EREditorial team · Updated 14 Oct 20269 min read14 providers compared20 sources
€4,355 employer cost a month on your own payroll, €40,000 salaryNot all-in: what it leaves out is under the cost table.
€4,400 employer cost a month on your own payroll, before running costs
3 set-up steps before the first payroll
4 employer registrations
Payroll in Spain starts before the first hire: the company registers with the tax census and with Social Security, then registers each employee before day one. On a €40,000 salary, the employer's contributions add ≈31%.
Short answer
Before trading, the company registers with the tax census and enrols with Social Security; each employee is registered before starting work.
The employer deducts the employee's share of contributions from pay and pays both shares within the following month.
Income tax withheld from pay is declared and paid each quarter, in the first 20 days of April, July, October and January.
On your own payroll, a €40,000 hire costs about €4,400 a month, before accident insurance and the costs of running the company.
On this page
What has to happen before the first payroll in Spain
Three registrations come in a fixed order. The company first files its entry in the tax census, which also gives it a tax number, before it starts trading or has to withhold tax [1]. Enrolment with Social Security is a condition for starting any activity, and with it the employer names the body or mutual insurer that will cover accidents at work and occupational diseases [2]. Each employee is then registered (alta) before their first day, and no earlier than 60 days before it [3]. A late registration has no retroactive effect, and the contribution for accidents at work is the employer’s alone [4]. That accident cover is left out of the cost table. The set-up steps and employer registrations list each one.
Running payroll month to month
Pay runs monthly at the longest, and each payment comes with an individual payslip [5]. The payslip also shows the total contribution split between employer and employee, and the employee’s share has to be deducted when the salary is paid: if it is not, the employer cannot deduct it later and bears it [6]. Contributions are paid within the month after the one they relate to [7], while income tax withheld from pay goes to the tax office each quarter, with an annual summary in January [8]. Two extra payments a year come on top, and only a collective agreement can spread them over the twelve monthly ones [9].
Contributions stop growing at the maximum base of EUR 5,101.20 a month [10]; pay above it is charged a solidarity contribution instead [11]. The payroll obligations give the deadlines, and own entity or EOR sets one hire against the same hire through a provider.
Registering as an employer
With your own entity, these steps run one after another before the first payroll.
The company files its entry in the census of businesses, professionals and withholding agents, which also obtains its tax number (NIF), before it starts trading or has to withhold tax.
Before any activity starts, the employer applies for enrolment (inscripción) in the general regime and names the body or mutual insurer that will cover accidents at work and occupational diseases.
The employer requests the employee's affiliation and registration (alta) before the person starts work, and no earlier than 60 days before; a late request has no retroactive effect.
Employer registrations
Tax census and tax number (NIF)
The entry in the census of businesses, professionals and withholding agents, filed before trading starts or before the duty to withhold arises.[1]
Company enrolment with Social Security (inscripción)
A prior condition for starting activity; the employer names the body or mutual insurer covering accidents at work and occupational diseases.[2]
Social Security affiliation and registration of each employee
Requested before the person starts work and no earlier than 60 days before; the employer also reports the end of the employment.[4][3]
Accident and occupational-disease insurance
The full contribution for accidents at work and occupational diseases is paid by the employer alone.[4]
Running payroll: deadlines and filings
The employer withholds personal income tax (IRPF) from every salary payment, at a rate worked out from the employee's expected pay and personal and family circumstances under the regulation's general procedure.[12][13]
The employer deducts the employee's share from pay when it pays the salary and pays both shares to Social Security; a share not deducted at that moment cannot be deducted later and is then the employer's cost.
Each employee receives an individual payslip showing the total Social Security contribution split into the employer's and the employee's parts, and the pay period for regular remuneration may not exceed one month.
At least monthly
What one hire costs
Monthly cost of an employee on €40,000 a year, on your own payroll.
Assumes: Permanent full-time contract in the general regime (Régimen General), standard rates for common contingencies and unemployment.
Total to employer, a month€4,355
Gross salary€3,33377%
Employer contributions€1,02223%
Percentages are shares of the total, not of salary.
What one hire costs
Item
Rate
EUR / month
Gross salary
—
3,333
Common contingencies (contingencias comunes)[14][10]
Solidarity contribution, first tranche (up to 10% above the cap)[17][11]
0.96%
0
Solidarity contribution, second tranche (10% to 50% above the cap)[17][11]
1.04%
0
Solidarity contribution, third tranche (more than 50% above the cap)[17][11]
1.22%
0
Total to employer
4,355
Caps and tranche limits are 12 times the 2026 monthly ceilings of EUR 5,101.20, 5,611.32 and 7,651.80, taken for a regular monthly salary with the two extra payments spread over the twelve months. Excludes accident and occupational-disease insurance (AT/EP), which depends on the company's activity code and the employee's occupation; the office-staff rate of 1.50% applies only to work done exclusively at the company's own office premises. The minimum contribution bases are not modelled.
Global payroll providers
All 14 global payroll providers we score: those working in Spain first, then the rest, each by our global payroll score. Working in Spain: 11 (2 by their global payroll coverage list, the rest inferred from their EOR coverage). How we score
Enterprise teams and small and growing businesses (SMEs), in RemotePass's own words
Not for
Buyers who must review EOR contract terms up front: no EOR agreement is public
Top pro
EOR from $349 per employee a month with tax included; 13 of 20 other EOR prices in dollars start higher
Top con
No EOR agreement is public: the Terms say EOR runs under a separate Consultant Agreement "available on the Site", which we did not find. The public legal documents are the Terms, the Privacy Policy and the Acceptable Use Policy
Companies from startups to enterprises, going by Multiplier's segment pages
Not for
Buyers who need the deposit amount before signing: Multiplier calculates it per contract
Top pro
Own SOC 2 (Type I and II), SOC 3 and ISO 27001:2022 on its security page; the AWS certifications listed there are kept apart as the host's
Top con
The "from" prices assume an annual contract. Monthly EOR costs $499 on Core and $559 on Growth, about 11% of countries are priced differently, and compliance-mandated add-ons come on top of EOR and COR
Companies from startups to enterprises: Playroll has pages for each, and its case studies include startups under 100 staff and mid-market firms of 100 to 1,000
Not for
Contractors who want to be paid other than through Payoneer, the only payout route Playroll uses
Top pro
Its own country pages document EOR hiring in 151 countries + 6 territories, against a claim of 180+
Top con
A refundable deposit of one month's salary per EOR employee; the unused part comes back within two months of the last working day, or once claims are settled if that is later
Startups, growing companies and enterprises, the three segments Pebl writes a page for
Not for
Buyers who need a Contractor of Record: we list Pebl for contractor management, not COR
Top pro
Own SOC 2 Type 2 report and ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certificate, both on Pebl's security page
Top con
No live support channel named: Pebl lists its Alfie AI assistant, in-house experts and a Help Center; its pages say 24/7 support and do not say who answers
Startups, scaling companies and enterprises, the three groups Native Teams writes for
Not for
Buyers who want to read the EOR or COR agreement before talking to sales: the terms of service are the only contract text online
Top pro
EOR from $99 per employee a month, below all 20 other per-employee EOR prices in USD we compare
Top con
The terms of service are the only contract text online. The EOR and COR agreements are not published, and the terms say a separate signed contract takes precedence
Small businesses, including teams under 10 employees, startups and enterprises: the segments Rippling has pages for
Not for
Buyers who want to compare an EOR price before a sales call
Top pro
Contractor onboarding in 185+ countries and payments in 50+ local currencies, per its contractor page; 160 countries + 2 territories are documented here
Top con
No price for EOR, contractor management or global payroll: the pricing page asks for a custom quote
Crypto and web3 teams paying contractors in stablecoins or crypto, a segment Rise names (startups, web3 startups, DAOs, global agencies)
Not for
Companies that need an EOR in countries beyond the US and the UK today
Top pro
Prices are published per head: $49 a contractor a month (discounts for startups and non-profits), $299 for Agent of Record, $399 an employee for EOR
Top con
EOR is documented in 2 countries (US, UK) against a claim of 90+. The parent, Rise Works, Inc., is on the GLEIF register; no own entity is documented in either country
4.2Our score 4.2 of 10Limited dataOur global payroll score
Global payroll price
Custom quote
ServicesEOR · Payouts · Contractors · Payroll
Best for
Startups, SMBs, agencies and enterprises: the segments Remozo names for its contractor product
Not for
Buyers whose security review asks for SOC 2 or ISO 27001 held by Remozo itself
Top pro
Contractor payouts claimed in 190+ countries; 98 are listed one by one in Remozo's help centre
Top con
Contractor plan from 3% per payout: for contractor payouts, 2 of the 6 other percentage prices we compare are lower and 1 the same. The contractor page says from 1.5%, which we do not score
One hire on €40,000 a year, through your own entity and through an EOR, from the figures on this page and the EOR page. The own-entity cost leaves out what running the entity costs, so the two columns are not like for like.
Spain: own entity and EOR for one hire
Compared
Own entity
Employer of Record
Before the first hire
3 set-up and registration steps
No entity: the EOR’s entity employs
Employer cost a month, before any provider fee
€4,355
€4,355
Provider fee a month
–
€299 a month (one provider, EUR); US$99 to US$699 a month (16 providers, USD)
Fewer than 3 providers publish a fee in EUR, so no total with the fee is given; fees in other currencies are not converted.
Neither figure is all-in: both leave out the costs named under the cost table.
Who pays Social Security contributions in Spain, the employer or the employee?
Both owe a share, but the employer deducts the employee's share from the salary when paying it and pays both shares to Social Security. A share not deducted at that moment cannot be taken from later pay, so the employer then bears it.
When are Social Security contributions due in Spain?
Within the month after the month they relate to. Paid late, they carry a surcharge of 10% to 35% of the debt, depending on how late and whether they were reported on time.
How often must employees be paid in Spain?
At least once a month. The period that regular pay covers may not exceed one month, and the employee receives an individual payslip that also splits the contributions into the employer's and the employee's parts.
Is accident insurance part of Spanish payroll cost?
Yes, and the employer alone pays it. Its rate depends on the company's activity code and the employee's occupation, so the cost figures on this page leave it out.
What is the maximum contribution base in Spain in 2026?
EUR 5,101.20 a month in the general regime. Pay above it is subject to a solidarity contribution in three tranches, of which the employer pays 0.96%, 1.04% and 1.22%.
Works in Spain
