How Much Should Managed IT Services Cost Your Business?

Small businesses typically pay $75–$210 per user per month for managed IT services. A 25-person company in New Jersey can expect $2,800–$4,750/month on the Standard tier; basic monitoring-only plans run lower and premium compliance plans run higher. Server management starts at $200 per server per month and scales down with volume: 10% off at 2+ servers, 20% off at 5+, and 30% off at 10+.

Yes. A full-time IT employee costs $75,000–$110,000/year in NJ/NY plus benefits, training, and tools, roughly $7,800–$12,300/month total. Managed IT for a 25-person company runs $2,800–$4,750/month and includes an entire team, 24/7 coverage, and enterprise-grade tools. That’s 40–65% less with broader expertise.

Managed IT provides proactive 24/7 monitoring, maintenance, and support for a flat monthly fee. Break-fix is reactive: you call when something breaks and pay $150–$250/hour. Managed IT typically costs 30–40% less annually and prevents most issues before they cause downtime, saving you both money and productivity.

CMMC compliance typically adds $20–$35 per user per month for gap assessments, policy documentation, security controls, and ongoing monitoring. For a 25-person government contractor, that’s an additional $500–$875/month on top of standard managed IT services. First-year certification costs for Level 2 run $75,000–$300,000 depending on your current posture. Score your posture with our free CMMC Readiness Checker.

Standard managed IT includes 24/7 monitoring, help desk support, patch management, cybersecurity (EDR and MFA), cloud management, vendor coordination, and quarterly business reviews. Premium tiers add vCIO strategic planning, compliance management, disaster recovery, and on-site support. The exact scope varies by provider and tier.

Most MSPs use per-user pricing ($75–$210/user/month), which covers all devices a user touches. Per-device pricing ($20–$60/device/month) is less common but used for environments with many shared devices. Per-user is simpler and more predictable for budgeting, which is why it’s the industry standard in 2026.

Co-managed IT is a partnership model where your internal IT team works alongside an MSP. It’s typically priced 20–40% lower than fully managed IT because your team handles some responsibilities. It’s ideal for businesses with 1–3 internal IT staff who need additional coverage, expertise, or after-hours support.

Small and mid-size businesses typically spend 4–7% of annual revenue on IT, with the median at 5% according to Gartner’s 2025 data. Managed services represent about 40–60% of total IT spend, with the rest going to licensing, hardware, telecom, and project work. Spending below 3% usually signals underinvestment in security.

In the NJ/NY market, a 50-person company typically pays $5,200–$8,800 per month, or $62,400–$105,600 per year. That works out to $104–$176 per user on the Standard tier, since volume discounts begin at 50 users. Use the calculator above to adjust for your industry, servers, and add-ons.

A 25-person business on the Standard tier at NJ/NY rates should plan for roughly $101,000–$171,000 over three years ($2,800–$4,750 per month). Most businesses treat managed IT as a multi-year operating expense, and per-user rates often improve as headcount grows into volume discount tiers at 50, 100, and 250 users.

Hardware purchases, line-of-business application licensing, telecom carrier and ISP fees, third-party compliance audit fees, and out-of-scope project work such as office moves and data migrations are priced separately. Microsoft 365 licenses and VoIP phone service are typically offered as add-ons. Ask any MSP for a written inclusions list before comparing quotes.

Many MSPs charge a one-time onboarding fee of roughly half to one month’s contract value to cover discovery, documentation, and tooling rollout. On-Site Technology typically rolls onboarding into the monthly rate for standard engagements, so there is no separate line item. Confirm onboarding terms in writing before signing a managed services agreement.