If you are currently looking for IT support, you will know how it goes: you click through five provider websites and every single one says "individual quote on request". That sounds flexible, but it is above all one thing: opaque.
We do things differently. In this article we lay out openly what managed IT costs for a business with 10 to 30 employees in Hamburg — both our own pricing and the wider market.
What goes into the price
Most managed IT providers work with a similar model. The price has three components:
1. A monthly fee per workstation. This covers everything running in the background for you: monitoring, updates, virus protection, and a remote tool for fast access. Depending on the package, we charge between €49 and €99 per user per month, including security and monitoring licences. Across the market we see a range of €40 to €120, depending on what is and is not included.
2. Servers and networking are charged separately. Your per-workstation price covers your employees' computers. But a server, firewall, or NAS are separate components billed individually. Our server monitoring costs €59 per month, a firewall €29. Be sceptical if someone promises you "all-inclusive" for €60 per workstation.
3. When your staff call in, the clock starts running. This is the part that surprises many: the package price covers proactive work — monitoring, patches, backup checks. But when a member of your team calls because the printer is not working, that is reactive support and is billed by the hour. We charge €85 per hour for contract customers; the market rate runs from €80 to €150.
Why do we separate proactive and reactive? Because it is more honest. Providers who promise "unlimited support hours" price their packages so high that it always works out in their favour. With us, you pay less in quiet months.
Worked example: agency with 15 employees
Take a Hamburg agency: 15 people, one server, one firewall, one NAS, two switches — plus an average of three hours of reactive support per month.
On our Standard package with a 5% volume discount: 15 workstations (€983) + server, firewall, NAS, 2 switches (€143) + approx. 3 hours support incl. call-out (€303) = approx. €1,429 net per month, or roughly €95 per employee.
When managed IT makes sense
Managed IT makes sense when you have between 5 and 40 employees, do not want to employ your own IT person, and value having someone who knows your environment and is reachable. It makes less sense if you are just three people and everyone brings their own laptop.
What most providers do not tell you
- Licences: Some providers advertise a low per-seat price, but antivirus, monitoring tools, and remote tools cost extra. Ask specifically: what is included in the price?
- Response times: "We are always available" is worthless if it is not in the contract. Look for defined response times.
- Notice periods: 24 months with a 6-month notice period is not uncommon. We work with 12 months and a 3-month notice period.
- Provider errors: If a patch brings your server down — is the fix included or billed separately? With us, it is included.
For a business with 10 to 20 employees, budget for €80 to €130 per person per month, all-in.