specification: FinOps Framework
specificationVersion: '1.0'
schema: https://www.finops.org/framework/
provider: Salsa
providerId: salsa
created: '2026-07-01'
modified: '2026-07-01'
reconciled: false
tags:
- Payroll
- Embedded Finance
- Payroll as a Service
- Fintech
- FinOps
- Cost Management
- FOCUS
description: >-
  FinOps view of Salsa embedded payroll spend for a platform partner. Salsa
  bills partners under a sales-quoted contract, typically per-active-paid-worker
  per month (PEPM) plus a platform base fee, rather than per-API-call. The unit
  cost driver is the count of active paid workers across the partner's employers
  each pay cycle, so cost scales with the partner's payroll volume, not with API
  request throughput. Money-movement (employer funding and worker disbursement)
  is a pass-through of the actual payroll dollars and is separate from Salsa
  platform fees.
notes: >-
  Public rates are not published; PEPM and base fees are sales-quoted. Verify the
  exact billing metric (active vs. paid workers), base fee, and any off-cycle or
  transaction fees against the partner agreement during reconciliation.
sources:
- https://www.salsa.dev/
- https://www.salsa.dev/product
- https://docs.salsa.dev/docs/building-with-salsa
- https://focus.finops.org/focus-specification/v1-3/
alignedWith:
  framework: FinOps Foundation Framework
  frameworkUrl: https://www.finops.org/framework/
  dataSpec: FOCUS
  dataSpecVersion: '1.3'
  dataSpecUrl: https://focus.finops.org/focus-specification/v1-3/
publisherName: Salsa
serviceCategory: Payroll and Embedded Finance
billingModel:
  pricingCategory: Subscription-Based
  billingFrequency: Monthly
  billingCurrency: USD
  chargeCategories:
  - Usage
  - Purchase
  - Adjustment
focusColumns:
  ServiceName: Salsa Embedded Payroll
  ServiceCategory: Payroll and Embedded Finance
  ProviderName: Salsa
  PublisherName: Salsa
  InvoiceIssuerName: Salsa
  BillingCurrency: USD
  ChargeCategory: Usage
  PricingCategory: Subscription-Based
meters:
- name: active_paid_workers
  description: Count of active paid workers per employer per pay cycle - primary PEPM cost driver.
  unit: workers
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - partner
  - employer
  - country
- name: platform_base_fee
  description: Flat monthly platform fee charged to the partner independent of worker count.
  unit: contract
  aggregation: max
  dimensions:
  - partner
- name: employer_count
  description: Number of employers provisioned by the partner platform.
  unit: employers
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - partner
- name: payroll_disbursement_dollars
  description: Pass-through payroll funds moved (employer funding and worker disbursement); not a Salsa platform fee.
  unit: USD
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - partner
  - employer
principles:
- name: Visibility
  description: Track active paid workers per employer per cycle; reconcile PEPM against the Salsa partner invoice.
- name: Allocation
  description: Map worker counts to end-customer employers so payroll platform cost can be attributed or resold per company.
- name: Optimization
  description: Right-size the paid-worker base, prune inactive employers, and confirm the billing metric (active vs. paid) to avoid overcounting.
- name: Accountability
  description: Assign an owner for the Salsa partner relationship; review PEPM spend and payroll volume monthly against budget.
maintainers:
- FN: Kin Lane
  email: kin@apievangelist.com