You
are
overpaying
for
coverage,
and
the
taxman
is making it worse.
You pay some of the highest health costs in the world, with dollars the IRS already taxed. A real group plan, paid through payroll before tax, fixes both at once. Want to see what that is doing to your income tax? The calculator shows you in thirty seconds.
No name, no email, no contact details to see your result
01 What we do
Fortune 500 benefits, sized for your business.
Whether you are a single owner or run a team of up to 25, you get large-company group coverage and a full back office for one flat fee per person. The same benefits infrastructure a Fortune 500 runs, including for the solo owner most PEOs turn away. We run the math first and tell you the truth. We are not a PEO and not an insurer; we qualify and connect.
02 The problem we solve
You are priced and taxed as a group of one.
On the open market you and your people buy as the smallest possible group, on age-rated pricing, with after-tax dollars. The structure is what is costing you, and you cannot see how much until someone runs it. So we run it.
03 Who it is for
Owners netting $90k+, with or without a team.
Any US business owner netting $90k+ and paying $500+/mo for coverage, solo or with up to 25 W-2 employees. If it does not fit, we say so.
One of these two owners is you.
A Just me
Single owner, high income
The market treats you as a group of one and prices you like it. Nobody builds for you. USA OPS puts you inside a real group plan at rates your size could never buy alone.
B Me and a team
2 to 25 W-2 employees
You can get a PEO anywhere. The same group plan and full back office, on terms that do not punish you for growing, is the part nobody offers.
You pay more for a worse plan, and that is not the price of working for yourself.
It feels like the cost of being on your own. The real cause is one structure: the market prices you as a group of one. That structure has two weapons, and both are fixable.
01 The pricing
You are a group of one
Coverage gets cheaper and better as the group gets bigger. A large employer prices one plan across thousands of people. You buy as the smallest possible group, on age-rated pricing that climbs every year.
02 The tax treatment
You pay with after-tax dollars
A salaried employee has their premium taken out before taxes apply. You generally pay yours out of money that has already been taxed. You have to earn well over the premium just to clear it, and that gap grows with your bracket.
The coverage your people get, and the price you pay to give it, both work against you.
Doing nothing leaves your team exposed, which pushes you toward a PEO. The usual PEO then charges in a way that punishes you for growing. That pricing model is the thing to beat.
Your people are on their own
The do-nothing defaultWith no group plan, each employee buys individually and takes what they can get: smaller networks, age-rated prices that hit your most experienced people hardest, and deductibles high enough that the plan barely helps until thousands have been spent.
So you go to a PEO, and it charges a percentage
The obvious fixMost PEOs price as a percentage of total payroll. That fee climbs every time you raise pay or add a head. You are charged more for succeeding, and the math gets worse as the team grows.
The fee ratchets, and you cannot leave
Where it endsMost large PEOs run on their own proprietary software. Once your business is built around it, leaving is painful by design, and that is exactly why the fee tends to climb after the first few years. The system that was supposed to serve you ends up holding you.
Before you change anything, you should know your real number and whether this structure actually leaves you better off.
You have probably shopped this already and come away thinking the price is just what it costs. That is a reasonable conclusion from where you are standing. It is also testable, and that is the part we do: we run your exact number, tell you the truth about it, and connect you only when the structure works.
If it is just you
Both weapons are fixable. Inside a real group plan, paid pre-tax through payroll, the number moves by thousands a year. We show you that figure before you commit to anything.
If you have a team
You get the same group plan and full back office the large providers offer, on a flat per-person fee instead of a climbing percentage, on a portable system you can leave. We show you the figure before you commit.
USA OPS runs the math and connects you
We run your exact number against the real 2026 tax tables, tell you whether the structure makes you better off, and place you with the right PEO when it does. We are not the PEO, and we do not earn a percentage of your payroll. If it does not fit, we say so and let you go, with no pitch.
The PEO holds and runs the coverage
The PEO underwrites, enrolls, and guarantees the coverage and provides the group plan, including health, dental, and vision. It runs payroll, compliance, workers' comp, and HR as the co-employer of record. You keep owning and running your company exactly as you do today.
One note on fit: USA OPS places business with multiple PEOs across multiple carriers. Cigna, MetLife, Vestwell, and Prism are the most common in our network and the examples used throughout this page. Your exact carrier and platform depend on the PEO that fits your situation.
Here is exactly why the number moves. You should not have to take any of this on faith.
Because the PEO runs payroll and benefits for thousands of businesses at once, every client gets pooled into one group of 150,000-plus covered lives. That pool is what changes both the rate and the tax treatment.
Before
Priced on you alone
Age-rated individual coverage that climbs every year, paid out of already-taxed income, so you earn a multiple of it just to stand still.
The shift
Pooled into 150,000+ lives
Inside the pool the plan is priced on the whole group, not on you. Age stops setting your rate. The premium now runs pre-tax through payroll.
After
Composite rate, paid pre-tax
A 58-year-old and a 34-year-old sit on the same plan at the same rate, on a national PPO instead of a thinner individual plan.
Today, after tax
Just to stand still
$1,300/mo
Inside the structure, pre-tax
To move forward, on a better plan
$650/mo
One honest narrowing
Above roughly $185,000 of net income, the self-employment tax portion phases out, which shrinks the tax-side advantage. At those incomes the win shifts from tax savings toward simply getting better coverage than an expensive individual plan provides. The structure still works; the reason it works changes. Your exact figures depend on income, state, and what you pay now, which is why the calculator runs it against the real 2026 tables.
The same coverage the market leaders offer. Without the pricing model that punishes you for growing.
Your team joins the same 150,000-plus-member pool, on composite group rates on a national PPO, the same kind of plan a large company offers. The difference is entirely in how you are billed, and whether you are free to leave.
The usual deal
A percentage of payroll
3 to 6 percent of total payroll, climbing with every raise and every hire, on software you cannot easily leave.
The shift
Flat fee, portable system
A flat $150 per person that does not re-rate, run on the industry-standard PEO platform many providers use.
The result
Predictable cost, free to leave
Your cost is the same whether you raise pay or not, and because the platform is portable, you are never trapped.
Annual admin cost · 10 people · payroll growing over 5 years
Even at break-even
Suppose the new structure and your current spend come out roughly even. You still moved the entire back office, payroll, filings, workers' comp, compliance, and HR, off your desk and onto the PEO. The cost was a wash and you got your attention back to run and grow the business. The fee comparison was never the whole case.
One honest narrowing
Carrier and workers' comp rates move with the market over time, the way they do everywhere, and those sit inside the PEO. The administrative fee, the part USA OPS controls, stays flat and does not re-rate. Figures are illustrative; your exact numbers depend on team size, payroll, and plan, which is why the calculator runs them for you.
Your accountant will ask. Here is the answer, so you walk in prepared.
Co-employment has been IRS-recognized for decades. The PEO files and remits payroll taxes under its own employer identification number, governed by a standard service agreement. Large companies have used this infrastructure for years. It is not an edge case and it is not a loophole.
You keep running your company
Exactly as before. Your CPA stays in place, sets your salary, and files the corporate return. Nothing about the day-to-day changes.
One routine requirement
The business files as an S-corp or C-corp. A single-member LLC elects S-corp status at onboarding, and your CPA handles the filing.
Month to month, and never trapped
No long-term contract. Because the PEO runs on the industry-standard portable platform many providers use, your business is not locked into proprietary software. If you ever want to leave, you can.
Accredited partners only
Coverage runs through NAPEO-member, ESAC-accredited PEO partners, on the Cigna national PPO, with MetLife dental and vision and Vestwell retirement.
Verified through
Placed only with NAPEO-member, ESAC-accredited PEO partners. ESAC accreditation is the industry's independent financial-assurance standard, the stamp your accountant can look up.
When the 2026 subsidies lapsed, every major network covered it.
The cost structure was always there. The end of the enhanced subsidies put it on the national news, which is why your clients, your peers, and your competitors are all looking at coverage costs right now. For a high earner the subsidy change matters less than the attention it brought to a problem that was already real.
people signed up for marketplace coverage this year as the enhanced subsidies ended.
Reported by CNBC, Feb 2026
Clips are unedited segments from each network's own coverage. Tap any one to play. USA OPS is not affiliated with or endorsed by these outlets.
Group coverage your size could never buy alone, plus every back-office function a large employer runs.
If it is just you
A real group plan covering you alone, on the Cigna national PPO, premium paid pre-tax through payroll. Retirement through Vestwell opens 401(k) room far above the IRA limit.
If you have a team
The same Cigna group plan extended to your staff at composite rates, one plan across every state they work in, plus payroll, workers' comp, compliance, and HR taken off your desk entirely.
A Coverage built for your size
- A real group plan on the Cigna national PPODoctors everywhere, no referrals, because it is a PPO.
- Premium paid pre-tax through payrollInstead of after-tax, out of pocket.
- MetLife dental and visionAvailable on their own.
- Vestwell retirement401(k) contribution room far above the IRA limit.
B The full back office, included
- PayrollW-2s, 941s, direct deposit, and state filings, every cycle.
- HR supportOnboarding, terminations, and day-to-day questions, from people you can reach.
- ComplianceFilings under the PEO's tax ID, multi-state included. The payroll-tax exposure leaves your books.
- Workers' compPay-as-you-go from each payroll. No deposit, no year-end audit. SUTA stabilized through the pool.
- Lawsuit protectionEPLI is included. As co-employer, the PEO shares employment-related liability.
Rates come from the pool, not from you. Age does not set the price. Representative figures that move with the market over time.
Cigna, MetLife, and Vestwell are the carriers most commonly used in our network and the examples shown here. USA OPS places across multiple PEOs and multiple carriers, and your exact plan depends on the PEO that fits your situation.
Every owner needs to sign contracts, run email on their own domain, and be found online. These come included, and they are tools any business can use from day one. Most PEOs do not offer this. We do, because we run a business too and we know what owners actually need.
E-signature, included
Legally binding contracts from your own account, powered by Documenso. Replaces a DocuSign Standard subscription at about $300 a year.
Email on your own domain
you@yourdomain.com, hosted and set up for you through Zoho. The address that tells a client you are a real business. Worth about $12 a year, per mailbox.
A hosted one-page site
A one-page site for your service, built to be found by AI search in Perplexity, ChatGPT, and others. A comparable build runs around $500.
One flat number per person. It stays flat while you grow.
Both tiers are month to month. No long-term contract, no lock-in.
Full stack
Group plan access plus the full back office
$150
per person / month
Includes
- +Group plan access at composite rates
- +Payroll and filings
- +Workers' comp, pay-as-you-go
- +SUTA stabilization and EPLI
- +HR support and one point of contact
Compliance only
The same infrastructure, without group plan access
$75
per person / month
Includes
- +Payroll and filings
- +Workers' comp, pay-as-you-go
- +SUTA stabilization and EPLI
- +HR support and one point of contact
Add $75 to upgrade to group plan access later.
Why the fee holds
The pooling that drives the group rates more than offsets the flat administrative fee. A typical PEO charges a percentage of payroll that rises when you hire or give raises, then re-rates again after the first few years once leaving has become painful. This fee does not behave that way. Carrier and workers' comp rates will move with the market over time, as they do everywhere. The administrative fee, the part USA OPS controls, stays flat.
The line is narrow on purpose. An honest no to the wrong customer is what makes the yes credible to the right one.
The qualification is stated here, before anyone asks for your contact details. A business that qualifies everyone is selling. USA OPS qualifies honestly, and when the structure does not fit, we say so directly and let you go.
One deliberate exception
Net somewhat under $90k now but reasonably expect your income to climb? Getting the structure in place early means it is already running when the income arrives.
To be clear
If you are looking for free coverage or a government subsidy, this is not it. This is a better plan at a better rate, not a handout.
Cash toward their own plans, or one real group plan for everyone. Here is the honest tradeoff.
You have heard the pitch: give each person a fixed monthly amount and let them buy their own. It caps your out-of-pocket. What it does not control is what they end up with, which is usually thinner networks, higher deductibles, and a different plan for every person on your team.
Option one
The cash route
Cheaper for the owner
You cap your cost and step back. Each employee then buys on their own and takes what they can get: smaller doctor networks, prices that climb with age and fall hardest on your most experienced people, a different plan for everyone, and deductibles high enough that the plan barely helps until thousands have been spent.
Option two
One real group plan
Better for the people
One real plan on a national PPO for the whole team, the kind of coverage a large company offers. Composite rates, one plan across every state they work in.
And it clears your desk. Payroll, workers' comp, and the filings move to the PEO at the same time, the back-office advantage the cash route does not touch.
Stated straight: the cash route is cheaper for you, the group plan is better for your people and handles the back office too. Which one is right depends on what you are trying to do, and we say that plainly rather than pretending one answer fits everyone.
Most owners do not change this right away. The setup just gets more expensive while you wait.
You are busy and switching is annoying, so the current plan stays, premiums rise again, and the extra cost becomes normal. Every year you wait is another year of paying more than you need to.
If it is just you
On an individual plan, the premium keeps re-rating upward as you get older, and paying with after-tax dollars repeats that inefficiency every year. The structure that changes it is legal, established, and decades old. Waiting just runs the cost through one more renewal cycle.
Your cost, each year you wait→ rising
If you have a team
Waiting usually means another year of rising premiums and thinner coverage for the people who depend on you. And if you are already in a PEO, the admin fee can climb as headcount grows. A flat per-person model draws a line under that compounding the day you switch.
Your cost, each year you wait→ rising
Most PEOs are built for large companies. Many of them are designed to charge you more the longer you stay.
Knowing what to look for protects you regardless of who you choose. These are the patterns that separate a provider that serves you from one that extracts from you over time. Ask hard questions about every one of these before you sign.
Pricing as a percentage of payroll
AskIs the fee a flat per-person number, or a percentage that grows with you?
Fees that re-rate after the first few years
AskIs the administrative fee guaranteed flat, or does it re-rate once you are established on their system?
Proprietary software you cannot leave
AskIf the platform is theirs alone, switching is painful by design. What system do they run on, and is it portable?
A phone tree instead of a person
AskYou should be able to reach someone who knows your account. Who picks up when something goes wrong?
Cheap coverage with no real structure behind it
AskIf the pooling and the back office are not there, the price will not hold. What is actually behind the number?
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