The short answer
Most Calgary small businesses pay between $100 and $300 per user per month for fully managed IT. Where you land depends on your team size, how much security and compliance you need, and whether support is remote-only or includes on-site visits. Break/fix help with no monthly plan is billed by the hour instead.
We price per user and keep it volume-based, the more people on your plan, the lower the per-user rate tends to be. After a free assessment you get one flat monthly number with no hidden fees.
What you're actually paying for
Managed IT is not just “someone to call when something breaks.” A typical plan for a Calgary business bundles a whole IT department into one monthly fee:
- Unlimited remote and on-site helpdesk support
- 24/7 monitoring and proactive maintenance
- Security built in: managed EDR, MFA, email filtering and patching
- Backup and tested recovery for your data
- A vCIO and technology roadmap so spending is planned, not reactive
- Vendor management, so you have one number to call
When you compare quotes, check what is actually included. A lower per-user price often means security, backups or after-hours support are billed separately.
Managed IT pricing by team size
Here is what the $100–$300 per-user range works out to per month at common Calgary small-business sizes:
| Team size | Estimated monthly range |
|---|---|
| 5 users | $500 – $1,500 |
| 10 users | $1,000 – $3,000 |
| 25 users | $2,500 – $7,500 |
| 50 users | $5,000 – $15,000 |
These are planning estimates, not a quote. Your real number depends on the factors below.
What changes the price
A handful of things move you within (or beyond) the typical range:
- Team size — larger teams usually pay a lower per-user rate (volume).
- Security and compliance needs — dental, legal and finance often need more.
- Remote-only vs regular on-site support across Calgary and area.
- The age and complexity of your current systems.
- Microsoft 365 and software licensing, usually passed through at cost.
- Fully managed vs co-managed alongside an existing internal IT person.
Managed IT vs hiring in-house
A single in-house IT hire in Calgary typically costs $95,000 to $130,000 per year in salary alone, before benefits, tools, training and time off. That buys you one person, with one set of skills, working business hours.
A managed plan spreads an entire team, helpdesk, security and senior strategy, plus enterprise monitoring tools, across a predictable monthly fee, with no single point of failure when your one IT person is sick or on vacation. For most businesses under about 50 staff, managed IT delivers broader coverage for less than the cost of one hire.
Managed vs break/fix
Break/fix means paying by the hour when something goes wrong. It looks cheaper, until the month something breaks. Managed IT is a flat fee that prevents problems through monitoring and maintenance, so your costs are predictable and downtime is rarer. As a rule of thumb, once you have more than a handful of staff, or you simply cannot afford downtime, managed IT wins on both cost and stress.
How our pricing works
We keep it simple and transparent:
- 01Free assessment. We learn your business and review your systems, security and pain points, at no cost.
- 02Flat quote. One per-user monthly number, sized to your team, with security included, no surprises.
- 03No lock-in. We earn your business every month rather than trapping you in a long contract.
Security, managed EDR, MFA, email protection and backups, is built into every plan, never an upsell.
Frequently asked questions
How much does managed IT cost for a small business in Calgary?
Most Calgary small businesses pay between $100 and $300 per user per month for managed IT, depending on team size and how much security and support is included. After a free assessment we provide a fixed, volume-based quote with no hidden fees.
Why is managed IT priced per user instead of per device?
We support people, not just devices. One employee might use a laptop, a phone and several cloud apps. Per-user pricing keeps billing predictable as your team and its devices grow.
Is managed IT cheaper than hiring an in-house IT person?
For most small and mid-sized Calgary businesses, yes. A single in-house IT hire typically costs $95,000 to $130,000 per year in salary alone and covers one person's hours and skills. A managed plan spreads a whole team's coverage, monitoring and security across a predictable monthly fee.
What is the difference between managed IT and break/fix pricing?
Break/fix is billed hourly when something goes wrong. Managed IT is a flat monthly fee that covers proactive monitoring, security and unlimited helpdesk, so problems are prevented and your costs stay predictable.
Are there setup or hidden fees?
We quote a flat monthly per-user fee after a free assessment, and we are upfront about any one-time onboarding or project work before it starts. No surprise invoices, and no long-term lock-in.
Written by
Onkar Singh
Founder, IT Support Calgary
Onkar Singh is the founder of IT Support Calgary, the business-IT practice of Asher Technologies Inc. Since 2021 he has helped Calgary small and mid-sized businesses run on secure, reliable technology with responsive, plain-English support.