Workers' Compensation Cost & EMR Calculator for Employers
A workers' compensation premium is calculated as annual payroll ÷ 100 × the class code rate × the employer's experience modification rate (EMR). For example, $1,000,000 of payroll at the 2024 national median rate of $1.09 per $100 with an EMR of 1.00 comes to about $10,900 a year, before discounts, fees and state assessments. An EMR above 1.00 raises the premium in proportion; below 1.00 lowers it.
Rates: Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services, 2024 study (June 2025) · No signup, no quote form — nothing you enter leaves your browser
National median rate for all industries across the 51 jurisdictions in the 2024 study.
For the class you're pricing. Insurers rate each class code's payroll separately.
Printed on your experience rating worksheet or renewal. New or small employers that don't qualify for experience rating are rated at 1.00.
Estimated premium
$10,900
per year at an EMR of 1.00
At an average mod
$10,900
per year at an EMR of 1.00
Your EMR's impact
$0
no adjustment
Effective cost: $1.09 per $100 of payroll.
At an EMR of 1.00, your claims history neither raises nor lowers this premium.
Every claim from now on counts toward your next three renewals. IncidentLog makes the first step — a complete, same-day incident report — take about 90 seconds from a job-site QR code.
Create a free accountEstimate before schedule credits or debits, premium discounts, expense constants, state assessments and minimum premiums — your insurer's quote will differ.
State-by-state workers' comp guides
Rates by business type, who has to carry coverage, and the official agency for each state, quoting the official agency and legislature pages.
51 jurisdictions · rate = 2024 all-industry index per $100 of payroll · tag = who must be covered (build = construction; rules pending = not yet verified with the state)
- Alabama, $1.11 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from 5 employees
- Alaska, $1.16 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Arizona, $0.70 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Arkansas, $0.53 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from 2 employees in construction, 3 employees in other industries
- California, $1.86 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Colorado, $1.05 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Connecticut, $1.48 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Delaware, $0.97 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- District of Columbia, $0.73 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Florida, $1.00 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from 1 employee in construction, 4 employees in other industries
- Georgia, $1.09 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from 3 employees
- Hawaii, $2.52 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Idaho, $1.10 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Illinois, $1.34 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Indiana, $0.71 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Iowa, $1.21 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Kansas, $0.91 per $100 of payroll, coverage required once annual payroll exceeds $20,000
- Kentucky, $0.76 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Louisiana, $1.41 per $100 of payroll, coverage rules under verification with the state agency
- Maine, $1.37 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Maryland, $0.89 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Massachusetts, $0.97 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Michigan, $0.90 per $100 of payroll, coverage rules under verification with the state agency
- Minnesota, $1.25 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Mississippi, $0.94 per $100 of payroll, coverage rules under verification with the state agency
- Missouri, $1.31 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from 1 employee in construction, 5 employees in other industries
- Montana, $1.34 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Nebraska, $1.12 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Nevada, $0.73 per $100 of payroll, coverage rules under verification with the state agency
- New Hampshire, $1.22 per $100 of payroll, coverage rules under verification with the state agency
- New Jersey, $2.16 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- New Mexico, $1.05 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from 1 employee in construction, 3 employees in other industries
- New York, $1.98 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- North Carolina, $0.95 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from 3 employees
- North Dakota, $0.50 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Ohio, $0.68 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Oklahoma, $1.33 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Oregon, $0.89 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Pennsylvania, $1.14 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Rhode Island, $1.38 per $100 of payroll, coverage rules under verification with the state agency
- South Carolina, $1.03 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from 4 employees
- South Dakota, $1.13 per $100 of payroll, coverage optional for most private employers
- Tennessee, $0.80 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from 1 employee in construction, 5 employees in other industries
- Texas, $0.78 per $100 of payroll, coverage optional for most private employers
- Utah, $0.63 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Vermont, $1.60 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Virginia, $0.73 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from 3 employees
- Washington, $1.35 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- West Virginia, $0.54 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from the first employee
- Wisconsin, $1.42 per $100 of payroll, coverage required from 3 employees, or from 1 employee once wages reach $500 in a calendar quarter
- Wyoming, $1.41 per $100 of payroll, coverage required for extra-hazardous industries
How is Workers' Comp Calculated?
Workers' comp is calculated as annual payroll ÷ 100 × your class code rate × your experience modification rate (EMR). Example: a restaurant with $1,000,000 of payroll, a $1.09 rate per $100 and an EMR of 1.00 pays about $10,900 a year, before discounts, fees and state assessments.
- Split payroll by class code. Every job is assigned a class code (8810 for office staff, 5551 for roofers, 9082 for restaurant staff…). Each code has its own rate per $100 of payroll, set by the state's rating bureau and your insurer.
- Manual premium: payroll ÷ 100 × class rate, added up across your classes.
- Apply your EMR. Multiply by your experience modification rate: 0.85 takes 15% off, 1.25 adds 25%.
- Adjustments: schedule credits or debits, a premium discount on larger policies, an expense constant and state taxes or assessments.
- Year-end audit: the insurer checks your actual payroll by class code and bills or refunds the difference.
What is an EMR, and how is it calculated?
The experience modification rate compares your actual workers' comp losses with the losses expected for a business of your size in your class codes. 1.00 is average. It is calculated each year by NCCI in most states, or by an independent rating bureau in others — for example the WCIRB in California and the NYCIRB in New York — from claims your insurers report.
- It uses three policy years of claims, skipping the most recent one, so a bad year affects about three renewals.
- The first part of every claim (primary losses) weighs more than the rest, so frequent small claims hurt more than a single large one.
- In most NCCI states, medical-only claims count at 30% of their cost — one reason to report every injury so it's handled before it turns into lost time.
- Employers below their state's premium threshold aren't experience rated and pay at 1.00.
From the OSHA 300 log to your insurance bill
Your EMR isn't calculated from your OSHA log — it comes from workers' comp claims. But the same injuries drive both: an injury that ends up on the 300 log as a days-away case is usually a lost-time claim too, and it will sit in your mod for three years. That's why customers prequalifying a contractor ask for both your EMR and your recordable incident rate. Check the second with the TRIR, DART and LTIR calculator.
Workers' comp rates by business type
Study rates per $100 of payroll for common class codes — the national median across jurisdictions, then the five states searched most for workers' comp costs:
| Business type (class) | U.S. median | CA | NY | NJ | FL | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Office and clerical staff (8810) | $0.11 | $0.24 | $0.18 | $0.17 | $0.13 | $0.11 |
| Retail store (8017) | $1.20 | $3.05 | $1.55 | $2.99 | $1.20 | $1.62 |
| Restaurant (full service) (9082) | $1.09 | $3.11 | $1.81 | $2.54 | $1.22 | $1.44 |
| Restaurant (fast food) (9083) | $1.09 | $3.11 | $1.87 | $2.54 | $1.24 | $1.38 |
| Hotel (all other employees) (9052) | $1.79 | $7.18 | $4.10 | $4.41 | $1.84 | $1.99 |
| Assisted living / retirement center (care staff) (8824) | $2.03 | $3.44 | $4.42 | $4.67 | $2.39 | $2.03 |
| Hospital (professional staff) (8833) | $0.82 | $1.62 | $1.59 | $1.31 | $0.82 | $0.89 |
| Electrical contractor (5190) | $2.37 | $2.78 | $5.96 | $4.75 | $3.23 | $2.93 |
| Plumbing contractor (5183) | $2.70 | $4.17 | $7.68 | $5.25 | $2.97 | $2.82 |
| Residential carpentry (up to 3 stories) (5645) | $8.71 | $8.41 | $8.95 | $25.89 | $8.24 | $38.79 |
| Roofing (5551) | $9.64 | $15.68 | $23.22 | $6.41 | $3.40 | $28.84 |
| Trucking (7219) | $5.72 | $7.94 | $12.80 | $5.15 | $2.80 | $5.96 |
On $500,000 of payroll at a 1.00 mod, that's roughly $550 a year for office staff and $48,200 for roofers at national median rates. States that don't use NCCI class codes are mapped to the closest equivalent class by the study.
Average workers' comp cost by state
All-industry index rate per $100 of payroll for rates in effect in 2023–2024, from the 2024 study (median $1.09). Rank 1 is the most expensive.
| Rank | State | Rate per $100 | % of median |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hawaii | $2.52 | 231% |
| 2 | New Jersey | $2.16 | 198% |
| 3 | New York | $1.98 | 182% |
| 4 | California | $1.86 | 170% |
| 5 | Vermont | $1.60 | 147% |
| 6 | Connecticut | $1.48 | 135% |
| 7 | Wisconsin | $1.42 | 130% |
| 8 | Wyoming | $1.41 | 130% |
| 9 | Louisiana | $1.41 | 129% |
| 10 | Rhode Island | $1.38 | 127% |
| 11 | Maine | $1.37 | 125% |
| 12 | Washington | $1.35 | 123% |
| 13 | Illinois | $1.34 | 123% |
| 14 | Montana | $1.34 | 122% |
| 15 | Oklahoma | $1.33 | 122% |
| 16 | Missouri | $1.31 | 120% |
| 17 | Minnesota | $1.25 | 114% |
| 18 | New Hampshire | $1.22 | 112% |
| 19 | Iowa | $1.21 | 110% |
| 20 | Alaska | $1.16 | 106% |
| 21 | Pennsylvania | $1.14 | 105% |
| 22 | South Dakota | $1.13 | 103% |
| 23 | Nebraska | $1.12 | 103% |
| 24 | Alabama | $1.11 | 101% |
| 25 | Idaho | $1.10 | 101% |
| 26 | Georgia | $1.09 | 100% |
| 27 | New Mexico | $1.05 | 96% |
| 28 | Colorado | $1.05 | 96% |
| 29 | South Carolina | $1.03 | 94% |
| 30 | Florida | $1.00 | 92% |
| 31 | Massachusetts | $0.97 | 89% |
| 32 | Delaware | $0.97 | 89% |
| 33 | North Carolina | $0.95 | 87% |
| 34 | Mississippi | $0.94 | 86% |
| 35 | Kansas | $0.91 | 83% |
| 36 | Michigan | $0.90 | 82% |
| 37 | Maryland | $0.89 | 82% |
| 38 | Oregon | $0.89 | 82% |
| 39 | Tennessee | $0.80 | 73% |
| 40 | Texas | $0.78 | 72% |
| 41 | Kentucky | $0.76 | 70% |
| 42 | Nevada | $0.73 | 67% |
| 43 | District of Columbia | $0.73 | 67% |
| 44 | Virginia | $0.73 | 67% |
| 45 | Indiana | $0.71 | 65% |
| 46 | Arizona | $0.70 | 64% |
| 47 | Ohio | $0.68 | 63% |
| 48 | Utah | $0.63 | 57% |
| 49 | West Virginia | $0.54 | 49% |
| 50 | Arkansas | $0.53 | 48% |
| 51 | North Dakota | $0.50 | 45% |
The index prices the same mix of work in every state — Oregon's payroll across 53 common class codes — and includes insurer expense loads, so it compares states like for like; your own rate depends on your classes. North Dakota, Ohio, Washington and Wyoming insure through monopoly state funds.
How to calculate workers' comp cost per employee
Divide the estimated premium by your headcount, or price one person directly: annual wages ÷ 100 × the rate for their class × your EMR. A cook earning $40,000 in a state with a $1.50 restaurant rate and a 1.00 mod costs about $600 a year to cover; a roofer earning $55,000 at $9.64 costs about $5,300. That gap is why class codes matter more than anything else on the policy.
Frequently asked questions
How is a workers' comp premium calculated?
Insurers divide your annual payroll for each class code by 100, multiply by that class's rate, add the classes together, then multiply by your experience modification rate (EMR). Schedule credits or debits, a premium discount for larger policies, an expense constant and state assessments are applied after that. Example: $500,000 of payroll × $2.00 per $100 × 1.10 EMR = $11,000.
What is the average cost of workers' comp insurance?
Across all industries, the median state rate in Oregon's 2024 premium rate ranking was $1.09 per $100 of payroll — about $10,900 a year on $1 million of payroll. It ranged from $0.50 in North Dakota to $2.52 in Hawaii, with New Jersey ($2.16), New York ($1.98) and California ($1.86) among the most expensive. Your own cost depends far more on your class code: office work runs about $0.11 per $100, roofing about $9.64 (national medians).
How do you calculate workers' comp cost per employee?
Estimate the full premium (payroll ÷ 100 × class rate × EMR) and divide by your headcount — or, for one person, take their annual wages ÷ 100 × the rate for their class × your EMR. A cook earning $40,000 in a state with a $1.50 restaurant rate and a 1.00 mod costs about $600 a year to cover.
What is a good EMR?
1.00 is average for your industry and size. Below 1.00 means your claims cost less than expected and earns a premium credit; above 1.00 adds a surcharge. Many general contractors and facility owners ask for your EMR when prequalifying vendors, and some won't hire contractors above a set limit, often 1.00.
How does one accident affect my EMR?
It depends on your size and the claim. The EMR compares your actual losses over three policy years, excluding the most recent one, with the losses expected for your payroll and classes. The first part of every claim (primary losses) counts more than the rest, so frequent small claims hurt more than one large claim; in most NCCI states medical-only claims count at just 30% of their cost. A smaller employer's mod moves further on a single claim because its expected losses are smaller.
How can I lower my EMR and workers' comp cost?
Prevent injuries, report every one promptly so claims are managed from day one, bring injured employees back on modified duty when it's medically appropriate, and check that payroll sits in the right class codes. Review your experience rating worksheet for claims that are closed, misreported or still reserved too high, and ask your insurer about schedule credits for a documented safety program.
How often is workers' comp payroll audited?
Typically once a year, after the policy term ends: the insurer compares the payroll you estimated at the start with what you actually paid by class code, then bills an additional premium or refunds the difference. Some larger or higher-risk policies are audited more often, and pay-as-you-go programs reconcile with each payroll run.
Is my EMR based on my OSHA 300 log?
No. The EMR is calculated by NCCI or your state's rating bureau from the workers' comp claims your insurers report, not from your OSHA log. The two usually track the same injuries, though, which is why customers prequalifying a contractor often ask for both your EMR and your OSHA recordable incident rate (TRIR).
Your mod is built from the injuries you didn't catch early
Every point of EMR above 1.00 is paid for three renewals running. IncidentLog lets crews report an injury or near miss from a job-site QR code in about 90 seconds, so you hear about it the same shift, document it while it's fresh, and see the patterns on your OSHA 300 log before they become claims. Free to start; Pro is $49/month, or $490/year billed annually.
Keep reading
Sources
- Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services — Oregon Workers' Compensation Premium Rate Ranking, Calendar Year 2024 (June 2025)
- Oregon DCBS — Workers' compensation premium index rates
- NCCI — ABCs of Experience Rating
Last reviewed 2026-10-03. An estimate for planning, not a quote or insurance advice — IncidentLog is not an insurer or broker.