How to Scale a Startup Business in the US with Deel

Key takeaways

As companies grow, their workforce evolves, often requiring them to procure several different types of hiring and payment platforms.
Whether you’re a small domestic team or an international organization, you can use Deel’s scalable, all-in-one solution.
Deel enables you to hire and pay independent contractors, direct employees, and EOR employees, as well as manage immigration, equipment, equity, and more.

For any team expanding across the US, ensuring every process and system is compliant is a top priority—but it's also a top challenge.

When Strada—a US-founded iPaaS startup—started growing, it didn’t have experience hiring and paying US workers. Managing the layered tax laws, entity registrations, and benefits administration was a larger task than its small team could take on alone.

“It was important for us to find a partner that had experience in these HR processes and that offered a seamless experience not only for us but also for our employees,” said Amir Prodensky, co-founder and CEO at Strada.

By optimizing HR and US payroll with Deel, they saved time and money and could focus on growing their business.

“We found everything we needed in Deel,” said Prodensky. “We’re hiring contractors, running US payroll, managing benefits and taxes, setting up new entities, and more, all in one place.”

Whether you’re a domestic team or an international organization looking to grow across all 50 states, you need a long-term partner that can scale with you. Here’s a closer look at how you can use Deel to support your US expansion at every stage.

Small businesses: 1 to 9 employees

In the early stages of a company, founders often run payroll and HR themselves. With a smaller workforce in just one or two states, handling state registration, payments, workers’ compensation, and benefits admin is fairly manageable.

During this stage, companies often use Deel US Payroll to support their payroll processing, Deel Contractor Management to hire and pay independent contractors, or Deel EOR to hire employees without setting up entities (especially if they’re an international company).

Deel US Payroll

You can use Deel US Payroll to pay employees quickly and accurately and ensure compliance with state-specific taxes, filing requirements, and registrations.

Streamlined payroll processing

Deel US Payroll simplifies payroll processing with three straightforward steps:

Review: Receive email notifications when payroll is ready for review, based on your predetermined schedule.
Approve: Review payroll details at an overview level or per employee, make necessary adjustments, and instantly see the impact on calculations.
Submit and fund: Upon approval, receive a comprehensive payroll package, including a G2N report. Meanwhile, Deel manages tax filing with government agencies and distributes payslips to employees through the employee portal.

State-specific compliance

Deel provides registration assistance when required, simplifying the process of expanding your workforce across different states. When it comes to tax filing, Deel handles all federal, state, and local requirements, ensuring compliance with relevant regulations, such as:

Tax compliance documents
Wage calculations
Deductions
Employee and employer tax payments
and more

Deel can also help you identify the appropriate workers' compensation policy, working with insurance partners to facilitate compliance.

A free HRIS at every stage

Companies of all sizes have access to Deel HR, our free HR Information System (HRIS). You can onboard workers within minutes, manage documents, track time off and expenses, and monitor costs through live reporting.

Learn more about Deel HR.

Automated payroll, documentation, and reporting

With Deel, you can instantly calculate wages and provide net salary payments to full-time employees. You can also manage and synchronize direct deposits and payslips with your accounting software—Deel integrates with Expensify, NetSuite, Workday, Quickbooks, and more.

By automatically calculating and filing federal and state payroll taxes on behalf of your company, Deel helps US founders save time and reduces the risk of errors associated with manual calculations.

us-payroll

Deel also automates essential documents such as W-2, W-4, 1099, and I-9 forms, streamlining the verification process and ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements.

24/7 support and expert guidance

Benefit from round-the-clock support from Deel's dedicated team, including customer service representatives and customer success managers. Deel also has 350+ in-house payroll and legal specialists to provide further expertise on state registration, benefits administration, taxes, and labor laws.

Deel EOR

Deel EOR is an employer of record, which allows companies to hire employees without setting up a legal entity. Using an EOR can accelerate growth for growing businesses as it helps prove their stability to investors, mitigates compliance risks, increases agility, and more.

Efficient onboarding processes

Deel's EOR platform facilitates streamlined onboarding processes with localized contracts and document automation, helping companies hire and onboard employees in record time.

Enhanced employee benefits and support

Startups can use an EOR to tap into top-tier benefits plans, retain talent through M&A activities, enable employee relocations, and provide equity and variable compensation, enhancing their appeal to prospective employees.

EOR Payroll

Proactive regulatory compliance

Deel goes beyond basic compliance by proactively monitoring and flagging regulatory changes through its Compliance Hub, ensuring startups remain compliant with evolving regulations.

Dedicated legal expertise

With over 200 legal experts specialized in employment regulations, statutory benefits, and tax laws across the globe, Deel provides dedicated legal support to uphold compliance and support startups' legal teams.

Deel Contractor Management

For companies that want to hire independent contractors, Deel Contractor Management automates HR administration, mitigates misclassification risk, and ensures on-time payments while maintaining compliance and payment flexibility.

Streamlined worker classification

With our AI-powered Worker Classification tool, you can accurately classify workers with up to 90% accuracy. Simply answer a few questions, and our tool uses relevant local case law to provide an indication of their classification, helping you avoid compliance risks associated with misclassification.

Contractor Management

Flexible payment options and invoicing

Deel offers 15 flexible payment options for contractors, including cryptocurrencies, Wise, Revolut, and more. It also supports transactions in 150 currencies and allows contractors to be paid off-platform. The automated invoice management system generates instant digital invoices after each payment and seamlessly syncs with your favorite accounting tools for streamlined financial management.

Deel Card

The Deel Card provides contractors with quick access to funds, secure spending capabilities, and the option to hold balances in USD for added stability, helping contractors manage their earnings efficiently and securely.

Create, send, and sign localized documents

Unlike other systems, we collect country-specific documents and ensure contracts are always up-to-date in 150 countries, providing peace of mind and legal compliance, no matter where you hire contractors.

Scaling startups: 10 to 99 employees

As your company expands and hires more employees, managing state-by-state compliance becomes more challenging. Shopping small group benefits isn’t as effective as it used to be, nor does it help you attract top talent. As a result, you’ll likely need more payroll and HR support.

Deel PEO

Deel PEO is a great solution for companies at this stage of growth. A professional employer organization (PEO) is a company that provides comprehensive HR solutions to businesses. When a business partners with a PEO, they enter into a co-employment relationship wherein the PEO becomes the employer for tax and insurance purposes, taking on responsibilities such as payroll processing, benefits administration, compliance management, and other HR functions.

Streamlined payroll administration

With Deel PEO, you can pay your US workers easily, ensuring compliance with local wage and hour regulations and multi-state tax compliance. You get a dedicated payroll specialist who will issue payroll checks and direct deposits, and support payroll tax registration, preparation, and filing.

You also get access to unlimited standard and custom reports, tracking for PTO, sick leave, and vacation time, and can see historical data for insurance, 401k, and more.

Comprehensive HR support

Deel's HR experts provide invaluable expertise in managing US employees, addressing leave rules, benefits administration, and ensuring compliance with labor laws:

Annual labor law posters
Online access to OSHA and HR compliance resources
Sexual harassment and discrimination training
Unemployment claims administration, hearings, and advocacy
Leave of Absence compliance and administration
Drug-Free Workplace Policy
Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) obligations and corresponding filings

Customized benefits packages

With Deel's PEO services, companies can confidently offer benefits that empower employees and set them apart as employers of choice. Benefits are tailored to each business, offering flexibility and customization to include:

Health benefits: Major medical, dental and vision, critical illness, hospital indemnity, telehealth services, direct care
Insurance: 401(k) including employer matching contributions, short-term and long-term disability, life insurance, accident and gap insurance
Health savings accounts (HSAs) and flexible spending accounts (FSAs)
Federal, state, and local benefit law compliance, including COBRA compliance and administration and ACA compliance
And more

Personalized support and streamlined enrollment

Deel's dedicated employee benefits team provides personalized support to simplify plan selection, annual renewals, and other related tasks. Streamlined online benefits enrollment enables employees to review plan summaries, access compliance materials, and submit enrollment forms conveniently in one location.

How Deel enabled a Canadian founder to launch an NYC startup

Quinn Litherland is the founder and CEO of Authentic, a technology company that helps brands certify and track their products to support re-commerce and circularity initiatives.

Litherland, a serial entrepreneur, spent several years in the US as an international student before launching Authentic. But he had a serious problem—his OPT work authorization was about to expire so he’d have to return to Canada and leave behind his entrepreneurial aspirations and life in the US.

Everything changed when Litherland heard about Deel Immigration (at the time known as Legalpad) at a founder event in New York. After hearing that another founder with a similar background got an O-1 visa in a few days, Litherland immediately booked a call with Deel’s team.

It was quickly apparent that an O-1A visa with Deel Immigration was the right solution because of Deel’s:

Rapport as a leader in O-1 visas in the startup community
Honest and realistic assessment of his case
Full-service immigration solutions
Supportive customer service and immigration team

Despite all the doubts and fears other immigration attorneys had planted in his mind, Litherland received approval on his O-1A within three days of submitting his application with Deel.

"Securing the O-1 visa had a profound impact, offering peace of mind. It freed up mental space and time, allowing me to focus more on my business." — Quinn Litherland, Founder & CEO, Authentic

An established business with global ambitions: 100+ employees

By the time your business reaches this stage of growth, you likely have the ability to bring some HR and payroll roles back in-house and can negotiate group health plans with carriers on your own to get rates you previously could only access with a PEO.

But like many companies, you may also end up with several disjointed HR and payroll systems, resulting in fragmented reporting, higher costs, and a higher risk of error.

Combining Deel US Payroll and Deel Global Payroll

Deel offers an all-in-one solution for managing both US payroll and global payroll within a single platform, simplifying operations across your organization and regions.

Automation, integration, and standardized processes:

Automation and integration play a pivotal role in streamlining workflows and ensuring accuracy in payroll processing. Deel's platform integrates with over 80 systems, automating tasks and minimizing manual errors. Standardized processes further enhance user experience and minimize the risk of human errors, providing a cohesive and efficient payroll management system.

Additionally, Deel's Payroll Connect feature allows you to consolidate all payroll data into one Gross to Net report, combining Deel reports with those from third-party providers to unify reporting across all entities.

Global support and compliance management

Deel's team of in-house payroll managers and legal experts ensure compliance with local regulations, whether you stay in the US or want to open an international entity. Quarterly audits further strengthen compliance measures, providing you with peace of mind, while access to 24/7 customer support ensures you receive fast and effective help, no matter your time zone.

Comprehensive reporting

Deel’s global reporting features provide holistic insights into your payroll spend, payments, and other key metrics for informed decision-making. With detailed payroll packages for each cycle, payroll reports in a unified currency, and a powerful analytics dashboard, you get a comprehensive overview of your international payroll operations.

Efficient onboarding

Looking for quick implementation and employee onboarding? With Deel Global Payroll, you can be up and running between one to three months, depending on your number of employees and country-specific complexities. Meanwhile, traditional payroll vendors can take up to eight months.

deel-global-payroll-process-comparison

Simplified payroll processing and flexible funding options

Say goodbye to unnecessary delays with Deel Global Payroll’s direct payroll process. No middlemen or third parties are involved—just submit your payroll report, and Deel will process it with our in-house payroll managers, handling all local taxes and deductions to prepare a payroll package. Once you approve the package and fund your payroll, your employees will be paid.

Plus, you can choose to fund payroll directly or tap into Deel's treasury services, giving you the flexibility you need to manage your finances as you like.

See how you can scale your business with Deel

While this article outlines the most common ways companies use Deel during expansion, you can tailor Deel's product suite to your unique needs.

Expanding your small business in the US has never been easier than with Deel. Whether you’re a domestic or international company, Deel offers a range of services designed to support growing teams and ensure full compliance across 100 countries.

With Deel, you benefit from:

A transparent pricing model gives you control and understanding at every step
Flexibility to choose your benefits providers, allowing you to continue working with existing partners seamlessly
White-glove implementation processes, supported by a team of dedicated managers and specialists
24/7 in-app chat support and a 1.25-minute response time
Expert in-house knowledge of US state registration, payroll, taxes, labor laws, and other regulations

Book a 30-minute demo with an expert today to learn more about using Deel at every stage of growth.