The four ways firms price a marketing hire, with the prices the firms themselves publish.
Marketing staffing agencies charge in one of four ways: a one-time placement fee of 15% to 35% of first-year salary, a monthly rate that covers the marketer’s pay, a monthly retainer for part-time freelancers, or a marketplace fee of about 5% per payment. Published monthly rates for a full-time global marketer run about $1,500 to $4,000. GrowthPair is about $4,000 a month, all-in.
"Staffing agency" covers very different businesses, and each one prices differently. Before you compare numbers, check which model you’re being quoted.
| Model | How it’s priced | Who pays the marketer | Who it suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Placement fee (direct hire) | Once, as a share of first-year salary: 15% to 25% for contingency recruiters (Dover), 25% to 35% at Somewhere | You do, and you run payroll | Teams that want to own payroll from day one |
| Monthly managed staffing | One monthly rate per hire that covers pay and payroll: about $1,500 to $4,000 on the price lists below | The firm does | Teams that want a full-time hire without running global payroll |
| Freelance network retainer | A monthly retainer for part-time hours: MarketerHire quotes $5,000 to $20,000+ | The network does | Short projects or a few hours a week of senior help |
| Marketplace fee | A fee on every payment: 5% on Upwork’s Basic plan, 5.5% on Fiverr Pro | You do, through the platform | Small, well-defined tasks you can manage yourself |
An employer of record isn’t a staffing agency, but it shows up in the same searches. Deel, Remote, and Oyster list $599 to $699 a month per person, before salary, to run payroll for someone you already found. See employer of record vs staffing agency.
Most firms keep prices behind a sales call. These are the numbers the firms put on their own sites.
| Firm | Model | Published price | Guarantee |
|---|---|---|---|
| GrowthPair | Monthly managed staffing | About $4,000 a month on average, all-in | Lifetime replacement, for as long as you’re a client |
| GrowthAssistant | Monthly managed staffing | Typically $3,000 to $4,000 a month | Free replacements, no time limit |
| Pearl Talent | Monthly managed staffing | From $3,000 a month | 90-day replacement (30 days per its FAQ) |
| Floowi | Monthly staffing, as employer of record | $1,500 (junior) to $3,500 (senior) a month for digital marketers | Replacement in the initial period |
| MultiplyMii | Monthly staffing, Philippines only | $1,600 to $2,350 a month, all-in | Lifetime replacement on its Premium plan |
| South | Monthly staffing or a one-time headhunting fee | Not published; a flat monthly rate quoted by role | First 120 days |
| Near | Monthly staffing or direct hire | Not published; quoted on a call | 180 days on direct hire |
| Somewhere | Direct hire or monthly staffing | Direct hire: 25% to 35% of first-year salary | 6 months on direct hire |
| Scale Army | Recruiting plus payroll | A 30% to 35% margin on salary | Not published |
| MarketerHire | Freelance network retainer | Typically $5,000 to $20,000+ a month | Two-week refundable trial |
| Toptal | Freelance network | $0 recruiting fee and a $79 monthly subscription; hourly rates not published | Trial of up to two weeks |
| Upwork | Marketplace | 5% of every payment, or 3% by U.S. bank account, plus $0.99 to $14.99 per new contract | Not applicable |
| Fiverr Pro | Marketplace | 5.5% of every order, plus $3.50 on orders under $200 | 14-day satisfaction guarantee |
We checked each firm’s own site on September 28 or October 29, 2026. Prices move, so check before you sign.
Here’s one full-time marketing seat priced each way. The U.S. figures use the Bureau of Labor Statistics median for marketing specialists, $78,760 in May 2025, with benefits at 30.0% of total compensation (June 2026): $78,760 ÷ 0.70 ÷ 12 is about $9,400 a month.
| Option | First-year cost | Monthly after that |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. hire through a contingency recruiter | About $112,500 in pay and benefits, plus an $11,800 to $19,700 fee | About $9,400 |
| Full-time global hire through monthly managed staffing | $18,000 to $48,000 on the published rates above | $1,500 to $4,000 |
| Full-time global hire through GrowthPair | About $48,000 | About $4,000 |
| Freelance network, 15 to 20 hours a week | $84,000 to $120,000 at MarketerHire’s network average | $7,000 to $10,000 |
| Upwork freelancer at $30 an hour, full-time | About $65,500, with the 5% fee | About $5,460 |
The recruiter fee is 15% to 25% of $78,760. The Upwork row is $30 × 2,080 hours ÷ 12, plus the 5% marketplace fee.
The monthly number is only part of the cost. Read the contract for these.
When a placement fee is the better deal: if you’re hiring a U.S. marketer you’ll keep for years, and you already run payroll and benefits, a one-time recruiter fee is the cheapest way to fill the seat. Monthly managed staffing earns its rate when you’re hiring abroad and don’t want to run global payroll, vetting, and re-hiring yourself.
We’re managed staffing for marketing roles. We find and vet a full-time marketer from Latin America or the Philippines, then carry payroll, benefits, and HR for one monthly rate, about $4,000 on average. Every candidate goes through five steps: a resume screen, a phone interview, a proctored skills assessment, a live interview with a marketer, and your interview. About 1.5% of applicants are accepted. It’s month to month, and we replace your marketer for as long as you’re a client. See the full terms on our pricing page.
When we’re the wrong call: we only place full-time marketers. For a few hours a week or a project with an end date, a freelance network or marketplace will cost less.
It depends on the model. Placement fees run 15% to 35% of first-year salary. Monthly managed staffing for a full-time global marketer runs about $1,500 to $4,000 on published price lists. Freelance networks charge retainers of $5,000 to $20,000+ a month, and marketplaces take about 5% of each payment.
Dover puts contingency recruiter fees at 15% to 25% of first-year base salary. Somewhere lists 25% to 35% for its direct hires. You pay it once, then run payroll yourself.
Because they keep the payroll side. A monthly rate covers the marketer’s pay, payroll, benefits, and HR, plus the firm’s fee, so you don’t run global payroll yourself.
About $4,000 a month on average for a full-time marketer, all-in. That covers the marketer, payroll, benefits, and HR. It’s month to month with 30 days’ notice.
Most do. Upwork’s conversion fee is 13.5% of the hourly rate times 2,080 hours. Somewhere’s On-Demand buyout is 30% of first-year salary. GrowthPair’s buyout is six months of your rate.
