IT Cost Calculator: In-House vs Managed IT
Wondering whether managed IT services would save your business money? Use our free calculator to compare the true cost of in-house IT staff against a managed IT service — including the hidden costs most businesses forget to factor in.
Your Business Details
Do you currently have in-house IT staff?
Based on 25 employees, the in-house model assumes 1 IT staff member (industry benchmark: 1 per 50 employees).
Annual Cost Comparison
| In-House IT | Managed IT | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cost | $124,275 | $45,000 |
| Monthly cost | $10,356 | $3,750 |
| Per employee / month | $414 | $150 |
Estimated annual savings with managed IT: $79,275
This is a ballpark estimate based on Melbourne market averages. Your actual costs will vary.
What's Included in Managed IT That In-House Often Misses
24/7 monitoring — no sick days or holidays
An in-house IT person is unavailable evenings, weekends, and during leave. Managed IT monitoring runs continuously, detecting issues at 2am on a public holiday the same as it does at 9am on a Tuesday.
A full team of specialists, not one generalist
Networking, cybersecurity, cloud infrastructure, Microsoft 365 administration, and strategic planning are each distinct disciplines. A managed IT provider gives you access to specialists across all of them for a single monthly fee.
Enterprise-grade security tools included
Endpoint detection and response, email security, vulnerability scanning, and security information tools cost tens of thousands per year to license individually. These are typically bundled into a managed IT service.
No recruitment, HR, or training overhead
The average time to hire an IT support person in Melbourne is three to four months. Managed IT eliminates recruitment costs, onboarding time, and the productivity gap when your IT person resigns.
Costs scale linearly with your team
In-house IT scales in step-function jumps — you add a full salary when headcount crosses a threshold. Managed IT scales per user, so your IT cost grows proportionally with your business rather than unpredictably.
Want to understand the full picture before making a decision? Learn more about our managed IT services or request a free IT assessment.
Frequently Asked Questions
How accurate is this calculator?+
This calculator provides a ballpark estimate based on average Melbourne market rates for IT staffing, software, and hardware. Your actual costs will depend on your specific environment, compliance requirements, existing infrastructure, and support needs. Contact us for a precise quote tailored to your business.
What's included in the managed IT per-user fee?+
A typical managed IT fee covers 24/7 monitoring, helpdesk support, patch management, security tools, backup management, vendor liaison, and strategic IT planning. The exact inclusions depend on your service agreement and the tier of service you choose.
Can managed IT work alongside an in-house IT person?+
Absolutely. Many businesses use a co-managed model where your internal IT person handles day-to-day tasks and is the face of IT for your team, while we provide specialist support, security management, cloud administration, and strategic oversight. This often gives you the best of both worlds.
Is managed IT only for small businesses?+
No. We support businesses from 10 to 200+ employees across Melbourne. Managed IT scales efficiently because you are sharing a team of specialists rather than hiring each discipline individually. As your business grows, the cost per employee tends to stay predictable rather than jumping every time you need to hire another IT person.
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