IT costs keep climbing, cyber risk is everywhere, and every outage feels more expensive than the last. In 2025, guessing whether managed IT or an in-house hire is cheaper isn’t a strategy; it’s a gamble with your profit.
This US-focused guide walks through real salary benchmarks, typical managed services pricing, and the hidden cost of downtime so you can compare options with real numbers and pick the model that actually protects your bottom line.
What Managed IT Services Actually Cost in the US
Most managed service providers (MSPs) bill on a “per user, per month” model. For US small and mid-sized businesses, current pricing typically falls into these ranges:
- Standard monitored IT (help desk, monitoring, patching, basic security) is about $80 -160 per user per month.
- Most providers in the US charge between 110-400 dollars per user/month with add-ons of advanced security, backups, and compliance.
Real-life example: one of the US providers has observed that an average small business with approximately 20 users can spend between 2,000 and 8,000 US dollars per month on managed services, based on the stack and support stratum.
Your own quote will move up or down based on:
- Number of users and devices
- Security and compliance regulations (HIPAA, PCI, etc.)
- 24/7 coverage or just business-hours.
A typical US MSP package for a smaller business often includes:
- On-site and remote assistance with predetermined response time.
- Patch and basic endpoint security and antivirus.
- Monitoring and disaster recovery planning Backup
- Licensing or management of core tools (email, remote access, etc.)
Instead of emergency invoices and one-off contractors, you pay a predictable monthly bill.
What In-House IT Really Costs You in the US
On a spreadsheet, hiring “just one IT person” can look cheaper than an MSP retainer. But once you add everything up, it’s rarely that simple.
According to US labor data, the median annual wage for computer user support specialists (help desk/IT support roles) is around $60,340 per year. More senior IT managers and IT leaders can easily run into the low six figures, and, median pay for computer and information systems managers is over $170,000 per year.
For a small or mid-sized business, you’re usually hiring at the support-specialist level.
On the one hand, the support-specialist level is the most common place of hiring a small or mid-sized business. Now sum the on-costs of the real-world:
- Payroll tax/benefits (healthcare, 401(k), PTO)
- Recruitment cost and time taken to onboard.
- Continuous certification and training.
- Tools: remote monitoring, security stack, backup software, documentation platforms
In many US businesses, these extras push a $60k base salary closer to $80k–$95k per year in total cost.
And you still only have one person—generally available during office hours:
- Where they are ill, he or she is on vacation, or is already engaged, tickets are held.
- Outside consultants are needed anyway, with bigger projects (cloud migrations, security reviews, compliance audits).
- You, or another executive, continue taking time to manage that individual and make IT decisions.
Such delays and distractions do not normally present themselves as a clean line entry, but they manifest in the form of lost time and slowed employees and opportunity costs.
Quick Cost Breakdown: 25-User US Business
Let’s take a simple example: a professional services firm in Chicago with 25 staff who use computers all day.
Rough annual cost comparison
Cost Item | In-House IT (1 Support FTE) | Managed IT Services (MSP) |
Base salary/contract | $65,000 | ~$45,000 |
On-costs (taxes, benefits, overhead) | $20,000 | Included in the fee |
Training and certifications | $3,000 | Included |
Tools, monitoring, security stack | $7,000 | Included |
Out-of-hours support | Overtime or unavailable | Often included or optional |
Estimated annual total | ≈ $95,000 | ≈ $45,000–$60,000 |
The MSP estimate assumes $150–$200 per user, per month for 25 users—well within current US pricing bands.
Even if your quote lands at the higher end, the difference between around $95k for an internal hire and roughly $50–60k for an MSP is significant.
And this still only counts the direct cost. It doesn’t include what happens when systems go down.
When Outsourced IT Support Is Usually Cheaper
For a lot of US small and mid-sized businesses, managed IT services work out cheaper over a three-to-five-year period, especially when you factor in downtime and risk.
You’re more likely to save money with an MSP when:
- You have 10–150 employees who rely on cloud apps, email, and line-of-business systems
- You need after-hours support, not just 9–5
- Cybersecurity and compliance (HIPAA, PCI, SOC 2, etc.) are becoming real concerns
- You don’t have the time or expertise to manage an internal IT hire
In these scenarios, a subscription model replaces unpredictable call-out fees and spreads an expert team across many clients. You get:
- Access to specialists (cloud, security, networking) that would be impossible to hire into a single junior role
- Mature processes and tools are already in place
- Defined response and resolution times
When In-House IT Can Still Make Sense in the US
In-house IT is absolutely not “dead”. In some US organizations, it’s still the better option or a critical part of the mix.
In-house can be a strong choice if:
- You’re a large enterprise with hundreds or thousands of users
- You run highly specialized, on-premise, or legacy systems that MSPs can’t easily support
- Regulators or internal policies require tight control of infrastructure and data
- You already have a strong IT leadership team and just need to grow that function
Many larger US organizations now use a hybrid model:
- Keep core architects and senior IT leaders in-house
- Use an MSP for help desk, monitoring, patching, and specific projects
This approach combines internal control with external capacity and specialized skills.
How To Compare IT Sourcing Services for Your Business
Ready to decide? Here’s a simple, practical process.
1. Add Up Your True In-House Cost
Don’t stop at salary. Include:
- Base pay
- Taxes, benefits, and overhead
- Training and certifications
- Licenses and tools (RMM, security, backup, documentation)
- Your time (or a senior leader’s time) spent managing IT
2. Get Two or Three Managed IT Quotes
Ask each provider to spell out:
- Exactly what’s included (and what’s not)
- Response times and escalation paths
- Security stack (EDR, MFA, email filtering, backups)
- Any project work included vs. billed separately
Make sure you’re comparing like-for-like, not one basic package against another provider’s fully loaded option.
3. Estimate Your Cost of Downtime
Start simple:
- Estimate your average hourly revenue.
- Multiply that by the hours systems were slow or down in the last year.
- Add overtime, lost opportunities, and follow-up work.
Even if you land far below industry averages, you’ll get a feel for how quickly outages eat into profit.
4. Compare Over Three Years, Not One
IT isn’t a one-year decision. Look at:
- Three-year costs for in-house vs managed IT
- Likely staff turnover and recruitment cycles
- Hardware refreshes and software renewals
- Rising cyber risk and insurance requirements
A model that looks cheaper in year one can become more expensive and riskier by year three.
5. Check Fit, Not Just Price
Price matters, but fit is what makes the relationship work.
- Ask for US-based client references in your size and industry.
- Notice whether the MSP explains things in plain English or hides behind jargon.
- Check that they understand US regulations and any industry frameworks you care about.
- Make sure they’re proactive, not just reactive ticket-takers.
Choose the IT Model That Protects Your Profit
In 2025, once you count salaries, on-costs, tools, and downtime, managed IT is usually cheaper for US small and mid-sized businesses than building an internal team from scratch.
But the right answer for you isn’t about buzzwords, it’s about numbers.
- Run the three-year math for in-house vs MSP.
- Create a realistic value on downtime and risk.
- You should think about whether you can have the best of both worlds with a hybrid model, an internal strategy with outsourced execution.
Ultimately, select the combination of outsourced and in-house IT that continues to make your business profitable, secure and resilient as the stakes continue to increase.



