Pricing
How much does I.T. support cost for a small business?
The most common question we get has a simple answer: it depends. But it does not have to be a mystery. Here is how I.T. support is priced, what small businesses actually pay, and how to get a price before work begins.
The three ways I.T. is priced.
Hourly means you pay for the time we actually spend, which is the right fit when issues come up only occasionally.
Per project means a fixed price for a defined job, such as a network setup or a server migration, so you know the number before work begins.
Monthly means ongoing support for a set fee, which works best when you want someone on call and maintenance handled before problems appear.
What the market charges.
Hourly break-fix rates for small business I.T. run from about $75 to $350 an hour, with $125 to $200 being the common range on Long Island.
Managed I.T. services typically run $95 to $295 per user per month. A small office with 10 users might pay $1,000 to $3,000 a month for full coverage, depending on what is included.
Those numbers are benchmarks, not quotes. The right price for your business depends on your computers, your software, and how much support you actually need.
What small businesses actually need.
Most 5 to 20 person offices do not need a big monthly plan. They need a reliable partner for when things break, and honest advice about what to fix.
That is why we offer hourly and per-project pricing. If a monthly plan genuinely saves you money, we will say so. Otherwise we will not sell you one.
The businesses that overpay are the ones paying for a full managed plan when they only needed a dependable break-fix partner. The businesses that underpay are the ones with nobody to call.
The hidden cost of the cheapest option.
The cheapest break-fix shop is cheap until your server dies. Then the bill includes the downtime, the lost work, and the stress.
Industry research puts small business downtime at $5,600 to $22,000 per hour depending on the industry. A single long outage can cost more than years of proper support.
We price honestly up front. No surprise invoices.
What to ask before you hire anyone.
Ask how they price, whether they test backups, and what happens when you call after hours. Ask for a quote in writing before work begins.
Also ask what they will tell you not to buy. An I.T. partner who recommends against unneeded work is worth more than one who sells everything.
That is how we have worked since 2004, and it is why most of our clients are still with us.
How to get your exact price.
Call (631) 956-4581. Tell us what is happening and what you need. We give you a price before work begins.
On Long Island, from Bohemia to Ronkonkoma and along Veterans Highway, that is how we work.
No contracts. No surprise invoices. If we are not the right fit, we will tell you that too.
Why cheap hourly can cost more.
An hourly provider makes money when things are broken. There is no incentive to prevent the next call.
That is not an accusation. It is how the model works. The best providers mix honest hourly work with advice that reduces your future calls.
Ask a provider what they recommend you not buy. The answer tells you more than any rate sheet.
What a project price includes.
A project price covers a defined job: a network setup, a server migration, a backup installation. The price should include the work, the testing, and the cleanup.
We quote projects in writing before we start. If the job changes, we tell you before the price changes.
Project pricing is the fairest model for most small business work. You know the number, and we know the scope.
The Long Island market.
Rates on Long Island sit close to national averages. Small business hourly support commonly runs $125 to $200. Managed plans run $95 to $295 per user per month.
What separates providers is not the rate. It is whether they answer the phone, explain things plainly, and tell you the price before work begins.
That has been our model since 2004. It is why most of our clients are still with us.
What most 10-person offices actually pay.
A 10-person office with reasonable needs typically fits one of two patterns: a few hours of support per month at hourly rates, or a modest monthly plan.
The monthly number for a small office on Long Island commonly lands between a few hundred and about a thousand dollars, depending on coverage.
The right answer comes from an honest look at your setup, not from a rate sheet. We quote after we know the job.
Why we do not push monthly plans.
A monthly plan is the right answer for some businesses. For others, it is waste.
We tell you which one you are. If we cannot genuinely save you money with a plan, we will not sell you one.
That is the difference between a vendor and a partner. Since 2004, that approach has kept our clients with us.
What response time is worth.
When the server is down, the difference between a two-hour response and a two-day response is measured in lost revenue.
Ask any provider about response times before you hire them. The answer shows how they treat clients when things break.
For businesses on Long Island, we are close enough to be on-site the same day when it matters.
The cheapest I.T. is not the cheapest I.T.
A provider who undercuts everyone else either pays their people less, or skips the monitoring and testing that prevent problems.
You do not need the most expensive provider. You need one who prices honestly and does the work.
We have held that line since 2004, and our clients have stayed with us for the same reason.
One more number worth knowing: the average cost of small business downtime runs thousands of dollars per hour. A support plan that prevents a single outage can pay for itself many times over.
FAQ
Questions business owners ask.
What is your hourly rate?
We give rates when we know the job. Call (631) 956-4581 and we will quote your exact situation.
Do you require contracts?
No. We work per issue or per project. No long-term commitments.
Is managed I.T. support worth it?
For some businesses, yes. We will tell you honestly whether a monthly plan saves you money.
How much do small businesses pay for I.T. support?
Hourly rates commonly run $125 to $200. Managed plans run $95 to $295 per user per month. Your quote depends on your setup.