How much does EPLI cost?

Most small businesses pay between $67 and $416/month for $1M EPLI, with a median near $67/month per Insureon. Premium scales heavily with employee count, state of operations, and industry. California-based employers with hourly workforces cluster at the high end; small office-based services in low-litigation states cluster at the low end.

Do small businesses need EPLI?

Any business with employees has exposure. The typical defense cost on even a meritless harassment or wrongful-termination claim runs $25K–$75K. Usually 5–15x annual EPLI premium. Most carriers offer EPLI starting at 1–5 employees, but the policy becomes economically obvious around 10 employees. Businesses operating in California, New York, or with material hourly workforces benefit at lower employee counts.

What does EPLI cover?

Standard EPLI covers: wrongful termination, discrimination claims (race, sex, age, disability, etc.), sexual harassment, retaliation, failure to promote, hostile work environment, wage-and-hour violations (where included. Varies by carrier), and defense costs for related EEOC charges. Some forms also cover claims by third parties (e.g., a customer alleging discrimination by an employee).

Is EPLI the same as workers compensation?

No, different exposures. Workers compensation covers physical injuries on the job. EPLI covers employment-practices wrongful acts (termination, discrimination, harassment), the legal/HR side. Most businesses with employees need both.

Does EPLI cover wage-and-hour claims?

It depends on the policy form. Some carriers include wage-and-hour as a sub-limited coverage ($100K–$250K typical sub-limit). Others exclude it entirely. For California operations specifically, wage-and-hour exposure is material. Make sure your EPLI form addresses it explicitly or quote standalone wage-and-hour insurance separately.

Are EPLI premiums tax-deductible?

Yes. EPLI premium is deductible as an ordinary and necessary business expense per IRS Publication 535. Same treatment as other business policies.

Can I buy EPLI as part of a BOP?

Some BOPs offer EPLI as a sub-limited endorsement (typically $25K–$100K), which is materially below the typical defense-cost-only spend on a real claim. For meaningful coverage, buy a standalone EPLI form (or combined D&O+EPLI) at $1M+ limits. The BOP endorsement is better than nothing but rarely sufficient.

Does EPLI cover ICE / immigration audits?

Some EPLI forms include defense for I-9 audits and related immigration-enforcement matters; others exclude them. Check the policy form specifically. For industries with significant immigrant workforces (food service, agriculture, construction), this coverage matters.

Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI) cost guide

How much does Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI) cost for small businesses in 2026? Benchmarks, factors, carrier pricing, and how to save.

Updated April 27, 2026

$67

Median monthly premium for employment practices liability insurance (epli)

Source: Insureon

$67–$416

Typical monthly range across small businesses

Source: Insureon

$800–$5,000

Typical annual cost

Source: Insureon

Carriers we review for employment practices liability insurance (epli)

Coverage overview

EPLI covers employment-related claims brought by employees, former employees, and (usually) job applicants, including wrongful termination (including constructive discharge), discrimination based on protected classes (race, gender, age, religion, national origin, disability, pregnancy, and others), sexual harassment and other hostile-work-environment claims, retaliation for protected activity (whistleblowing, filing an EEOC charge, reporting harassment), failure to promote or hire, wrongful discipline, defamation and invasion of privacy in the employment context, negligent evaluation, and breach of employment contract in some forms. The policy pays defense costs (usually within limits, eroding the available payout), settlements, and judgments. Common exclusions include bodily injury and property damage (GL), intentional or dishonest acts, claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act (wage-and-hour — usually a sublimit or separate endorsement), ERISA benefits claims (fiduciary liability), workers' comp and OSHA claims, and in most forms punitive damages (where insurable by state law). Written on a claims-made basis with a retroactive date.

Any business with employees has EPLI exposure — the EEOC receives more than 60,000 charges annually, and small businesses without HR departments are disproportionately targeted because they are more likely to make procedural mistakes in hiring, discipline, and termination. EPLI is especially important for businesses with hourly workforces, high turnover, operations in employee-friendly states (CA, NY, NJ, IL), and those with fewer than 50 employees where a single claim's defense costs can threaten viability. Many policies include free access to HR hotlines and template employee handbooks.

Average cost

The median small business pays $67/month for employment practices liability insurance (epli) at standard $1M per claim / $1M aggregate is the typical small-business form limits. Most quotes fall between $67 and $416 per month. The spread reflects the seven factors below, with industry classification and revenue typically driving the largest swings.

Benchmark from Insureon EPLI cost benchmark. Quoted figures reflect bound small-business policies, not survey self-reports.

What affects your employment practices liability insurance (epli) cost

Carriers don't price employment practices liability insurance (epli) from a single number. These are the seven inputs they actually weigh, in roughly the order they move premium most.

Employee count

EPLI premium scales heavily with employee count because each employee is a potential claimant. The marginal premium per employee is highest at the entry tier (1–10 employees) and flattens as the count grows. Most small businesses pay $1,000–$3,000/year for $1M EPLI at 10 employees; $3,000–$8,000 at 50; $8,000–$25,000 at 200.

State

Plaintiff-friendly employment courts in California, New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts add 25–60% to EPLI premium versus low-litigation states. State-specific employment statutes (CA's FEHA, NY's SHRL, MA's 151B) create exposures that don't exist elsewhere.

Industry

Restaurants, retail, healthcare, and any industry with high turnover and large hourly workforces face higher rates than office-based services. Industries with histories of high-profile harassment claims (entertainment, legal, finance) carry surcharges.

HR practices

Documented HR procedures unlock material credits. Written employee handbook (5–10%), formal hiring/termination procedures (5–10%), anti-harassment training programs (5–15%), and a designated HR person or outside HR consulting (10–20%). Cumulative credits routinely total 20–40% on accounts that demonstrate real HR discipline.

Claims history

A single EPLI claim in the past 5 years typically adds 25–50% to renewal. Multiple claims usually push the account to surplus lines or non-renewal. Both formal claims and informal EEOC charges affect underwriting; carriers ask about both.

Coverage limits and retention

Standard small-business EPLI is $1M/$1M with $5K–$25K retentions. Moving from $5K to $25K retention cuts premium 15–25%. Higher limits ($2M–$5M) typically add 30–60% per million for the first jump, less for incremental layers.

Compensation structure

High-comp employees (sales, executives) drive higher per-employee EPLI cost than hourly workers because individual claim severity tracks with annual compensation. Carriers ask for compensation breakdown on accounts above 50 employees.

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Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI) cost by industry

Industry classification is the single biggest premium driver. Same coverage, same limits, but a different class code can mean a 4×–10× difference in what carriers charge.

Industry	Annual range
Marketing / Advertising Agencies	$1,500–$5,000
SaaS / Tech Companies	$2,000–$7,000
Lawyers / Law Firms	$2,500–$8,000

Showing 3 of 3 industries with carrier-validated employment practices liability insurance (epli) cost data. View all industries →

How to lower your employment practices liability insurance (epli) cost

Quote 3+ carriers at renewal. Premium spreads of 30–50% on the same coverage are routine. The cheapest carrier rotates yearly as each one's loss ratio shifts.
Bundle into a BOP if you qualify. A business owner's policy combines GL + commercial property at typically 10–25% less than the same coverages bought separately.
Check your industry classification code. Misclassification (usually a holdover from when the business looked different) is the single most common avoidable cost. A 10-minute conversation with the underwriter can be worth thousands.
Set a reasonable deductible. Where it's offered, a $500–$2,500 deductible cuts premium 5–15% with negligible exposure for most small businesses.
Pay annually, not monthly. Most carriers charge a 5–10% installment fee on monthly billing. If cash flow allows, annual saves the spread.

Top employment practices liability insurance (epli) carriers by pricing transparency

Carriers ranked against our 6-dimension methodology, filtered to those we cover that write employment practices liability insurance (epli).

Sub-threshold = fewer than 20 NAIC complaints in 3 years (data is too sparse to score reliably). N/A (broker) = not a carrier. See full methodology →

Our score	Positioning	Starting price	Coverage	Claims	AM Best	NAIC index	States	Quote channel
8.1	Broad-ladder primary carrier	GL $42/mo	9.0/10	8.0/10	A++	Sub-threshold	50 states	Direct online
7.9	Single-carrier program for SMBs	GL $68/mo	9.0/10	8.0/10	A+	Sub-threshold	50 states	Direct online
7.0	Venture-backed tech & SaaS	—	7.0/10	7.0/10	—	N/A (broker)	50 states	Broker portal
7.0	Professional services E&O focus	GL $30/mo	7.5/10	8.0/10	A	8.15	50 states	Direct online

About complaint index data: Values are 3-year averages from NAIC Consumer Information Source for commercial liability. Carriers with fewer than 20 complaints in the 3-year window are labeled "sub-threshold". A reliability call about data volume, not a finding about the carrier. Brokers (Category D) are structurally N/A. See our complete methodology.

Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI) cost FAQs

How much does EPLI cost?
Most small businesses pay between $67 and $416/month for $1M EPLI, with a median near $67/month per Insureon. Premium scales heavily with employee count, state of operations, and industry. California-based employers with hourly workforces cluster at the high end; small office-based services in low-litigation states cluster at the low end.
Do small businesses need EPLI?
Any business with employees has exposure. The typical defense cost on even a meritless harassment or wrongful-termination claim runs $25K–$75K. Usually 5–15x annual EPLI premium. Most carriers offer EPLI starting at 1–5 employees, but the policy becomes economically obvious around 10 employees. Businesses operating in California, New York, or with material hourly workforces benefit at lower employee counts.
What does EPLI cover?
Standard EPLI covers: wrongful termination, discrimination claims (race, sex, age, disability, etc.), sexual harassment, retaliation, failure to promote, hostile work environment, wage-and-hour violations (where included. Varies by carrier), and defense costs for related EEOC charges. Some forms also cover claims by third parties (e.g., a customer alleging discrimination by an employee).
Is EPLI the same as workers compensation?
No, different exposures. Workers compensation covers physical injuries on the job. EPLI covers employment-practices wrongful acts (termination, discrimination, harassment), the legal/HR side. Most businesses with employees need both.
Does EPLI cover wage-and-hour claims?
It depends on the policy form. Some carriers include wage-and-hour as a sub-limited coverage ($100K–$250K typical sub-limit). Others exclude it entirely. For California operations specifically, wage-and-hour exposure is material. Make sure your EPLI form addresses it explicitly or quote standalone wage-and-hour insurance separately.
Are EPLI premiums tax-deductible?
Yes. EPLI premium is deductible as an ordinary and necessary business expense per IRS Publication 535. Same treatment as other business policies.
Can I buy EPLI as part of a BOP?
Some BOPs offer EPLI as a sub-limited endorsement (typically $25K–$100K), which is materially below the typical defense-cost-only spend on a real claim. For meaningful coverage, buy a standalone EPLI form (or combined D&O+EPLI) at $1M+ limits. The BOP endorsement is better than nothing but rarely sufficient.
Does EPLI cover ICE / immigration audits?
Some EPLI forms include defense for I-9 audits and related immigration-enforcement matters; others exclude them. Check the policy form specifically. For industries with significant immigrant workforces (food service, agriculture, construction), this coverage matters.

Methodology & sources

Insureon: carrier benchmarks

Median monthly figures and typical-range bounds come from Insureon's published carrier-quote benchmarks. These are real bound-policy quotes, not survey self-reports. It's the most representative public dataset of small-business premium ranges.

Internal: BIC carrier pricing

Per-policy starting-price floors are sourced from the carriers we cover (10+ small-business insurers) at their published advertised rates. We don't average competitive intel; we report what each carrier publishes.

Industry: NAIC, III, SBA, IRS

Industry-wide context (NAIC complaint indices, III definitions, SBA guidance, IRS Publication 535 deductibility) sources every claim that isn't a price benchmark. State-specific WC rates, when shown, originate from each state's rating bureau (NCCI or independent).

Sources cited

Compare real prices

Stop guessing. Get an actual employment practices liability insurance (epli) price.

Tell us your industry, state, and size. We'll match you to the carriers most likely to quote employment practices liability insurance (epli) for your profile, with starting prices side-by-side.

Find your matches