How Much Does IT Support Cost for a Small Business in London?

If you're searching for IT support pricing, you've probably already discovered that nobody puts their prices on their website. That's partly because pricing genuinely varies based on your setup, and partly because the IT industry loves making simple things complicated.

Let's fix that. Here's what IT support actually costs for a small business in London, what you should expect at each price point, and the hidden costs that catch people out.

The Three Pricing Models

1. Break-Fix (Pay As You Go)

You call someone when something breaks. They fix it. You get a bill. No monthly fee, no ongoing relationship.

Typical London rates for break-fix IT support range from £75 to £150 per hour, depending on the provider and complexity. Some charge a call-out fee on top.

This sounds cheap until something actually breaks. A server failure that takes 8 hours to resolve at £120/hour is nearly £1,000 in a single incident, plus the cost of your team sitting idle. And because there's no proactive monitoring, problems tend to get bigger before anyone notices them.

Break-fix makes sense for: Very small businesses (1-3 people) with simple setups and a high tolerance for downtime.

Break-fix doesn't work for: Any business where downtime costs money, where you handle sensitive client data, or where you need things to just work reliably.

2. Per-User Managed IT Support

This is the most common model for small businesses. You pay a fixed monthly fee per user, and in return you get a helpdesk, proactive monitoring, security management, and ongoing support.

In London, most managed service providers charge somewhere between £50 and £120 per user per month. The range is wide because what's included varies enormously between providers.

At the lower end (£50-70/user), you'll typically get basic helpdesk support and some monitoring. At the higher end (£80-120/user), you should be getting comprehensive support including cybersecurity, device management, backup, Microsoft 365 administration, and proactive maintenance.

For a 10-person business, that's roughly £500 to £1,200 per month. Compare that to a full-time IT hire at £35,000-£50,000 per year (before NI, pension, training, and equipment), and the maths is straightforward.

3. All-Inclusive / Fixed-Fee Packages

Some providers offer a single monthly fee that covers everything: support, hardware, software licences, and projects. This is less common for small businesses but can work well if you want completely predictable costs with no surprise bills.

These tend to run higher — £100-150+ per user per month — but the trade-off is that nothing is extra. New starter setup, office move support, security upgrades — it's all in the price.

What Should Be Included (At Any Price Point)

Regardless of which model you choose, your IT support should include these as standard:

• Helpdesk support with a clear response time commitment (not "we'll get back to you when we can")
• Proactive monitoring of your devices and systems — catching problems before they cause downtime
• Security basics — multi-factor authentication, email protection, device encryption
• Microsoft 365 administration — user management, licensing, security configuration
• Onboarding and offboarding — new starters set up, leavers properly removed
• Regular reviews — at least quarterly check-ins on how things are going and what needs attention

If any provider is charging £80+ per user and not including all of the above, ask why.

Hidden Costs to Watch For

This is where the real difference between providers shows up. The monthly per-user fee looks straightforward, but the extras can add up fast:

• Project fees. Is setting up a new starter included, or is it billed as a project at £100/hour?
• Out-of-hours charges. What happens when something breaks at 6pm? Some providers charge double time outside business hours.
• On-site visits. Remote support is standard, but if someone needs to come to your office, is there a call-out fee?
• Licence management. Does the provider handle your Microsoft 365 licences, or do you manage those separately?
• Backup and security tools. Are these included in the per-user fee, or billed separately on top?
• Contract lock-in. Some providers require 12 or 24-month contracts. If the service is poor, you're stuck.

Questions to Ask Before Signing

When you're comparing IT support providers, these questions will save you from surprises:

1. What exactly is included in the per-user fee? Get a written list, not a vague "everything you need."
2. What's your average response time? Ask for data, not promises. Any good provider tracks this.
3. What's not included? This question reveals more than asking what is.
4. What's the contract length? Month-to-month means the provider has to keep earning your business.
5. Who will actually be supporting us? Will you get a dedicated team that knows your setup, or a rotating helpdesk?
6. Can you provide references from businesses our size? An MSP that's great for 200-person companies may not prioritise your 15-person team.

What Affects Your Price

Your actual quote will depend on several factors:

• Team size. More users generally means a lower per-user rate.
• Complexity. A business running standard Microsoft 365 costs less to support than one with legacy servers, specialist software, and multiple offices.
• Security requirements. Regulated industries (legal, financial, healthcare) need tighter security controls, which affects pricing.
• Current state. If your IT is a mess, there may be an initial project to bring everything up to standard before ongoing support begins.

Want to understand what IT support would look like for your business? Our managed IT service covers everything listed above with no lock-in contracts and transparent pricing. Or if you need flexible day-to-day support, see our IT support page for how we work.

Related Reading

• How Much Should IT Support Cost a Small Business?
• IT Budget Planning for Small Business
• What Is a Managed Service Provider?