When businesses ask me whether they should hire an IT person or outsource to a Managed Service Provider, my answer is always the same: look at the whole cost, not just the salary. The numbers usually surprise people.
The headline cost: salary is only the start
Let's say you hire one IT technician in the UK. A mid-level salary might be £32,000-£40,000. But the real cost of an employee is far higher once you add:
- Employer's National Insurance and pension - typically 15-20% on top of salary.
- Recruitment and onboarding - agency fees, time, and lost productivity while they get up to speed.
- Holiday, sickness and training - cover gaps and ongoing certification costs.
- Tools and software - monitoring, security and ticketing platforms an MSP already owns.
- Office space and equipment - a desk, a machine, the overheads.
Fully loaded, that "£36,000 technician" often costs a business £50,000+ a year.
The hidden cost: single point of failure
One in-house person cannot do everything. They cannot be an expert in networking, cybersecurity, cloud, telephony and be available when they are on holiday or off sick. When they leave, your knowledge walks out of the door with them.
An outsourced team gives you a breadth of specialists and guaranteed availability - no single point of failure.
What outsourced IT support costs
Most MSPs charge per user, per month. For a typical UK SME that usually works out at a few hundred to a couple of thousand pounds a month depending on team size and what's included - a fraction of a single salary, for a whole team. I break the pricing down properly in how much IT support costs.
A simple comparison
| In-house (1 person) | Outsourced MSP | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | £50,000+ / year | Predictable monthly fee |
| Coverage | One skill set | A team of specialists |
| Availability | Office hours, minus holiday/sickness | Consistent, often extended hours |
| Tools included | No - extra cost | Yes |
| Scales with you | Slowly (more hires) | Instantly |
When does in-house make sense?
To be fair, in-house can be the right call for larger organisations (often 50+ staff) with constant, complex, business-specific IT needs - and many run a hybrid model, keeping one internal person for day-to-day issues while outsourcing security, strategy and out-of-hours cover.
The bottom line
For most small and medium businesses, outsourced IT support delivers more capability for less money, with none of the employment risk. The savings from proactive monitoring alone often cover the fee.
Want a comparison based on your actual headcount? Request a callback and we'll run the numbers with you.
Frequently asked questions
Is outsourced IT support cheaper than hiring in-house?
For most small and medium businesses, yes. A single in-house technician costs far more than salary alone once you add recruitment, training, holiday cover, tools and software, whereas outsourcing spreads that across many clients.
What hidden costs come with an in-house IT team?
Beyond salary, employers pay National Insurance, pension, holiday and sick cover, training, certifications, management time and the tools the team needs - which often doubles the headline salary.
Can I combine in-house and outsourced IT?
Yes. A co-managed model is common, where your internal staff handle day-to-day tasks and an MSP provides security, out-of-hours cover, projects and specialist expertise.
