Oyster

What Oyster does

Oyster is a global employment platform that enables companies to hire, pay, and manage distributed workforces across 180+ countries without establishing local legal entities. Its core product is the Employer of Record (EOR) service, which assumes legal employer responsibility for international employees on behalf of client companies, handling compliant onboarding (often in as little as 48 hours), localized contracts, benefits administration, multi-currency payroll in 140+ currencies, and tax/regulatory compliance in each jurisdiction. The platform is supplemented by Global Contractors management ($29/contractor/month), People Partner Services (white-glove HR advisory at $300/hour), Employee Benefits administration, Visa Sponsorship, US PEO services, and developer-facing tools including a public API and the Oyster Embedded product that enables HRIS, ATS, and payroll platforms to white-label or integrate Oyster's global employment infrastructure. Underlying capabilities include a centralized platform with native integrations to HRIS (HiBob, BambooHR, Workday, Personio, Humaans), ATS (Greenhouse, Ashby, Workable), and accounting systems (Quickbooks, Xero), plus AI-augmented support via Oyster AI chatbot and analytics tools like Snowflake Cortex and Microsoft Clarity.

Oyster operates on a subscription-based revenue model priced per employee ($699/month for full-time EOR) or per contractor ($29/month), with enterprise volume discounts and quote-based pricing for larger deployments. Go-to-market is multi-motion: enterprise field sales with consultative demos for mid-market and complex EOR deployments; self-service signup for contractor management; and a partner/API channel via Oyster Embedded that enables resellers and integrated platforms to earn revenue share. Customer concentration is distributed across 2,000+ companies spanning SMB and mid-market segments in technology/SaaS, media, nonprofit, fintech, and healthcare. The company is B Corp certified, GDPR compliant, and adheres to the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, supporting its positioning as a values-led, compliance-first EOR provider.

Founded in 2020 by Tony Jamous and Jack Mardack, Oyster is headquartered (legally) in Wilmington, Delaware, with a fully distributed team of 600+ employees across 60+ countries. The company has raised $291 million across six funding rounds, achieving unicorn status at its April 2022 Series C ($150M, Georgian lead, $1B+ valuation) and maintaining that status through its September 2024 Series D ($59M, Silver Lake Waterman lead, $1.2B valuation). Notable institutional investors include Stripes, Georgian, Silver Lake Waterman, Salesforce Ventures, LinkedIn, Okta, Emergence Capital, and the Slack Fund, with ServiceNow Ventures adding a $5M strategic investment in November 2024. Leadership transitioned in 2026 from founder Tony Jamous to Hadi Moussa as CEO. The company has no parent, no subsidiaries, and no public listing.

Name

Oyster

Legal name

Oyster HR, Inc.

Website

https://oysterhr.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Oyster is a global Employer of Record platform enabling companies to hire, pay, and manage distributed workforces in 180+ countries without local entity setup, serving 2,000+ SMB and mid-market clients via subscription pricing and API-driven partner channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Global Employment / Employer of Record (EOR) Software

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361)

akta.pro primary industry

Global Employer of Record (EOR) Services (BPACAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

HRIS/HCM Implementation & EOR Platform Services (BPACAHAJ), Onboarding, Offboarding & Employee Lifecycle Administration (BPACAHAL), Equity Compensation & Global Share Plan Administration (BPACAHAI), Agent of Record (AOR) for Staffing & Payrolling (BPACAHAF)

Keywords

• Employer of record services
• Global payroll software
• International HR platform
• Global contractor management
• Distributed workforce compliance

Headquarters

HQ city

Charlotte

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Employer of Record (EOR) Subscription: Monthly subscription model charging per employee hired through the EOR service. Includes compliant onboarding, payroll processing, benefits administration, and HR support. Pricing is USD 699 per employee/month for full-time employees.
2. Global Contractors Management: Subscription model for managing global contractors at USD 29 per contractor/month. Includes compliant agreements, onboarding, and payment processing.
3. People Partner Services: Hourly consulting service at USD 300 per hour for strategic HR advisory, including global HR guidance, people strategy, and hands-on execution support.
4. Oyster Embedded - Revenue Share/Reselling: Platform partners can earn revenue through standard revenue share (commission on customer usage) or reselling (own pricing and billing). Enables HR/ATS platforms to embed EOR capabilities.
5. US PEO Services: Professional Employer Organization services for US payroll, benefits, and HR outsourcing. Partners with established PEO serving 1.24M+ employees and processing $58B+ in annual payroll.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Oyster is a global employment platform that acts as an Employer of Record (EOR), enabling companies to compliantly hire, onboard, pay, and manage full-time employees and contractors in 180+ countries without establishing local legal entities. The platform combines automated employment workflows (contracts, payroll, benefits) with in-country HR experts and supports global payroll across 140+ currencies, with core pricing at USD 699 per employee per month and USD 29 per contractor per month.

Product overview

Oyster is a global employment platform providing a unified EOR-based solution for hiring, paying, and managing distributed workforces globally. The core offering is the Employer of Record (EOR) service complemented by Global Contractors management, both powered by a centralized platform with native integrations to popular HRIS, ATS, and accounting systems. Additional value-added services include People Partner Services (advisory), Employee Benefits administration, Visa Sponsorship, and US PEO services. The platform also offers a Developer API for custom integrations and Oyster Embedded for platform partners wanting to white-label global employment capabilities. Coverage spans 180+ countries with compliant employment contracts, automated payroll processing, and localized benefits.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Employer of Record (EOR) Core EOR service enabling companies to hire full-time employees in 180+ countries without setting up local entities. Oyster handles compliant onboarding, payroll, contracts, benefits, and employment responsibilities. Pricing is USD 699 per employee/month.
• Global Contractors Service for onboarding, managing, and paying contractors globally with compliant agreements and payments across multiple countries. Pricing is USD 29 per contractor/month. Includes contractor-to-full-time conversion capabilities.
• Salary Insights Compensation data tool providing salary bands and benefits information across 130+ countries to help companies build competitive and equitable compensation packages.
• People Partner Services White-glove HR advisory service providing project-based expertise including global HR guidance, people strategy, and hands-on execution support. Priced at USD 300 per hour.
• Employee Benefits Benefits administration service allowing companies to offer competitive, tailored benefits reflecting cultural norms and meeting regulatory requirements across countries.
• Visa Sponsorship Immigration support service helping global candidates obtain visas with streamlined application process and expert guidance for employee relocation.
• US PEO Professional Employer Organization service for US payroll, benefits, and HR outsourcing, with access to one of the nation's most experienced PEOs serving 1.24M+ employees and processing $58B+ in annual payroll.
• Oyster Embedded Embedded infrastructure product enabling HR, payroll, and ATS platforms to offer global hiring capabilities directly inside their own products through three integration paths: Quick Links (co-branded), Embeddable Modules (drop-in components), and Full API (native experience with white labeling).

Quantifiable outcome

• Compliant onboarding in as fast as 48 hours in 180+ countries
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration14 records

AI capability4 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• RoamrminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRoamr for Friends enables employees to stay with friends or colleagues during work trips. Oyster uses this platform to reduce travel expenses and improve employee experience for distributed teams.
• Everest GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEverest Group conducted research commissioned by Oyster on global employment complexity, finding that automation alone cannot address global hiring complexity and organizations require integrated human expertise alongside technology.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Competitive moat7 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/HeyOyster
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@oysterhr
• Facebookfacebook.com/oysterhr
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/oysterhr
• Instagraminstagram.com/oysterhr

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds6 records

Investors22 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Oyster