Deel vs 1099Policy

Deel manages the contractor. 1099Policy closes the insurance gap.

Deel handles contracts, invoices, tax documents, classification tools, and payments in more than 120 currencies. When a US assignment requires contractor-held insurance and no valid policy is already in place, 1099Policy lets an eligible contractor bind assignment-specific coverage in their own name, without replacing Deel.

Per-assignment coverageAssignment-specific COIsNo W-2 conversionWorks alongside Deel
Where the two differ

Deel administers the requirement. 1099Policy places the missing coverage.

FeatureDeel Contractor ManagementSystem of record1099PolicyPlaces coverage
Primary jobContractor onboarding, contracts, invoicing, tax documents, classification tools, and global paymentsInsurance placement and compliance proof for eligible US contractor assignments
COI administrationSets insurance requirements, collects COIs at onboarding, sends renewal reminders, parses and reports on certificatesValidates existing COIs and monitors coverage requirements and expirations
When no valid policy existsThe published $49 plan does not list automatic, assignment-specific workers' comp or liability placement; Deel offers insurance access through partnersEligible contractors can bind assignment-specific coverage in their own name
Published starting prices (Aug 2026)$49/contractor/mo management, $325/mo Contractor of Record plus a one-month deposit, $125/mo US PEO, $599/mo EORPer-assignment premium priced to the work, plus a platform fee that is a fraction of a percent of spend
ClassificationDirect-contractor tools help assess risk; CoR, EOR, PEO, and Premium address different classification or employment needsDoes not change the worker's classification; insurance and classification are separate questions
Best fitManaging and paying a global workforceClosing US assignment insurance gaps without replacing the system of record
The honest version

When Deel is exactly what you need.

We'll be direct, the same way we are on the EOR comparison: Deel is the right tool for real problems. If you're paying contractors in forty countries, Deel's payment rails are excellent. And when the problem is the engagement model itself, classification, legal employment, payroll, benefits, or operating in a country where you lack an entity, Deel's Contractor of Record, EOR, and US PEO products address it directly. CoR shifts defined classification-related risk to Deel, subject to eligibility and contract terms; EOR makes Deel the legal employer. Neither arrangement transfers every operational, worksite, or third-party liability, but restructuring the engagement is a legitimate thing to pay for when the engagement is the problem.

When the worker is properly classified and the narrower problem is missing contractor-held insurance, the gap is cheaper to close than a restructuring: an eligible contractor binds assignment-specific coverage in their own name, and the certificate is on file before the work starts. The requirement gets addressed without changing the engagement model.

See the full EOR comparison →

Better together

Already on Deel? Keep it.

1099Policy plugs into a Deel-based workflow rather than replacing it. Deel stays the system of record for the contract and the payment; for eligible, approved contractors, 1099Policy binds coverage when the engagement is activated and issues the COI before day one.

Wire it into the same workflow

Your insurance requirement in Deel stops being a document chase: for eligible, approved contractors the certificate exists as soon as the assignment does. Developers can map Deel contract events to 1099Policy quotes, policies, and certificates through our API.

See the Deel integration guide →

What the coverage is

Workers' comp, general liability, and specialty lines, carrier-backed and written per assignment in the contractor's own name. Coverage is subject to underwriting, contractor eligibility, work classification, and state availability. Workers' comp is available in 46 states; North Dakota, Ohio, Washington, and Wyoming run monopolistic state funds. Construction trades aren't covered.

Explore workers' comp →
Illustrative example

A staffing lead's Tuesday, with both tools.

The challenge

A marketing agency staffs 40 US creative contractors through Deel. A new retail-activation project needs eight of them on-site next week, and the client's MSA requires workers' comp and $1M general liability from every worker on the floor. Six of the eight have no coverage. The old options: hold the start date while contractors shop for annual policies they don't want, or route six people through a $325-per-month Contractor of Record conversion for a three-week project.

The solution

With 1099Policy attached to the same workflow, each of the six eligible contractors picks up per-assignment coverage in their own name during onboarding, and certificates issue before the start date.

The result

The client's compliance team gets eight COIs tied to the actual engagement, the project starts on time, and nobody's classification changed.

Common questions

What teams ask when they compare Deel.

What Deel covers, what it doesn't, what each costs, and how the two platforms work together.

Deel's published $49 Contractor plan includes contractor management, payments, invoicing, tax-document support, and classification tools. Deel also says it can administer insurance requirements and COIs, and it offers access to insurance through other products and partners. What the standard plan does not list is automatic, assignment-specific workers' comp or liability coverage issued in each direct contractor's name. That is the gap 1099Policy is designed to address.

Deel's published starting prices as of August 2026: contractor management at $49 per contractor per month, Contractor of Record at $325 per contractor per month plus a deposit equal to one month of the contractor's payment, US PEO at $125 per employee per month, and EOR at $599 per employee per month. Enterprise agreements and negotiated terms can change the actual cost, and US PEO is a co-employment product for W-2 employees rather than insurance for direct 1099 contractors. 1099Policy prices insurance per assignment as a small percentage of the contractor's compensation, plus a platform fee that is a fraction of a percent of spend routed through the platform. One customer, a national talent firm, saved about $103,000 in a year versus the EOR route for its uninsured-contractor population.

Yes, and many teams should. Deel keeps contracts, invoices, and global payouts; for eligible, approved contractors, 1099Policy binds coverage per assignment and issues the COI before work starts. The Deel guide in our vendor guides shows how Deel contract webhooks can trigger coverage automatically through our API.

Not if the contractor is properly classified. CoR shifts defined classification-related risk to Deel, subject to eligibility and contract terms, and EOR makes Deel the legal employer; neither arrangement transfers every operational, worksite, or third-party liability, and both restructure the working relationship. Those products matter when a role fails classification tests or sits in a country where you have no entity. If the narrower problem is missing contractor-held insurance and audit-ready proof of it, per-assignment coverage addresses that requirement without changing the engagement model. Insurance does not change the worker's classification; insurance and classification are separate questions.

It depends on the work, the state, the contractor's business structure, and the client or worksite agreement. Common contractual requirements include general liability and, for some assignments, workers' compensation or other work-injury coverage. The hiring organization should set the requirement for the assignment and verify the coverage before work begins. 1099Policy writes each line per assignment in the contractor's own name, subject to underwriting, eligibility, and state availability: workers' comp is available in 46 states (North Dakota, Ohio, Washington, and Wyoming run monopolistic state funds), and construction trades aren't covered.

Call to action section for 1099Policy

Cover the workforce Deel pays.

Per-assignment insurance in each contractor's own name, with the COI on file before work starts. Keep the platform, keep the 1099 relationship, close the gap.