Full-time South African placements from $1,200 per month.
Flat monthly rates. Zero setup fees. Month-to-month after a 30-day evaluation. A 90-day replacement guarantee on every placement. Same rate covers salary, payroll, benefits, and employer-of-record overhead.
Executive Assistant, Admin, Customer Support, Order Processing
Inbox triage, calendar, vendor coordination, customer support tickets, returns processing, listings, and general operational backbone.
- Executive Assistant
- Customer Support (Gorgias, Zendesk)
- Order Processing
- Admin / Operations Coordinator
- Calendar & Travel Management
Sales, SDR, ISA, Account Coordinator
Cold outreach, prospect research, CRM hygiene, demo scheduling, account-management ops, and client-facing coordination work.
- Sales Development Rep (SDR)
- Inside Sales Agent (ISA)
- Account Coordinator
- CRM Admin (HubSpot, Salesforce)
- Pipeline Manager
Senior Ops, Project Manager, Specialist Roles
Cross-functional ops ownership, project delivery, vendor management, finance ops liaison, and senior individual-contributor work.
- Operations Manager
- Project Manager
- Marketing Operations
- Paralegal (US firm support)
- Financial Ops Coordinator
GTM Engineer, Senior Specialist, Technical Roles
Senior technical ICs: GTM engineering, RevOps automation, internal tooling, data ops, and advanced specialist work.
- GTM Engineer
- RevOps / Systems Engineer
- Senior Data Operations
- Marketing Technology Specialist
- Senior Account Manager
Need something outside these tiers? Senior leadership, fractional roles, multi-person pods, or custom retainers are quoted per engagement. Bring the scope on the fit call and we will give you a real number, not a placeholder.
What is included, what is not
✓ Included in every placement
- Full-time placement, typically 40 hours per week
- Salary, statutory benefits, all payroll tax
- Employer-of-record (EOR) administration handled by our South African entity
- Single monthly invoice, paid in advance
- Pre-vetted candidates with written-English screening and role-specific test work
- Structured 30-day onboarding plan
- 90-day replacement guarantee at no additional cost
- Ongoing account management and quarterly check-in
- US-hours overlap (4 to 5 hours East Coast, 1 to 2 hours West Coast)
- Cancellation with 30 days notice anytime
× What we do not do
- Hourly billing or pay-as-you-go pricing
- Free trials (we offer a 30-day evaluation at full rate, not free)
- One-off project work or short-term contractors
- Part-time placements under 40 hours per week (most engagements)
- Gig-worker or contractor agreements (everyone is EOR-employed)
- Setup fees, recruiting fees, or hidden onboarding costs
- Long-term contracts or multi-year lock-ins
- Roles that require US residency or in-person work
- Regulated US-licensed roles (CPA, attorney, MD) where licensure is required
How we compare
Same role, what each option actually costs per month. Full-time equivalent comparisons where possible. All figures verified at each provider's published pricing or industry-reported averages.
| Provider | Model | Full-time equivalent cost | Geography |
|---|---|---|---|
| VirtuHire US | Dedicated full-time, EOR-employed | $1,200 to $3,500 per month | South Africa |
| Belay | Part-time US VA (typical 90 hrs/mo) | ~$3,800 per month at 90 hours | United States |
| Boldly | Part-time US VA, hour packages | $2,600 (40h) to $6,500 (100h) per month | United States and Europe |
| Time Etc | Hour-bank shared pool | $390 (10h) to $2,160 (60h) per month | UK and US |
| Wing Assistant | Dedicated full-time | ~$999 (entry) to $1,799 (Pro) per month | Philippines |
| Prialto | Managed EA service | $1,600 (55h) to $3,600+ (full-time) per month | Philippines and Guatemala |
| US in-house hire | Direct W-2 employee with benefits | $70,000 to $150,000+ per year (~$5,800 to $12,500 per month) | United States |
For deeper side-by-sides see vs Belay, vs Boldly, vs Time Etc, vs Wing, vs Prialto.
Pricing FAQ
Is there a setup fee?
No. Zero setup fee. The monthly rate is everything: salary, payroll, benefits, employer-of-record overhead, account management, and the replacement guarantee. No hidden onboarding or recruiting fees.
Do you offer free trials?
No, we do not offer free trials. What we offer is a 30-day evaluation period at the full rate, plus a 90-day replacement guarantee: if the person is not a fit within the first 90 days, we replace them at no additional cost. This is structurally stronger than a free trial because you are evaluating a fully-committed, EOR-employed teammate rather than a temporary placeholder.
What is the contract length?
Month-to-month after the 30-day evaluation period. You can cancel with 30 days notice anytime. No multi-year contracts, no buyouts, no early-termination penalties.
Why is this less expensive than US hires?
South Africa has a much lower cost of living, so a top-tier local operator earns a very strong local wage at a fraction of US-loaded comp for the equivalent skill. We also run a lean placement model without the recruiting markup of traditional staffing agencies. The cost difference is real and structural, not a discount we can revoke.
Who is my placement employed by?
By our South African employer-of-record entity, not by you. You pay one monthly invoice to us, we handle payroll, tax, statutory benefits, and all employment compliance on their side. You manage their day-to-day work directly. Legally, you are not their employer, which simplifies your US compliance position.
Are placements employees or contractors?
Employees. Of our South African EOR entity. Not contractors, not gig workers, not 1099s. This matters because contractor-classification risk is one of the most common failure modes for US founders hiring offshore. We eliminate it.
What if the person is not a fit?
Tell us within the first 90 days and we replace them at no additional cost. The replacement comes from the same pre-vetted candidate pool, typically within 7 to 14 days. You do not pay twice, you do not eat the recruiting cost, you do not lose the deposit. 93 percent of our placements stay past 12 months, but the guarantee covers the 7 percent who do not.
What does the monthly fee actually cover?
Full-time placement, typically 40 hours per week. Salary, all statutory South African benefits, employer payroll tax, employer-of-record administration, ongoing account management, structured 30-day onboarding, and the 90-day replacement guarantee. Nothing else is invoiced.
Can I get a 20-hour-per-week placement at half the price?
Generally no. Most of our placements are full-time because part-time gets messy across both sides: the placement has to context-switch between you and another role, and you end up with worse availability than a dedicated person. Talk to us on the fit call if your role is genuinely part-time scope, we can sometimes arrange shared placements at custom rates.
When am I invoiced?
Monthly, in advance. First invoice covers the 30-day evaluation period and is fully refundable if you decide not to proceed within the first 7 days. After that, standard monthly billing.
What about taxes? Do I get a 1099 or W-2 form?
Neither, because they are not your US employee or contractor. You receive a single monthly service invoice from VirtuHire US. From a US tax-and-compliance perspective, the engagement is treated as a service expense, not as employment. We are happy to confirm this framing with your accountant on a brief call.
How is this different from Upwork?
Upwork is a marketplace for transactional, hourly, project-based work, mostly with independent contractors. We provide dedicated full-time placements who are employees of an EOR entity, with vetting, structured onboarding, ongoing account management, and a replacement guarantee. Different model entirely. We cost more than Upwork piecework but solve a different problem: a person on your team you can rely on, not a task you outsource.
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Confirm pricing for your specific role on a 15-min fit call.
Tell us the scope, the seniority, and the must-have skills. We will give you a concrete monthly number, candidate availability, and a realistic start date. No pressure.