Start with the support model, not the headline price
Managed service provider pricing only makes sense when the responsibilities behind it are clear. A low monthly figure may cover a remote helpdesk but leave monitoring, Microsoft 365 administration, on-site work and projects outside the agreement. A higher figure may include proactive management that reduces separate charges later.
Novawize currently publishes annual per-user packages of £250 for co-managed infrastructure support, £500 for fully managed day-to-day support and £800 for support with agreed projects. Minimum user numbers and scope conditions apply, and prices exclude VAT. These are starting structures rather than a quote for every organisation.
What changes the cost of an MSP agreement?
The strongest cost drivers are usually the number and type of users, locations, devices, applications, service hours and the condition of the existing environment. A business with clean administration and supported devices is different from one that needs undocumented systems stabilised during onboarding.
- Users, devices and business locations
- Support hours and required response arrangements
- Microsoft 365, servers, networks and specialist applications
- Monitoring, patching, backup and security responsibilities
- On-site attendance and travel expectations
- Projects, procurement and supplier coordination
- Initial remediation or migration work
Questions to ask before comparing providers
Ask each provider to define what happens from the moment a user reports an issue. The proposal should explain who can use the service, the channels available, support hours, prioritisation, escalation and what creates an additional fee.
- Is support priced per user, per device or as a fixed organisation fee?
- Which systems are explicitly included and excluded?
- Are monitoring and patching included?
- How are on-site visits approved and charged?
- Are projects included, discounted or separately scoped?
- Who owns administrator accounts, documentation and supplier relationships?
- What happens during onboarding and at the end of the agreement?
A useful next step for a Peterborough business
Prepare a short inventory of people, devices, sites and critical systems, then list the interruptions that caused the most lost time during the last three months. That gives an MSP enough information to discuss the service you need rather than pricing an abstract bundle.
A proposal should leave you able to distinguish predictable support from optional projects and third-party subscriptions. If the boundary is unclear, ask for examples before agreeing the contract.
This article provides general information, not advice for a specific organisation or tax position. Scope, prices and requirements should be confirmed before work begins.