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Agency Payroll: Managed for 25-100 Employees | BEGsses (25-100 Employees) (2026)
Managed payroll for a mid-size marketing agency, 50 to 100 employees, is where FMLA and the ACA employer mandate have attached and the question becomes whether to hire the payroll clerk BLS prices at $58,260 or pay $1,875 to $3,375 a month at 75 employees. BEG: $25 per employee per month in your existing platform or $45 on isolved, live in 3 to 5 days.
What attached at 50 for a marketing agency
FMLA covers a marketing agency with 50 or more employees in 20 or more workweeks, with job-protected unpaid leave and benefits continued, so leave balances, intermittent hours and benefit deductions during leave all live in payroll. The ACA applicable large employer test counts full-time equivalents from payroll hours, and once it applies the 1094-C and 1095-C filings are built from the same data every year. For marketing agencies with part-time account managers the FTE count is the number to watch, not the headcount.
Hire or outsource at 75 employees
BLS OEWS May 2025 puts the national median for payroll and timekeeping clerks at $58,260, roughly $75,738 loaded, for one person who also has to know 1099 vs W-2 freelancer classification, project-based bonuses and multi-state remote teams and who is a single point of failure on every pay date. Managed payroll at 75 employees is $1,875 a month in your existing platform or $3,375 on isolved, $22,500 to $40,500 a year, with the ACA and FMLA mechanics inside the price. The next federal lines, WARN notice and the EEO-1 report, wait at 100.
Advertising and Related Services (NAICS 5418) and Specialized Design Services (5414) are on OSHA's partially exempt industry list, so agencies in those codes do not keep OSHA 300 logs unless OSHA or BLS asks in writing. Fatalities, in-patient hospitalizations, amputations and eye losses must still be reported.
The rules behind this page, with sources
General information, not legal advice. Every rule below was read on the agency page linked next to it.
- Advertising and Related Services (NAICS 5418) and Specialized Design Services (5414) are on OSHA's partially exempt industry list, so agencies in those codes do not keep OSHA 300 logs unless OSHA or BLS asks in writing. Fatalities, in-patient hospitalizations, amputations and eye losses must still be reported. [OSHA 29 CFR 1904 Subpart B, Appendix A]
Read the full guide to managed payroll by company size, and the rest of the marketing agency payroll library.
Managed Payroll, Handled.
BEG manages payroll at $25-$45 per employee per month, all-inclusive. Get an instant cost comparison for your business.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does managed payroll cost a marketing agency with 75 employees?
$1,875 a month in your existing platform or $3,375 on BEG's isolved HCM, all-inclusive, including the 1094-C and 1095-C build.
Is a mid-size marketing agency an applicable large employer?
If it averaged 50 or more full-time employees plus full-time equivalents in the prior year, yes, and the count comes from payroll hours.
What does the in-house alternative cost at this size?
$58,260 a year at the BLS OEWS May 2025 national median for a payroll and timekeeping clerk, before benefits, employer taxes and software.
What does managed payroll cost for a marketing agency?
$25 per employee per month inside your existing platform or $45 on BEG's isolved HCM, all-inclusive, with a $500 monthly minimum. 1099 vs W-2 freelancer classification, project-based bonuses and multi-state remote teams are configured at setup, not billed as add-ons.
Related Resources
Anthony leads payroll solutions at Business Executive Group, a national managed payroll firm serving businesses across industries including Marketing & PR Agencies. BEG manages payroll at $25-$45 PEPM, all-inclusive, with deep expertise in compliance, multi-state filing, and industry-specific payroll requirements. Get instant pricing at beghr.com.
Authoritative source: U.S. Department of Labor: Wage and Hour Division
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