DecisionHR is a St. Petersburg based PEO, operating under one brand since 1996, bundling payroll, workers' compensation, HR and benefits for small and mid-sized employers. A December 2021 company statement put it at more than 30,000 worksite employees across 42 states, and it carries three certified entities on the IRS CPEO list, effective 1/1/2017. In November 2025 Coalesce Capital acquired a majority stake, management retaining ownership; before that it was a wholly owned subsidiary of Bankers Financial Corporation. It has also been acquiring: Modern Business Associates in 2022, Paymasters in 2026.
Companies start shopping alternatives for a short list of reasons. The renewal moved faster than payroll did. A CFO or lender asked for ESAC accreditation, which DecisionHR does not have. The recapitalization and acquisitions raise a fair question about whose service team you get next year.
None is a bad reason to look, and none is an automatic reason to leave. What follows is where each alternative wins, where it loses, and what switching really costs.
Quick comparison at a glance
| Provider | Best fit for | Pricing posture | Service model | Strength | Watch-out |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DecisionHR | Florida and Southeast employers, 10 to 250 employees | Quote-only PEPM or percent of payroll | Regional service teams | Three IRS-certified entities; one brand since 1996 | No ESAC; 2025 recapitalization |
| FrankCrum | Construction and trades, Florida and Southeast SMBs | Bundled admin fee, quoted per client | Hands-on regional service | Owns its workers' comp carrier; pay-as-you-go | Neither CPEO nor ESAC; Southeast-weighted |
| CoAdvantage | Small to mid-size companies, 10 to 250 employees | PEPM | Regional teams, unified HCM stack | Comp pooling plus CPEO and ESAC | PrimePay merger integrating through 2026 |
| Engage PEO | Compliance-heavy mid-market, 25 to 500 employees | Quote-only PEPM | Client teams with staff attorneys | Licensed employment-law attorneys on staff | No mobile app; no international hiring |
| Paychex PEO | Multi-state and seasonal workforces, 5 to 500 | PEPM or percentage of payroll | Pooled service center | Multi-state payroll and tax depth | Add-on fees; consistency varies by region |
| ADP TotalSource | Mid-market multi-state employers, 50 to 500 | Percentage of payroll or PEPM | Call-center pods with named contacts | Benefits buying power and compliance depth | Percent pricing grows with payroll; rigid terms |
FrankCrum
FrankCrum is the closest geographic peer: family-owned since 1981, based in Clearwater, serving the same Florida and Southeast small-business market with payroll, HR, workers' compensation, compliance and EPLI in one bundled rate.
Where it beats DecisionHR is workers' compensation, and in the harder classes it is not close. FrankCrum owns its comp carrier, Frank Winston Crum Insurance, so comp is underwritten in house: appetite for blue-collar classes other PEOs decline, and pay-as-you-go premiums with no large down payment. DecisionHR places its program through an A rated carrier, which works, but a placement is not the same as owning the paper.
Where DecisionHR wins is credentials: three entities on the IRS CPEO list, against a provider on neither the CPEO list nor the ESAC directory. For many small employers that gap is theoretical; for a CFO who screens on certification, it is a hard stop. FrankCrum is also Southeast-weighted, with newer expansion into California, Texas, Arizona and Georgia.
CoAdvantage
CoAdvantage matches DecisionHR's profile more directly than anyone else while adding the credential DecisionHR lacks. Founded in 1997, around 110,000 worksite employees, aimed at the same 10 to 250 band and the same markets, both CPEO certified and ESAC accredited, and merged with PrimePay in June 2025.
Where it beats DecisionHR is that credential stack and the comp pooling. If someone in your capital structure asked for ESAC, CoAdvantage answers it without national-brand pricing. In a higher-risk industry the pooling difference alone can carry a switch. Pricing is PEPM, typically $120 to $180 per employee per month, which gives you an anchor for testing a DecisionHR quote.
Where DecisionHR wins is stability of the story. The PrimePay integration is still early, with roadmap and rep coverage in flux through 2026, and fewer benefit carrier options is a standing limitation. DecisionHR is mid-transition too, so this is a comparison of two moving targets: ask both who your service team will be next year.
Engage PEO
Engage PEO is a different kind of alternative. Founded in 2011, privately held, operating in all 50 states, targeting 25 to 500 employees, carrying both CPEO and ESAC, and staffing licensed employment-law attorneys who are paired with every client.
Where it beats DecisionHR is HR-legal advisory. DecisionHR's compliance posture is solid and the CPEO status backs it, but the service model is conventional: HR generalists, payroll specialists, benefits administration. Engage puts a lawyer's phone number in that stack, which is the reason firms with real employment-law exposure move.
Where DecisionHR wins is fit at the small end. Engage is not ideal under about 15 employees; DecisionHR's intake ranges start at one. Engage has no mobile app and no public price points.
Paychex PEO
Paychex PEO is the national option when the problem is multi-state complexity rather than price or service. In payroll since 1971, it sits on one of the deepest payroll and tax compliance benches in the industry. It is CPEO certified and ESAC accredited.
Where it beats DecisionHR is payroll machinery across many states and seasonal workforces. Operating in 42 states is not the same as running a bench built for constant multi-state churn. If you already run Paychex payroll, implementation friction drops materially.
Where DecisionHR wins is price posture and service intimacy. Paychex PEO typically runs $140 to $220 per employee per month, add-on fees are common, and service comes from a pooled center rather than a team that knows your account. Recent investor commentary flagged the PEO segment as underperforming relative to the broader business, and deep HR consulting is not what Paychex is built for. It fits multi-state and seasonal employers who will trade high-touch service for infrastructure.
ADP TotalSource
ADP TotalSource is the largest PEO in the country by worksite employees, in the 600,000 to 720,000 range, and it is where a DecisionHR client goes when benefits are the driver. It is CPEO certified and ESAC accredited, and targets 50 to 500 employees.
Where it beats DecisionHR is benefits buying power. DecisionHR's is a stability story, built on a stated record of single-digit medical renewals for most enrolled groups. TotalSource's is a scale story: plan designs priced off one of the largest pools in the country, plus a compliance bench for regulated industries.
Where DecisionHR wins is cost and flexibility. TotalSource commonly prices as a percentage of payroll, typically 2 to 4 percent, or as PEPM at roughly $150 to $250 per employee per month, and percentage pricing grows with every raise. Terms tend to be rigid, implementation can be slow, and service runs through call-center pods, so a 40-person employer happy with its regional team will find TotalSource pricier and less personal. Our ADP TotalSource review goes deeper.
Not sure which of these fits your headcount and state? Get a free side-by-side of the PEOs that fit your company →
Other PEOs worth considering
PrestigePEO
Long Island based, founded in 1998, and one of the relatively small group carrying both CPEO and ESAC. High-touch at the 10 to 100 employee end, with strong service in professional services and trades. The limitation is geography: the concentration is Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.
G&A Partners
Privately held, CPEO and ESAC, founded in 1995, with around 130,000 worksite employees after its 2026 acquisition of Ethan Allen HR Services. It competes on personalized service teams rather than call-center support, prices around $130 to $200 per employee per month, and is strongest in Texas and the Sun Belt. Third-party review scores are mixed, so ask for references.
When you should NOT switch from DecisionHR
Leaving only makes sense when the math is clearly better and the disruption is justified. Several situations argue for staying, even when the renewal stings.
You are mid-contract. DecisionHR uses annual agreements as a rule, but the notice and exit language is what matters, not the headline term. Breaking a term early usually means liquidated damages or accelerated fees, and that cost eats the savings of any reasonable alternative.
You are mid-plan-year. A mid-year switch means a W-2 split for every employee, two sets of tax filings, a 401(k) blackout during the plan transfer, mid-calendar benefits re-enrollment, and a COBRA handoff. Employees notice, finance notices, HR loses weeks. If renewal is more than four months out, wait for it.
Your SUTA position is favorable. Under a PEO the state unemployment rates you pay are the PEO's, not your own. If DecisionHR's rates beat the alternative's, that is a real number you are giving up, and it is rarely on page one of a proposal.
Your renewals have been stable. If medical renewals have come in single-digit and employees like the plans, an alternative needs to be meaningfully cheaper before re-shopping is worth it. A modest admin saving does not survive a benefits step-down.
You are mid-acquisition or mid-hiring-sprint. Lock the workforce, then change the infrastructure.
Alternatives to DecisionHR without co-employment
A growing share of people searching for DecisionHR alternatives are not looking for another PEO. They want out of co-employment itself: the PEO as employer of record on the W-2, the pooled medical plan, the shared comp policy. Three real options.
ASO, administrative services only. The same payroll, HR and compliance administration, but you stay the employer of record and buy benefits and comp in your own name. You keep your own plans and carriers, and you give up the pooled pricing that is usually the largest line in a PEO's favor. For groups under 50, ASO often costs more in total even though the admin fee is lower.
Payroll software plus a benefits broker. Gusto for payroll and HR, with a separate broker placing medical, dental and comp. Cheapest in software cost, most work for you, and benefits priced on your own group: fine for a healthy census, painful for a small or older one. Right for a company with an in-house HR person.
EOR for the out-of-state minority. If co-employment exists only because of a few employees in states where you have no entity, an EOR for those people can replace the PEO. It gets expensive per head, so it works only when that group is small.
How to decide: put the DecisionHR renewal, an ASO quote and a payroll-plus-broker quote on one page, at total annual cost including benefits and comp, not admin fees. Within a few percent, the control is usually worth it. At 10 percent or more, the pooled pricing is doing real work and the answer is a different PEO, not no PEO.
What to compare line-by-line
Most comparisons fall apart because buyers compare the headline PEPM and skip the rest. Here is what belongs on the spreadsheet.
- Admin fee structure. PEPM versus percentage of payroll. Percentage fees grow with raises; PEPM does not. DecisionHR quotes either way depending on the comp classes, so price both.
- Master health plan versus carve-out. Pooled plan, or your own benefits run through the PEO as administrator? Carve-outs preserve design but lose pricing leverage.
- Workers' comp master policy versus your own. A master policy bundles you into the PEO's experience modifier and rates; your own preserves your mod but costs more to administer. It is the biggest swing factor here.
- CPEO status. Federal recognition and employment tax certainty. Non-certified PEOs operate cleanly too, but wage-base treatment at a mid-year transition differs.
- ESAC accreditation. A separate financial assurance program. DecisionHR does not carry it; four of the five alternatives do. Decide whether it is a requirement or a preference before it becomes an argument.
- Technology stack. Self-service, manager workflows, reporting, integration with accounting and time systems. Demo it with real data.
- Dedicated service versus ticketing. Named contacts, or a pooled center with a case number? Both work, and they do not cost the same.
- Exit terms. Notice period, termination fees, cooperation language, data return, COBRA handoff.
- Renewal cap language. Is there a contractual cap on year-over-year increases? Most PEOs do not offer one, and the ones that do are showing you something.
- EPLI bundling. Coverage limits, deductible, included or sold separately.
- SUTA spread. The PEO's state unemployment rates versus your own. Sometimes cheaper, sometimes you are subsidising other clients.
Not sure whether your pricing is competitive? Request a current-PEO audit and we will tell you what the market charges for your census.
How to do the comparison without burning months
The standard process takes 60 to 90 days, runs five sales cycles in parallel, and ends with a spreadsheet nobody trusts. The faster way starts by being honest about which alternatives are real for you. ADP TotalSource is not a real conversation for a 25-person employer on a tight budget, and Engage PEO is not one for a 12-person shop. A short fit assessment kills three of the five quotes.
Then pull the data the alternatives need, because most of the delay is waiting on information a broker should have requested on day one: full census with compensation, state and comp class code; current enrollment and the last two renewals; comp loss runs and your experience modifier; 401(k) details; and your current invoice with the full fee breakdown. Then compare like for like: same plan tier, same contribution strategy, same comp structure.
Skip the five-vendor gauntlet. Start with a 10-minute questionnaire and we will run the panel at no cost to you, or browse the DecisionHR profile and the provider list.
What switching actually takes: the implementation timeline
The disruption is easy to underestimate, so plan for it. For most small and mid-sized businesses, implementation runs about four to eight weeks from a signed agreement to the first PEO-processed paycheck; employers with more locations and carriers take longer. The sequence is predictable: a signed Client Services Agreement opens a benefits enrollment window of two to four weeks, then payroll cutover, then the first paycheck.
The work divides cleanly, and it is worth confirming that division in writing before you sign. The incoming PEO does the heavy lifting: state registrations, tax setup, benefits enrollment communications. You provide the employee data, the carrier elections and the cutover decisions. A plan-year switch is the clean case; a mid-year switch adds complexity mainly because of W-2 reporting, since every employee ends up with one W-2 from the outgoing PEO and a second from the incoming one.
One detail specific to leaving DecisionHR: because it is a certified PEO, wage-base treatment at a mid-year transition is cleaner moving to another CPEO than to a non-certified provider. That is a question for your accountant, not a reason to rule FrankCrum out. Our notes on switching PEOs cover the rest.
FAQ
Is DecisionHR a certified PEO?
Yes. DecisionHR has three certified entities on the IRS CPEO list, all effective 1/1/2017, which matters for employment tax certainty at a mid-year transition. It does not carry ESAC accreditation, a separate financial assurance program. If your CFO or lender screens on ESAC, that gap is the usual reason buyers stop short of signing.
Does the Coalesce Capital deal change anything for DecisionHR clients?
It might, and that is the honest answer. Coalesce Capital took a majority stake in November 2025 with management retaining ownership, and DecisionHR has been acquiring in parallel: Modern Business Associates in 2022 and Paymasters in 2026. Deals like these usually mean new systems, new service-team assignments, or a revisited renewal philosophy. Ask before renewal who owns your account next year.
Will my benefits get worse if I leave DecisionHR?
Not necessarily, but you have to design for it. DecisionHR publicly claims eight consecutive years of single-digit medical renewals for most enrolled groups, and if your group is one of them that stability is worth protecting. ADP TotalSource carries more buying power on paper; the regional CPEOs are comparable rather than better. Test it like-for-like at the same tier and contribution strategy.
What does it cost to leave DecisionHR?
It depends where you are in the agreement. DecisionHR uses annual agreements as a rule, so at renewal with proper notice the cost is mostly operational: implementation, internal HR time, employee communication and benefits gap planning. Breaking a term early is a different question, and the answer is in your Client Services Agreement. Read the termination and notice sections first.
How long does it take to switch to a new PEO?
For most small and mid-sized businesses, implementation runs about four to eight weeks from a signed agreement to the first PEO-processed paycheck; mid-market employers with more locations and carriers take longer. The path is a signed Client Services Agreement, then a benefits enrollment window of roughly two to four weeks, then payroll cutover, then the first PEO-processed paycheck. The incoming PEO handles state registrations, tax setup, and benefits enrollment communications; you provide the employee data, the carrier elections, and the cutover decisions. Mid-year switches add complexity, mainly because of W-2 reporting, so the cleanest transitions are timed to the plan year.
What hidden costs should I watch for in a PEO agreement?
The ones that most often get missed are one-time implementation or setup fees, payroll-related charges (off-cycle runs, manual checks, amended filings, custom reports), minimum monthly fees, termination fees and early-exit penalties, year-end processing fees, HR project fees, state registration fees, and benefits administration charges. Renewal increases are the biggest one: attractive first-year pricing can climb at renewal, so ask in writing how renewals are handled. The defense is simple: request a full fee schedule and a sample invoice before signing, and ask the provider to identify every charge that could apply to your company.
The practical takeaway
DecisionHR is a credible regional PEO with a long single-brand history and genuine IRS certification, and for many Florida and Southeast employers it remains the right answer. The reasons to look elsewhere are specific: comp economics FrankCrum's owned carrier handles better, an ESAC requirement CoAdvantage or Engage PEO satisfies, multi-state complexity that suits Paychex, or benefits depth that points to ADP TotalSource. Get proposals from the whole market rather than the three names that called you back, read the contracts, and plan for the year-two renewal before you sign year one.
If you would rather have the comparison done for you: tell us about your company and an advisor comes back with the two or three PEOs worth quoting, at no cost to you.