The People Stack › Tools › AI vs Human Cost Calculator
Cost Intelligence Tool

The real cost of hiring vs. automating.

Input any role. Get side-by-side fully-loaded cost comparisons for human FTE, AI alternative, and hybrid configuration — with break-even timelines, productivity deltas, and autonomy assessments built on real data.

BLS data current as of Q4 2024 · AI pricing updated Apr 2026
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Base salaries: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, Q4 2024.
Benefits loading: BLS ECEC survey.
AI costs: Anthropic, OpenAI published pricing + Deloitte AI deployment benchmarks.

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Cost Component
Human FTE
AI Alternative
Hybrid
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Common questions about AI vs. human costs

What is the fully loaded cost of a human employee? +
A fully loaded employee costs 1.25–1.40x their base salary. For a $70,000 salary, the true annual cost is typically $87,500–$98,000 when you include employer payroll taxes (7.65%), health insurance ($8,000–$15,000/year), 401(k) matching (3–6%), paid time off (15–20 days), recruiting fees ($5,000–$25,000), onboarding training, and management overhead (20–30% of salary). Source: BLS Employer Costs for Employee Compensation (ECEC), Q4 2024.
How much does it cost to deploy an AI alternative? +
AI deployment costs vary by role but typically run $15,000–$85,000 annually, versus $85,000–$200,000+ for a fully loaded human FTE. Costs include AI platform/API usage ($5,000–$30,000/year), integration and maintenance ($10,000–$30,000/year), human oversight (0.25–0.5 FTE), and initial setup ($5,000–$25,000 amortized over 3 years). Best-suited roles: data entry, customer support tier 1, content generation, research, scheduling. Sources: Anthropic, OpenAI published pricing; Deloitte AI Deployment Cost Benchmark 2025.
What is the typical break-even timeline for AI vs. hiring? +
Most companies reach break-even between 4–18 months. High-volume, structured roles (support, data entry, content) break even fastest (4–8 months). Knowledge-intensive roles requiring judgment (product, strategy) take 12–18+ months. Break-even accelerates with team size — replacing 5 support reps breaks even ~3x faster than replacing 1. The calculator accounts for implementation costs, ramp time, and productivity delta.
Which roles are best suited for AI vs. human? +
High AI-suitability (70–90% automatable): data entry clerks, customer support tier 1, high-volume content writers, structured research analysts, schedulers.

Hybrid-optimal (30–60% automatable): marketing coordinators, sales development reps, finance analysts, HR generalists, QA engineers.

Low AI-suitability (<20%): strategic leadership, complex B2B enterprise sales, therapists, skilled trades, executive decision-makers.

Source: McKinsey Global Institute, "The future of work in America," 2024 update; WEF Future of Jobs Report 2025.
Does this calculator use real salary data? +
Yes. Base salaries use U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program data, updated through Q4 2024. The calculator labels BLS-sourced figures clearly. AI cost estimates are based on published pricing from Anthropic and OpenAI plus deployment cost studies from Deloitte and McKinsey. All formulas are shown in the detailed breakdown.