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Subscription Plan and Billing Methods
Subscription Plan and Billing Methods

What are the difference between payment plans and how does change in headcount affect my billing?

Karl avatar
Written by Karl
Updated over a week ago

This article will introduce how Workstem calculates billing from the following three aspects:

  1. The difference between monthly payment and annual payment

  2. How does the system calculate billing

  3. How does change in the number of headcount affect billing

Monthly Payment vs. Annual Payment, Which One Should I Choose?

Currently, Workstem offers two subscription plans:

  • Attendance Plus

  • Payroll Pro

These two can be paid in two kinds of payment cycles: monthly payment and annual payment. The billing details are as follows:

Advantages of Monthly Payment Cycle:

  1. Low starting cost.

    Only need to pay for one month for the first time.

  2. Flexible.

    If the number of headcount changes, the next billing cycle will automatically calculate according to the change in headcount.

The monthly payment method is suitable for companies with frequent changes in the number of employees (such as retail, service, F&B or part-time). The cost of using the system depends on the specific number of active headcount each month.

Compared to the annual payment model, where there's no refund for the decrease in the number of employees, the monthly payment may cost you less. Considering the monthly payment model requires frequent payment, the most ideal payment method is to use a credit card to automatically be billed online.

Advantages of the Annual Payment Cycle:

  1. Generally, we offer a discount of about 10% for the annual payment.

  2. Different payment methods are offered for annual payment such as credit card, bank transfer, cheque and Paypal, etc.

The annual payment method is very suitable for companies with a relatively stable number of employees. It will be cheaper for you in the long run, Customers only need to make payment once a year, reducing your operational cost.

How does Workstem calculate billing? How do changes in the number of employees affect billing?

The billing is calculated according to the actual number of active employees and the price is charged in a group of 5 employees. If there are less than 5 active employees, it will be round up to 5.

Monthly Payment Cycle:

  • Whether the number of employees changes, you will not be charged immediately for that month

  • The system will generate the next billing based on the number of active employees on the last day of the current cycle in the system

Annual Payment Cycle:

  • There's no refund for the number of employees that was terminated/removed from the system

  • The system automatically charges a one-time bill when the total number of employees exceeds the number paid for in your current subscription plan.

Billing Cases

A company has 13 employees and started using Attendance Plus package on January 1st. How will they be billed for the first time? If there are employees who join or leave the company during the month, how does the system calculate billing?

1. Monthly payment cycle: from 1st of each month to the last day of the month is a billing period.

  • The company will be charged HKD37 per employee per month, and HKD185 for a group (5 employees) .

  • First payment: 13 = 5+5+3, counted as three groups, and the total cost is HKD185*3 = HKD555.

  • If the number of employees in the month is reduced to 10, no refund will be made immediately. But starting from the next month, 10 people will be charged going forward HKD185*2 = HKD370.

  • If the number of employees increases to 16, there's no additional charge for the 3 newly-added headcount in the month. But starting from next month, it will be charged based on the headcount of 16 people, which is HKD185*4 = HKD740

2. Annual payment cycle: January 1-December 31 is a billing period.

  • The company will be charged HKD33 per employee per month and HKD 396 per year. The total price for one group (5 employees) is HKD396*5=HKD1980.

  • First payment: 13 = 5+5+3, counted as three groups, and the total cost is HKD1980*3 = HKD5940

  • If the number of employees is reduced, no refund will be made during the year

  • If the number of employees increases from 13 to 15, the total cost remains the same

If the number of employees increases by more than 15 people, the system will immediately generate a one-off charge for the newly-added headcount. The number of newly-added employees will not be charged for a whole year.

The cost will be calculated proportionally based on the duration from adding those employees to the end of the current billing period.

In the second year, the cost will be calculated according to the number of active headcount at the end of the billing period.

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