The short version
- Divide before you compare. A monthly price means nothing until you know how many hours it buys and whether it is one person or a pool.
- Judge the voice yourself. Never accept an agency's description of someone's English. Ask for a recording.
- The guarantee is not the risk. What happens after the guarantee window is where the real exposure sits.
- Ask for a live client reference. Any provider's own statistics, ours included, are not the same thing as an independent one.
Offshore staffing quotes are unusually hard to compare, because two providers can put nearly the same monthly number in front of you while selling completely different things. One is a full-time employee who works only for you. The other is a block of hours drawn from a shared pool. Both are legitimate products. Confusing them is expensive.
Below are the questions worth asking any provider before you sign, grouped by what they protect you against. For each one we have said what a weak answer sounds like, and answered it for ourselves so you can see where we actually stand. Where the honest answer is "it depends on your agreement", we have said that rather than inventing a number.
Cost, and what it actually buys
What is my all-in monthly cost, and is anything charged on top? The answer you want is a single number with a list of what it includes. A weak answer separates "the rate" from payroll, compliance, onboarding or account management, which reappear later. Our monthly rate is all-in and covers salary, payroll, benefits and Employer of Record administration, with no recruitment fee and no separate percentage markup. Full-time placements run roughly $1,200 to $3,500 per month depending on the role.
How many hours a month does that price include? A full-time month is roughly 160 hours. Part-time plans commonly quote 40 to 80 hours in a similar monthly band. Ask every provider and divide before comparing anything else. The cost calculator does the arithmetic if you want to run your own numbers.
How much of the rate reaches the employee? A provider should be willing to discuss this. We would rather answer it against a specific role on a call than publish one number, because the split moves with seniority. What should not vary is that the quoted figure is the figure you pay.
When does billing start? Paying through a long sourcing period is a real and avoidable cost. With us, a one-month deposit confirms the hire and the monthly retainer starts only when the person actually begins.
Who the person actually is
Is this one dedicated person or a shared pool? This is the single most consequential question on the list, because it decides whether anyone owns the outcome. We place dedicated full-time people. If your work is genuinely a few hours a week, an hours plan may serve you better and we would rather say so than sell you a seat you do not need.
Can I hear them speak before I interview? Insist on this with any provider, and treat a refusal as an answer. Every shortlist we send is 3 pre-vetted candidates with video introductions. For a phone or client-facing role, run a role-play in the interview as well. Hand the candidate a mildly annoyed customer and you will learn more in five minutes than from any resume.
Can they use my phone system, CRM and tools? Placed staff should work inside your systems, not a parallel set of the agency's. In practice that means your VoIP or business phone and your CRM, helpdesk and project tools.
Hours and continuity
Can they work my hours, including Pacific? South Africa sits 6 to 7 hours ahead of US Eastern, so a roughly 1pm to 9pm South African shift covers the US morning and early afternoon. For a Pacific business the shift moves later rather than the coverage shrinking: roughly 5pm to 2am South African covers a full 8am to 5pm Pacific day, with Mountain inside it.
The better follow-up is how the seat gets filled. There is a real difference between recruiting for a shift and reassigning someone onto it, and it shows up as attrition six months later rather than on day one. We recruit for the shift.
How is power and internet continuity handled? Asking this about South Africa is fair rather than rude, and a provider who waves it away is not being straight with you. Ask what the backup arrangement is, who pays for it, and what happens to your coverage during an outage. Get it in writing.
Risk, and how you exit
What happens if the person quits after the guarantee? Most providers quote a replacement guarantee, and most guarantees are short. Ours is 30 days at no extra cost. The question that matters is what happens in month four, and that depends on your agreement, so read it rather than relying on a verbal answer.
What is the notice period? You can cancel with 30 days notice at any time. Be careful with long lock-ins on a first hire, and check what happens to the deposit on exit.
Can I speak to a current US client? This is the one we would push hardest on with any provider, including us. Every staffing company publishes its own numbers. Ours are 272 clients, 750+ placements and 93% retention, from VirtuHire internal data, August 2025. Those are internal figures, and internal figures are not an independent reference. If you are about to commit to a monthly cost for a year, ask to speak to someone already running the role you are hiring for.
The two-minute version
If you only ask four things, ask these. How many hours does this price buy. Is it one named person or a pool. Can I hear them speak before I interview. And what happens in month four if it goes wrong. Those four separate most offers faster than anything else on the list.
Related reading
- VirtuHire pricing and how placements work
- Offshore staffing cost calculator
- What virtual assistants cost in 2026, by country
- Offshore account managers
- Customer support outsourcing
- Offshore appointment setters
- All roles and industries we staff
The full list, answered
What is my all-in monthly cost, and is anything charged on top?
Ask whether the monthly figure is the complete cost or a base that grows. At VirtuHire the monthly rate is all-in: it covers salary, payroll, benefits and Employer of Record administration, there is no recruitment or placement fee, and there is no separate percentage markup added on top. Full-time placements run roughly $1,200 to $3,500 per month depending on the role.
How much of the monthly rate reaches the employee?
Any provider should be willing to discuss how the rate splits between the person and the agency. We would rather answer this on a call against a specific role than publish a single number, because the split moves with seniority. What matters for your decision is that the figure you are quoted is the figure you pay, and that the person is employed properly rather than paid as a disposable contractor.
Is this one dedicated person or a shared pool of hours?
This is the question that separates two very different products sold at similar prices. A dedicated placement is one named full-time person working only for you. An hours plan draws from a pool, so context gets rebuilt each time and nobody owns the outcome. VirtuHire places dedicated full-time people. If the work is genuinely a few hours a week, an hours plan may suit you better and we will say so.
How many hours a month does the price include?
A full-time month is roughly 160 hours. Part-time plans commonly quote 40 to 80 hours in a similar monthly band, which makes two very different offers look comparable. Ask every provider the same question and divide the price by the hours before comparing anything else.
Can I hear the candidate speak before I interview them?
Yes, and you should insist on it with any provider. Every VirtuHire shortlist arrives as 3 pre-vetted candidates with video introductions, so you judge communication yourself rather than taking an agency's word for it. For any client-facing or phone role we would also encourage a live role-play during the interview.
Can they work my hours, including US Pacific?
South Africa sits 6 to 7 hours ahead of US Eastern, so a roughly 1pm to 9pm South African shift covers the US morning and early afternoon. For a Pacific business the shift moves later instead: roughly 5pm to 2am South African covers a full 8am to 5pm Pacific day, with Mountain inside it. The follow-up question worth asking any provider is whether they recruit for that shift or reassign someone onto it. We recruit for it.
What happens if the person quits after the guarantee period?
Ask this of every provider, because the answer after the guarantee window is the one that actually matters. VirtuHire includes a 30-day replacement guarantee at no extra cost. Beyond that window, replacement terms depend on your agreement, so get the specifics in writing before you sign rather than relying on a verbal answer.
What is the notice period if I want to stop?
You can cancel with 30 days notice at any time. Be wary of long lock-ins on staffing, particularly on a first hire, and read what happens to the deposit on exit.
Who supplies the computer, headset and internet?
VirtuHire handles contracts, payroll, onboarding, equipment and compliance on the South African side as part of the Employer of Record arrangement. Ask any provider to be specific here, because equipment and connectivity are a common hidden cost that surfaces after the quote.
How is power and internet continuity handled?
This is a fair and specific question to ask about South Africa rather than a gotcha, and any provider who waves it away is not being straight with you. Ask what the backup arrangement is, who pays for it, and what happens to your coverage during an outage. Get the answer in writing before you sign.
Can the person use my phone system, CRM and tools?
Yes. Placed staff work inside your systems rather than a parallel set of ours. In practice that means your VoIP or business phone, for example RingCentral, OpenPhone or the phone side of a system like ServiceTitan or Housecall Pro, and your CRM, helpdesk and project tools.
Can I speak to a current US client?
Ask for it. A provider who will introduce you to a client running the same kind of role you are hiring for is showing you something a testimonial cannot. If an agency will not, that is worth weighing. Our published figures come from VirtuHire internal data, August 2025, and internal figures are not the same thing as an independent reference, so ask for the reference.
How long until I see candidates?
VirtuHire sends a shortlist of 3 pre-vetted candidates with video introductions within 5 business days of agreeing the brief. Treat a promise of same-day or next-day candidates with suspicion, because a shortlist that fast usually means a list that was not built for you.
What does the payment schedule look like?
A one-month deposit confirms the hire and the monthly retainer starts only when the person actually begins, not when you sign. Ask any provider when billing starts relative to the start date, because paying through a long sourcing period is a real cost.