Subject file HRO

PEO vs ASO vs HRO

Three acronyms cover most of the ways a small company outsources HR, and they are not interchangeable. A PEO becomes your co-employer and runs payroll under its own tax ID. An ASO processes payroll and paperwork under yours, but it is administrative help, not an HR department. HRO gives you the whole HR and payroll function, recruiting included, run by an outside team while you stay the employer and your name stays on every paycheck. This hub explains each model plainly, shows the published price bands, and includes a five-question quiz that tells you which one fits. We have a view here: for a growing company without an HR department, HRO is usually the place to start, and we say so. We also tell you the two situations where a PEO is the better answer.