Answer it in about two minutes. Enter your business numbers and what the hire costs — this works out their true cost, your break-even, your cash runway, and the scenarios, then gives you a straight verdict.
Your business
The hire
Planning estimate only — general information to help you think it through, not financial, tax, or legal advice. Your numbers stay in your browser.
Fill in the fields above for your verdict.
What happens to your monthly profit and cash runway if the hire helps bring in more work:
| Scenario | Monthly revenue | Monthly profit (after hire) | Cash runway |
|---|
Don't only model the outcome you hope for. Here's how the hire holds up if several things go wrong at once — cash-safe means you stay profitable or keep at least ~3 months of runway:
The tipping points around your result — so you know the conditions, not just the answer:
Three honest steps, all computed in your browser:
1. True monthly cost = monthly pay × (1 + payroll-tax %) + benefits + equipment/software/insurance. The headline wage is never the real cost — payroll taxes and overhead typically add 15–30%.
2. Break-even = true monthly cost ÷ (average job value × gross margin %). That’s how many extra jobs a month the hire has to help produce just to pay for themselves in profit, not revenue.
3. Cash runway = cash available ÷ true monthly cost — how long your reserves could cover the hire if no new work arrived. The verdict weighs whether your current profit already covers the cost (affordable), and if not, whether your runway is long enough to fund the ramp.
These are planning estimates using standard formulas — not financial, tax, or legal advice. Payroll-tax rates and benefit costs vary by state and situation; confirm specifics with a bookkeeper or accountant before you commit.
Usually 15–30% more than the wage. On top of gross pay you pay employer payroll taxes (about 7.65% FICA plus federal and state unemployment), and often benefits, equipment, software, and insurance. This tool adds those on top of the base pay to show the true monthly and annual cost.
Compare the hire’s true monthly cost to your current monthly profit and your cash reserves. If your profit already exceeds the true cost, the hire is likely affordable even before they bring in new work. If not, you need enough cash runway to cover the gap while new work ramps up to the break-even number of jobs shown above.
It’s how many additional sales or jobs per month the hire needs to help generate for the role to pay for itself in profit. It’s the true monthly cost divided by the profit each job contributes (job value × your gross margin) — so a higher-margin business breaks even on fewer jobs.
If your cash runway is short or demand is unproven, a part-time contractor lets you test whether the extra capacity actually produces the new work — with far less fixed cost and commitment. When the demand is steady and your profit clearly covers the true cost, an employee usually becomes the better long-term value.
Yes. It’s completely free, needs no signup, and every number stays in your browser — nothing is sent to us. You can copy a shareable link to reopen it later or send your scenario to a business partner or accountant.
Last reviewed: September 2026. Free to use, no signup — a ToolWise Digital decision engine.
Our ready-made Google Sheets & Excel trackers keep the numbers behind this decision up to date all year — each with a free phone version.
Browse the shop →Subscribe and we'll email you our Simple Monthly Budget (Google Sheets & Excel, plus a phone version) — free. Then the occasional short note on pricing, bookkeeping, and the money side of a small business. No spam — unsubscribe anytime.