Higher contractor payouts score: 8.2 against 5.9.
Best for: Small businesses and startups, as Wise Business names them
- Trustpilot4.3/5· 294,008
- G23.9/5· 96
Arbonum sells contractor payouts and contractor management, not Employer of Record. It charges from 5% of each payout with no subscription, says it has locally compliant contracts for 115+ countries, and publishes its customer agreement. That agreement is with ARBONUM L.L.C.-FZ in the UAE, which we could not find on a company register. Its pages claim 24/7 live chat. The home page shows a SOC 2 badge with no report we could open, so we count no security certification as verified.
Verdict
Best for
- Software, game-studio and digital-marketing teams paying freelancers in several countries; those are the industries Arbonum's own pages address
- Teams that want to pay a fee on each payout instead of a monthly price per contractor
- Buyers who want a dedicated manager and chat support from the start
Not for
- Companies that need to employ people: Arbonum lists no Employer of Record service
- Buyers who need to see which countries are covered, since only a claimed count (115+) is given
- Buyers who need a verified security certification or a company-register entry for the contracting entity
- Teams that want a fixed monthly price: the fee scales with each payout
- Stands out
- Support and setup: its pages describe live chat staffed 24/7, a dedicated manager and a stated onboarding time of under 10 minutes, though signup goes through a manager who sets up the account. The customer agreement is public.
- Biggest limit
- Little can be checked. The contracting entity is not on a register we could read, no security certification is verified (a SOC 2 badge has no report), there is no country list, and 5% a payout is above all 7 other percent-of-payout prices for contractor payouts on this site.
On this page
Services
Top alternatives to Arbonum
Providers with a higher contractor payouts score from us than Arbonum. How we score
Higher contractor payouts score: 7.5 against 5.9.
Best for: Companies paying contractors in many countries by bank, wallet, crypto or card
- G24.4/5· 208
- Trustpilot3.1/5· 125
Higher contractor payouts score: 6.8 against 5.9.
Best for: Companies of any size that work mostly with contractors spread over many countries
- Capterra4.1/5· 49
Pricing
Setup fees and what each list price includes, by service.
| Service | Setup fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Contractor payouts | — | Fee on every transaction, 'From 5%' (home page). Other figures: the Customer agreement sets the fee by a coefficient, 1.10 by default ('Special terms are subject to individual agreement') and lowered on turnover; the Deel comparison page shows a $54 fee on $1,000 (the contractor gets $946). No subscription, per-seat or withdrawal fee for contractors; unlimited contractors, users and invoices. Customers pre-fund payments by wire or SEPA; the AML policy says Arbonum is not a licensed financial or payment institution and does not hold client funds. Currency stated as USD for comparison only: the page prints a percentage. Entities: the Customer agreement names ARBONUM L.L.C.-FZ (UAE, 2310797) as the contracting entity, with no public register entry found; ROWLING LIMITED (Cyprus, HE237792) is the Privacy Policy's data controller and one of the two companies the AML policy calls Arbonum, not named as the contracting entity. On crypto the pages disagree: the compare page says 'Crypto transfers: Yes', and the AML policy says Arbonum does not provide crypto-asset services.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] |
| Contractor management | — | Same per-transaction fee ('From 5%'); see contractor payouts for the other figures. Locally compliant contracts for 115+ countries (CEO page).[1][8] |
How we scored Arbonum
Each service gets its own score from our five criteria. Review-platform ratings are not part of it.
Contractor payouts Our score 5.9 of 10
| Criterion | Weight | Score | Contribution | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compliance | 30% | 4.5 | 1.35 | Contracting entity on a company register: none found; Service agreement: published; Own security certifications: none named; Licences: none recorded; Facts on record for this criterion: 1 of 4. |
| Coverage | 20% | 5.5 | 1.10 | Countries: 0 documented, 115 claimed; Reach: 36% of the widest provider of this service; Facts on record for this criterion: 1 of 1. |
| Price | 20% | 5.0 | 1.00 | Price compared with 6 providers charging a percentage of payouts; 100% of them charge less; Setup fee: not disclosed; Deposit: not disclosed; Minimum term: not disclosed; Termination fee: not disclosed; Facts on record for this criterion: 1 of 5. |
| Platform | 15% | 7.3 | 1.10 | API: yes; Integrations: not disclosed; Self-serve sign-up: not disclosed; Documents in the platform: contracts yes, IP assignment yes, closing documents yes; Payout methods: bank transfer and card; Facts on record for this criterion: 3 of 5. |
| Support | 15% | 9.0 | 1.35 | Live support channels: chat and email; Live support hours: 24/7; Dedicated manager: yes; Stated onboarding time: up to 1 days; Stated response target: stated; Facts on record for this criterion: 5 of 5. |
| Our score | 5.9 |
Contractor management Our score 5.9 of 10
| Criterion | Weight | Score | Contribution | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compliance | 30% | 4.5 | 1.35 | Contracting entity on a company register: none found; Service agreement: published; Own security certifications: none named; Licences: none recorded; Facts on record for this criterion: 1 of 4. |
| Coverage | 20% | 5.5 | 1.10 | Countries: 0 documented, 115 claimed; Reach: 31% of the widest provider of this service; Facts on record for this criterion: 1 of 1. |
| Price | 20% | 5.0 | 1.00 | Price: published; fewer than 5 other providers price this way, so it is not ranked; Setup fee: not disclosed; Deposit: not disclosed; Minimum term: not disclosed; Termination fee: not disclosed; Facts on record for this criterion: 1 of 5. |
| Platform | 15% | 7.3 | 1.10 | API: yes; Integrations: not disclosed; Self-serve sign-up: not disclosed; Documents in the platform: contracts yes, IP assignment yes, closing documents yes; Payout methods: bank transfer and card; Facts on record for this criterion: 3 of 5. |
| Support | 15% | 9.0 | 1.35 | Live support channels: chat and email; Live support hours: 24/7; Dedicated manager: yes; Stated onboarding time: up to 1 days; Stated response target: stated; Facts on record for this criterion: 5 of 5. |
| Our score | 5.9 |
Key facts
As the provider states them.
- Headquarters
- Contracting entity in the UAE (free zone); the FAQ gives an HQ in Limassol, Cyprus
- Reach
- Global
- Support
- chat, emailThe home page lists 24/7 customer care and support from local HR and legal experts; the contact page says you get a real, live human; Stated response target: Contact page: 'we strive to answer all enquiries within 24 hours on business days'.
Countries covered
Claimed is the provider’s own count. Documented countries are the ones with evidence from a company register or the provider’s own site; countries we list without evidence are not counted.
Contractor payouts
Claimed: 115 countries · Documented: None documented
Contractor management
Claimed: 115 countries · Documented: None documented
Who it fits
- Hiring patterns
- A team across many countries
- Industries
- Software and IT
- Gaming
- Digital marketing
- Segments it names
- IT companies, ad agencies and game developers (the About page); game studios, software teams and digital marketing / content creators (the industry pages); 'Join 5K+ teams worldwide' on the home page, while the FAQ says 'More than 3000 businesses use Arbonum monthly'
Pros and cons
Pros
- From 5% of each payout, no subscription, and unlimited contractors, users and invoices on the home page
- Customer agreement published in full, with the fee formula written into it
- Contracts, IP assignment and closing documents (invoices, acceptance acts, VAT documents) inside the platform
- Payouts by bank and card, with a stated API (no public documentation); crypto is claimed on one page and denied in the AML policy
- Chat and email; pages say 24/7 live support, a dedicated manager and a stated aim of answering email within 24 hours on business days
- Onboarding stated as under 10 minutes, though signup goes through a manager who sets up the account
Cons
- 5% a payout is above all 6 other percent-of-payout prices here for payouts, and above all 4 for contractor management
- The UAE contracting entity is on no register we could read; the Cyprus company (ROWLING LIMITED) is on a register but is named as the privacy controller, not the contracting party
- No security certification we could verify: the home page shows a SOC 2 badge with no report we could open
- No country list: 115+ countries is a claim
- Funds: customers send an advance payment to Arbonum under the agreement, and the undrawn part is returned within 10 business days of termination. The AML policy says Arbonum is not a licensed financial or payment institution and holds no client funds as such
- The default fee coefficient in the agreement is 1.10, which is 10% of the contractor amount, against 'from 5%' on the home page; the AML policy says Arbonum offers no crypto-asset services, while the compare page lists crypto transfers
- Onboarding 'under 10 minutes' is claimed, but signup goes through a manager who sets up the account, so the real time is not stated
- No integrations count, API documentation, setup fee or termination fee published
AI summary
Written by an AI model from the data on our pages on 15 Oct 2026. Not a recommendation, not our score, and not a quote from any assistant.
What does the data show about Arbonum as contractor payouts?
AI
Arbonum charges from 5% of each payout, with no subscription fee, and pays contractors by bank or card; crypto is claimed on one page and denied in its AML policy. It says it has locally compliant contracts for 115+ countries. Its customer agreement is public and comes from ARBONUM L.L.C.-FZ in the UAE. Its pages claim live chat 24/7.
What the data does not show
No country list, currency list or API documentation is published. We found no company-register entry for the contracting entity.
What are Arbonum's main drawbacks?
AI
The 5% fee is above all 6 other percentage prices for payouts on this site. Compliance rests on a public agreement: no register entry for the contracting entity and no certification we could verify. The default fee coefficient in its agreement (1.10) is 10% of the contractor amount, against 'from 5%' on the home page; its pages disagree on crypto.
What the data does not show
We did not read reviews of Arbonum, so the data says nothing about reliability in practice.
Who should choose Arbonum?
AI
Software, game and digital-marketing teams that pay freelancers in several countries and prefer a fee per payout to a monthly price, as its industry pages describe. It is not an option for hiring employees: it lists no Employer of Record service.
What the data does not show
No headcount is stated, so team sizes are left out. Its 24-hour reply time is a stated aim for email.
Trust and registration
- Certifications
More alternatives to Arbonum
Providers with a higher contractor payouts score from us than Arbonum. How we score
- Contractor payouts price from
- 3% of each payout
- Contractor payouts countries 190 claimed, 98 documented
- Services EOR · 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
- Contractor payouts price
- Custom quote
- Contractor payouts countries 200 claimed
- Services Payouts · Contractors
- Best for
- Businesses paying large, distributed payee networks across borders, which is how Tipalti describes Mass Payments
- Not for
- Buyers who need a published per-payout or per-contractor price before contacting sales
- Top pro
- Own SOC 1 and SOC 2 attestations at Type II level, stated on Tipalti's cloud page
- Top con
- Mass Payments shows only a $249 monthly plan fee; transaction pricing is charged on top and not published, so we leave its price unranked
- Trustpilot3.1/5· 97
- G24.5/5· 416
- Capterra4.5/5· 178
Signals checked 29 Jun 2026
- Contractor payouts price from
- US$49 per contractor a month
- Contractor payouts countries 190 claimed
- Deposit None
- Services EOR · Payouts · Contractors · AOR · Payroll
- Best for
- 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
- G25.0/5· 1
- Trustpilot4.6/5· 7,623
Signals checked 29 Jun 2026
Questions people ask
What does Arbonum charge?
The home page says it takes a fee on every transaction, from 5%, with no subscription. Its customer agreement sets the fee as the contractor amount times a coefficient, 1.10 by default, which is 10% on top of the contractor amount unless special terms are agreed individually; the coefficient can be lowered with turnover. Its Deel comparison page shows a $54 fee on $1,000, so the contractor receives $946. Currency conversion and bank charges may apply (arbonum.com, checked 2026-10-15).
Does Arbonum offer Employer of Record?
No. We list Arbonum for contractor payouts and contractor management only. Its pages describe payments to contractors, contracts, invoices and compliance documents, and we found no Employer of Record or payroll service on a price or product page. A few pages mention employees, payroll software and insurance administration without describing a service.
Which entity do I contract with?
Arbonum's FAQ names ARBONUM L.L.C.-FZ, registered in the UAE under number 2310797, as the contracting entity. We found no public register entry for it. ROWLING LIMITED in Cyprus (HE237792, on OpenCorporates) is the privacy-policy data controller, and the AML policy calls the two companies together Arbonum.
Does Arbonum hold my money?
Customers pay an advance to Arbonum by wire or SEPA transfer under the customer agreement (section 4.1), and the undrawn part is returned on termination (section 13.8). The AML policy says Arbonum is not a licensed financial or payment institution and does not hold client or contractor funds, as it pays its subcontractors from its own funds. Check with Arbonum how the advance is held.
How many countries does Arbonum cover?
It claims locally compliant contracts for 115+ countries on its CEO page. No country list is published, so we count none as documented.
How fast is support?
Its home page lists 24/7 customer care and the compare page lists live chat 24/7. The contact page says it aims to answer all enquiries within 24 hours on business days. It names a dedicated manager and gives no phone line.
Sources
- Arbonum, Arbonum · checked 15 Oct 2026
- Arbonum Customer agreement (public offer), Arbonum · checked 15 Oct 2026
- Arbonum switch from Deel, Arbonum · checked 15 Oct 2026
- Arbonum AML and sanctions policy, Arbonum · checked 15 Oct 2026
- Arbonum FAQ, Arbonum · checked 15 Oct 2026
- ROWLING LIMITED (Cyprus, HE237792) on OpenCorporates, OpenCorporates · checked 15 Oct 2026
- Arbonum compare, Arbonum · checked 15 Oct 2026
- Arbonum for the CEO, Arbonum · checked 15 Oct 2026
- Arbonum for the financial department, Arbonum · checked 15 Oct 2026
How this page is built
Last checked: 15 Oct 2026.