data from some common HRIS, finance, and vendor management systems.
Top 8 Papaya Global Alternatives
With its extensive platform, good global reach, and mid-range prices, Papaya Global can be a great partner for many organizations. Others will find that it’s missing certain features that would make it their ideal partner.
| Company | Description |
|---|---|
| RemotePeople (formerly Horizons) | Specializes in providing flexible EOR and PEO services to simplify the international hiring process, offering tailored solutions for businesses looking to scale globally. |
| Deel | A leading global hiring platform offering seamless payroll, contractor management, and compliance solutions for remote teams. |
| Remote | Streamlines international hiring with a robust EOR platform, handling payroll, benefits, and compliance in 50+ countries. |
| Pebl (formerly Velocity Global) | Offers global workforce solutions that include EOR services, allowing businesses to hire employees in any country while ensuring compliance with local laws and regulations. |
| Rippling | Combines HR, payroll, and IT in one platform, automating global workforce management for fast-growing companies. |
| Global Expansion | Provides tailored EOR services to help companies expand internationally while ensuring compliance and cost efficiency. |
| Safeguard Global | Delivers scalable global payroll and workforce management services, ensuring compliance and efficiency for multinational teams. |
| Multiplier | Enables businesses to hire and manage global teams with automated compliance, payroll, and benefits administration. |
If your company is planning to look elsewhere, these are our top 8 Papaya Global alternatives:
1
RemotePeople
RemotePeople is a global Employer of Record platform delivering enterprise-level compliance built for growth. The company enables businesses to hire, employ, and manage talent across 150+ countries without setting up local entities. Designed for scaling teams, RemotePeople removes the legal, payroll, and compliance complexity of cross-border hiring while maintaining audit-ready standards. Beyond EOR, the platform also supports recruitment and incorporation, giving companies a full lifecycle partner as they expand internationally.
RemotePeople Key Features:
- Employer of Record services for compliant full-time international hiring.
- Integrated recruitment support to source and employ top global talent.
- Global payroll processing, localized contracts, and statutory benefits administration.
- Ongoing compliance monitoring across jurisdictions, including tax and labor law management.
2
Deel
Deel is a well-known provider that has been expanding greatly in the past five years. Its global coverage is almost as extensive as Papaya Global’s, with EOR and contractor management services in over 150 countries.
It also matches Papaya Global’s EOR price of $599/employee per month, though its contractor price is more expensive at $49/person per month. However, Deel has some crucial features that set it apart like a very highly-rated, user-friendly platform that has over 100 pre-built integrations.
This platform is now using AI to provide clients with insights and advice on top of Deel’s network of HR, tax, and legal experts. Deel has also begun administering additional benefits in many of the countries where it works.
Deel Key Features:
- Deel helps its clients hire employees and contractors in more than 150 countries.
- It provides pension and health benefits in some countries.
- In addition to EOR, it offers global payroll, HR, and IT outsourcing services internationally.
- Deel is known for its solid support and user-friendly platform.
Explore our comprehensive guide comparing Papaya Global and Deel, highlighting their features, strengths, and key differences.
3
Remote
Known as one of Deel’s main competitors, Remote also matches Papaya Global’s EOR starting price of $599/employee per month. It charges essentially the same for contractor management at $29/person per month as well.
Remote’s platform is comprehensive as well and can be considered a full HRIS. It provides contractor hiring services in 180+ countries, but EOR services in just 100 because it only works with international entities it owns outright. This helps it maintain a high quality of service in every country where it works.
Remote doesn’t employ recruiters, but it does provide recruiting tools to help clients perform this function on their own. These include searchable talent pools and a new AI-powered tool that matches candidates with employers effectively. Remote also administers both mandatory and supplementary benefits for its clients’ employees.
Remote Key Features:
- Remote helps clients hire employees in 100 countries where it has its own entities.
- It offers optional employee benefits packages like health insurance and pensions.
- Its platform is useable as a standalone HRIS and includes a mobile app.
- This platform includes recruitment tools clients can use for their own talent sourcing.
Discover how Papaya Global and Remote stack up in global payroll and compliance with our in-depth comparison of their features, benefits, and differences.
4
Pebl
If you’re looking for a provider with much greater global coverage, Pebl can be a good choice. It helps clients hire employees and contractors in more than 185 countries. It also administers mandatory benefits and provides additional packages that can be provided for both employees and contractors.
While it doesn’t provide recruitment services on its own, Pebl connects its clients to a global network of recruitment agencies that can provide this service. Unfortunately, this provider doesn’t provide its prices publicly so clients will need to obtain quotes to compare them with the competition.
Pebl Key Features:
- Pebl provides EOR and contractor management services in 185 countries.
- It provides administration of optional benefits like health insurance and pensions.
- It also offers global payroll services for clients with entities around the world.
5
Rippling
Our next Papaya Global alternative is Rippling, a service provider that was originally constructed as an HRIS. Consequently, this provider has the most extensive platform on our list, full of tools and features for recruitment, employee engagement, talent management, analytics, and more.
It also provides more than 600 pre-built integrations to help smooth data sharing between apps. Like Papaya Global, Rippling’s EOR price starts at $599/employee per month, though its contractor management and other service prices aren’t publicly available.
Rippling Key Features:
- Rippling offers EOR services in just 29 countries but contractor management in over 185.
- It manages the administration of supplementary employee benefits like pensions and health, vision, and dental insurance.
- This Rippling platform is a comprehensive HRIS with over 600 pre-built integrations.
6
Global Expansion
Global Expansion (GX) is another alternative that provides EOR hiring and contractor management services in more places than any other – 214 countries and territories globally. It also offers employees pensions and insurance packages that it can administer on behalf of its clients. GX is known for its tailored packages and white-glove service, which is well-suited to fast-growing startups that need a lot of help with their HR functions.
It also charges a higher price than many of its competitors. GX’s EOR price begins at $850/employee per month, though its contractor price is competitive at $39/person per month
Global Expansion Key Features:
- Global Expansion has total world coverage in 214 countries and territories.
- It administers additional benefits packages for health insurance, equity, and pensions.
- GX provides active recruitment services to help clients find workers internationally.
7
Safeguard Global
Another “Global” employer, Safeguard Global, works in over 170 countries. In addition to hiring employees and managing contractors on behalf of its clients, it also lets them outsource HR and payroll if they own entities around the world.
Unlike most of the competition, Safeguard Global provides both active recruitment services and temporary staffing for companies that have seasonal needs or must replace workers on leave. This provider’s platform isn’t as extensive as that of many competitors though it does provide a useful mobile app for easy employee access.
Its EOR price is not publicly available, but its contractor management price is one of the lowest in the industry, starting at $5/person per month.
Safeguard Global Key Features:
- Safeguard Global helps clients hire contractors and employees in 170+ countries.
- It offers HR and payroll services for companies with their own entities.
- This provider has recruitment and temporary staffing services on offer.
- Safeguard Global can also help companies expand globally with its entity setup services.
8
Multiplier
The final provider on our list of the top 8 Papaya Global alternatives is Multiplier, a Singapore-based company founded in 2020. This provider helps clients hire in over 150 countries and offers prices that compete well with Papaya Global.
Its EOR services start at $400 per employee per month, and it charges $40 per person per month to manage contractors. This provider doesn’t however, offer recruitment tools on its platform or active recruitment services.
It does help to manage employee benefits, however, both those required by various countries and extra benefits provided by employers like retirement savings, equity, and health insurance.
Multiplier Key Features:
- Multiplier manages employees and contractors in more than 150+ countries.
- It administers mandatory and optional benefits packages.
- Multiplier lets clients pay contractors in more than 120 currencies as well as cryptocurrencies.
How to Choose the Best Alternative to Papaya Global
There are so many EOR providers on the market these days that it can be very challenging and time-consuming to tell them apart and choose the best option for your organization. To help you make your selection process more efficient, we suggest evaluating your options on the following factors:
Pricing
Papaya Global charges $599 per employee per month for EOR service and $30 per contractor per month. There are many other providers who can provide similar services for much less, even half as much.
Make sure to ask for complete quotes before formalizing a service agreement, however, as some providers add service fees, they’re not up-front in the beginning.
Integrations
Papaya Global can integrate out-of-the-box with only a handful of other applications. If you want to be able to connect your EOR’s platform with many more of the finance, HR, accounting, and communication tools you already use, look for a platform with dozens or hundreds of integrations.
Recruitment
If you haven’t already sourced the workers you want to hire through an EOR, you may require help finding people around the world. Look for a service provider that offers either online recruitment tools, active recruitment services, or both.
Global Coverange
While Papaya Global works in over 170 countries and has very extensive coverage, other EORs offer even more options. If you are hiring in multiple countries, especially in relatively remote locations and emerging economies, look for a provider that has services in over 180 or even more than 200 places.
RemotePeople as Your Employer of Record Gusto Alternative
Papaya Global is a well-known provider with and versatile platform, competitive prices, and extensive services around the world. However, it may not be the best option for your organization, especially if you’re looking for more integrations, recruitment tools, and services.
While there are many options available, our recommended Papaya Global alternative is RemotePeople, a very affordable and professional provider of EOR services worldwide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Papaya Global doesn’t provide clients with recruitment tools in its platform or active recruitment services to help them source talent globally. Instead, it works from the assumption that you have already found the workers you want to hire before seeking out EOR services.
The Papaya Global is quite extensive and includes almost all the features and tools you’d expect in a standalone human resources information system. However, it doesn’t include an ATS or other recruiting tools that would make it comprehensive.
Yes. Papaya Global has integrated AI into its platform and uses it to help clients analyze their data and calculate payroll. This provider is ahead of much of the competition and will likely roll out even more AI tools in the next year.
Yes, if your company already owns entities around the world and employs workers through them, you can outsource your payroll function to Papaya Global. These services are available in 170 countries.
