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Resources

Everything you need to compare and choose a PEO.

Tools, guides, and head-to-head comparisons built for owners and operators evaluating professional employer organizations. Independent, free, and updated as the market changes.

Tools

Start with the numbers

Two free tools that take 10 minutes and give you a real answer about whether a PEO fits.

Foundations

Start here if PEOs are new to you

The seven articles that answer "what am I actually buying?" — co-employment, pricing structure, and where PEOs fit alongside payroll and HR.

Foundation

What is a PEO?

The plain-English explanation of how a PEO works, who it fits, and what you give up versus what you gain.

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Foundation

How a PEO actually works

Co-employment, the W-2 question, and what a typical client experience looks like month to month.

Read the explainer →
Co-employment

PEO co-employment explained

The legal structure that scares owners most, with answers from our own contract reviews.

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Pricing

PEO pricing explained

Per-employee-per-month vs percentage-of-payroll, what is bundled, and where margin hides.

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Comparison

PEO vs in-house HR

When you cross the threshold where building your own HR function makes more sense than outsourcing.

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Comparison

PEO vs payroll providers

Where ADP, Gusto, and Paychex stop and where a PEO actually starts. Hint: it is not about payroll.

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Fit

Benefits of a PEO for small business

What companies under 100 employees actually get out of a PEO that they cannot get on their own.

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Head-to-head

PEO comparisons

The named comparisons buyers actually search. Honest reads from someone who has placed clients with all of them.

Big 3 comparison

TriNet vs Insperity vs ADP TotalSource

The three largest national PEOs side by side: pricing structure, service model, and where each one actually fits best.

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Modern PEO

Justworks vs Rippling

Tech-first PEOs head-to-head: where they actually differ on benefits, service, and contract flexibility.

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Review

ADP TotalSource review

An independent look at the strengths, weaknesses, and contractual edge cases of the largest PEO in the country.

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Alternative

ICHRA vs PEO

An Individual Coverage HRA can solve the same benefits problem at a fraction of the cost. When it fits, and when it does not.

Read the article →
Selecting a PEO

When you are ready to evaluate

The buyer-side playbook: how to know it is time, what to ask in the room, and how to switch if your current PEO is not working.

Decision

Signs your business needs a PEO

Five operational signals that the cost-benefit has tipped in favor of outsourcing HR and benefits.

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Selection

How to choose a PEO: 10 questions to ask

The exact questions to ask in a PEO sales call that separate genuine fit from a polished pitch.

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Selection

PEO evaluation checklist

The 22-item checklist we use internally when running RFPs across multiple PEOs for clients.

View the checklist →
Switching

Switching PEOs without breaking payroll

How to time the change, what to negotiate at exit, and the four-week implementation window that matters most.

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Want a real answer for your company?

Tell us your headcount, industry, and what HR or benefits problem you are trying to solve. We come back with a shortlist of two or three PEOs worth evaluating, plus the questions to ask each one.