The business case, already built.
You probably already believe a dedicated remote hire is the smart move. This is the page that helps you prove it to everyone else — the ROI, the risk, and numbers you can forward without rewriting a thing.
lower total cost vs. an equivalent in-market hire
Zedtreeo placement data
all-in rate — no recruiting fees, no hidden costs
Zedtreeo pricing
real buying-power gap (USD vs. India, PPP-adjusted)
World Bank PPP
operational cost cut from eliminated overhead alone
Industry dedicated-model data, 2026
See the full economics below, or run the cost + ROI calculators for your exact role.
What it looks like by role
Illustrative monthly comparison — loaded in-house cost vs. a dedicated remote hire. Run the calculator for your exact role.
Bookkeeper / AR-AP
Customer support rep
Software developer
It’s the currency gap — not underpayment.
A US dollar trades at ~₹95 — but inside India it buys what ~₹22 buys here. That ~4× gap between the exchange rate and the real cost of living is the engine, not a discount. Add the overhead you stop paying — recruiting, payroll tax, benefits, office, equipment (a 30–50% cut on its own) — and you land at 70–85% lower total cost.
The specialist earns a strong wage for their market. You pay less because of the currency gap and eliminated overhead — never because anyone’s underpaid or the work is cut-rate.
In-house vs freelancer vs dedicated remote
| In-house | Freelancer | Dedicated remote | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting cost | Local market salary + overhead | Variable, often hidden fees | From $1,056/month, all-in |
| Total cost vs in-market | Baseline (100%) | Lower, unpredictable | 70–85% lower |
| Time to start | ~63.5 days median | Days — but churns | 48-hr shortlist, days to start |
| If it doesn't work out | Up to ~$56,500 to replace | Ghosting risk, work stalls | 5-day trial + replacement guarantee |
| Continuity | High (until they leave) | Low — multi-client, rotating | Dedicated, learns your business |
| Security | Your controls | Often none | ISO 27001:2022 + NDA every engagement |
Benchmarks from independent recruiting research (SHRM, Employ 2026). Zedtreeo figures are brand-level; final rate is set per role.
The objections your team will raise
“But is the quality there?”
Only ~1 in 12 candidates is placed (the Zedtreeo 6-Stage Standard), plus a 5-day trial on your real work before you commit. Quality is proven, not promised.
“Won't we lose control?”
You keep 100% of the direction — the person works in your tools, on your board, reporting to you. We carry sourcing, payroll, HR, and continuity.
“Is our data safe?”
Operations are ISO 27001:2022 certified, with an NDA on every engagement and role-based access. The security claim is externally audited, not asserted.
“What if it's not the right fit?”
The 5-day trial caps the downside to a week, and the replacement guarantee means a swap — not a five-figure write-off and a quarter of lost time.
Copy-paste the case
“Proposal: hire a dedicated remote [role] through Zedtreeo. ~70–85% lower total cost than a local hire (from $6/hour, all-in). Pre-vetted (only ~1 in 12 placed), with a 5-day risk-free trial and a replacement guarantee, so the downside is capped. Data security covered (ISO 27001:2022 + NDA). Shortlist in 48 hours vs the ~63.5-day median to fill a role in-house.”
Fill in the role, forward it, done.
Questions
How do you get to 70–85% savings?+
It's the currency-and-purchasing-power gap (a dollar trades at ~₹95 but buys what ~₹22 buys locally — roughly 4×) plus the overhead you stop paying (recruiting, payroll tax, benefits, office, equipment). Not underpayment, not cut-rate work.
Are these numbers real or marketing?+
The benchmarks (time-to-fill, bad-hire cost) are independent recruiting research (SHRM, Employ 2026). The scenarios are illustrative — run the calculators for your exact role and team size.
What's the catch at $6/hour?+
There isn't one — the rate is all-in and transparent, engagements are month-to-month, and the re-onboarding tax is engineered out because you keep the same dedicated person.
Run your own numbers
Prove the savings for your exact role and team size — then start with a 5-day risk-free trial.
The number your CFO will ask for
A business case needs the alternative priced, not asserted. The US column below is the Bureau of Labor Statistics median annual wage for the nearest occupation (May 2024 OEWS, national), loaded 1.3× for employer costs — conservative, since BLS ECEC data puts benefits near 30% of total compensation. Every occupation links to its own BLS page.
| Role | US occupation (BLS median) | Loaded US cost/yr | Zedtreeo/yr | Saving |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full-Stack Developers | Software Developers SOC 15-1252 · $133,080 | $173,004 | $19,008 | 89% |
| WordPress Developers | Web Developers SOC 15-1254 · $90,930 | $118,209 | $14,784 | 87% |
| Accountants | Accountants and Auditors SOC 13-2011 · $81,680 | $106,184 | $14,784 | 86% |
| Digital Marketers | Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists SOC 13-1161 · $76,950 | $100,035 | $14,784 | 85% |
| Executive Assistants | Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants SOC 43-6011 · $74,260 | $96,538 | $12,672 | 87% |
Figures are computed from the same dataset and the same 1.3× load the full Rate Index uses — an extract, not a separate calculation. Across all 45 roles with a BLS match the range is 79–94% and the median is 91%, so the rows above are representative rather than the flattering end.
Read this as a gross rate comparison. It sets our published starting rate against the loaded cost of the nearest US occupation, at 176 hours a month. It does not include what you still spend — onboarding, management time, tooling — which is why the savings we quote in ordinary copy are the more conservative 70–85%. Your actual rate depends on the brief.