Managed IT Maintenance Pricing in Australia 2025: Managed IT Services Pricing—What to Budget and Expect

No more guesswork. This guide explains managed IT services pricing in Australia for 2025, with real ranges Brisbane businesses can use. If you run a team in Brisbane or SEQ, here’s what to budget, what’s included, and how to compare quotes fairly.

Key takeaways

• Typical per-user plans: $110–$220 ex GST per user/month for core support; $160–$280 with advanced security and 365 backup.
• Per-device add-ons: workstations $25–$65, servers $150–$300, network gear $20–$45 per device/month.
• Onboarding once-off: usually $100–$250 per user or $1.5k–$6k fixed, depending on complexity.
• Watch SLAs: Brisbane MSP quotes should list response and resolution targets by priority, plus after-hours rates.
• Extras to check: Microsoft 365 licences, backup storage, project work, onsite travel outside the CBD, and public holiday surcharges.

What it is and core concept: managed IT services pricing

Definition

Managed IT maintenance is a monthly plan from a Brisbane MSP (managed service provider). The MSP monitors, patches, secures and supports your devices, servers, cloud, and people. Managed IT services pricing is how those services are packaged and billed—usually per user, per device, or a hybrid of both.

Key parts include a service level agreement (SLA), remote helpdesk, monitoring, patching, backup management, and reporting. Many plans also bundle a security stack like EDR, MFA, email filtering, and Microsoft 365 backup. Project work (e.g., new servers, moves) is usually billed hourly.

Why it matters

Clear pricing helps you budget, avoid hidden fees, and cut downtime. For Brisbane teams in storm season, fast response and tested backups are gold. For suburbs with older copper or mixed NBN (think Red Hill, Greenslopes, Annerley), smart failover saves the day. The right plan keeps staff productive and risk low without bill shock.

How it works and step-by-step

Process

Here’s the simple flow we suggest when you’re comparing Brisbane providers:

• Discovery call: confirm user count, locations (e.g., CBD plus Capalaba), hours, and key apps.
• Light audit: check age of devices, server/cloud mix, backup status, and security gaps.
• SLA tier: pick response targets that match risk. Example: P1 within 30–60 mins, P2 within 2–4 hours.
• Model: per-user for simplicity, per-device for mixed sites, or hybrid if you have warehouses or shared kiosks.
• Security stack: agree on EDR, email filtering, MFA, web DNS filtering, and 365 backup retention (e.g., 1–3 years).
• Onboarding plan: once-off cleanup, documentation, monitoring agents, and backup tests. Usually 1–3 weeks.
• Monthly cadence: patch windows, reports, QBRs (quarterly reviews), and roadmap items to reduce noise and cost.

Featured answer

Most Australian SMEs pay $110–$220 ex GST per user/month for managed IT, or $160–$280 with EDR, email security and 365 backup. Devices add $25–$65 for workstations and $150–$300 for servers. Onboarding is often $100–$250 per user or $1.5k–$6k fixed, based on complexity and spread.

Cost scenarios for common team sizes

Use these ballpark figures to budget. Actuals depend on security stack, server count, and SLA tier.

• 5 users, no servers, cloud-first: $800–$1,400 per month total. Add $500–$2,000 once-off onboarding.
• 25 users, 1–2 servers, two sites (e.g., Fortitude Valley + North Lakes): $4,500–$7,500 per month. Onboarding $3,000–$8,000.
• 75 users, hybrid cloud, multiple VLANs, compliance needs: $12,000–$20,000 per month. Onboarding $8,000–$20,000.

Add-ons to watch: after-hours or public holidays, on-site travel beyond inner Brisbane, large projects (e.g., server refresh, 365 migrations), and backup storage over agreed quotas.

Common problems in Brisbane

Weather and infrastructure

• Seasonal heat, storms, humidity impacts.
• Summer storms bring brownouts and surges. Budget for UPS, surge protection, and tested cloud backups. Many outages hit during late arvo storms.
• Humidity shortens hardware life in older buildings without good airflow. Proactive replacements lower support noise.
• Older buildings and NBN quirks by suburb where relevant.
• Mixed NBN: FTTN in parts of Annerley and Greenslopes can be flaky, while FTTP in newer estates (Springfield, Ripley) is stable. HFC in bayside suburbs can peak at odd hours.
• 4G/5G failover is cheap insurance for offices in Rocklea, Sumner and Geebung industrial areas.

Troubleshooting and quick checks

Short answer

If your quote looks cheap, check what’s missing. Confirm the SLA, security stack, and backup retention. Make sure Microsoft 365 licences, on-site travel, after-hours, and projects are clear. Ask for a device list and response targets by priority. Compare apples with apples before signing.

Quick checks

Run these safe checks before you pick a plan:

• Count users and shared devices (front desk, warehouse kiosks, workshop PCs).
• List servers and cloud services (365, Azure, AWS, line-of-business apps).
• Ask for SLA tables: P1/P2/P3 response and resolution targets.
• Confirm security: EDR, email filtering, MFA, web DNS filtering, vulnerability scans.
• Backups: what’s covered? Workstations, servers, 365 mail/SharePoint/Teams, retention length.
• Onboarding: once-off fee, timeline, clean-up tasks, documentation handover.
• After-hours and public holiday rates, plus any travel fees outside inner Brisbane.
• Minimum term and early exit options (month-to-month or reasonable notice).

Safety notes and when to call a pro

Red flags

Walk away if the provider cannot show a written SLA, won’t list inclusions, or claims “unlimited” support with no scope. Be careful with prices under $90 per user with no security stack. No documented backup tests, no incident playbooks, or long lock-ins (24–36 months) without a fair out clause are also warning signs.

Local insights and examples

Brisbane/SEQ examples

We see common patterns across Brisbane:

CBD and Fortitude Valley agencies often go per-user with strong email security and 365 backup. Typical spend lands around $150–$240 per user with fast P1 response. On-site is rare and kept as an ad-hoc line item to save money.

Northern suburbs like North Lakes and Aspley with mixed warehouses prefer hybrid models: per-user for office staff plus per-device for shared floor PCs, label printers and scanners. Budget $120–$200 per user plus $25–$45 per device.

Industrial zones around Rocklea and Acacia Ridge see power dips in storm cells. UPS and 4G failover add a small monthly cost but cut outages. Many choose monthly testing of backups and quarterly disaster recovery drills.

Bayside shops from Wynnum to Cleveland deal with HFC quirks. We often set a 5G backup and ask carriers for business-grade routers. With that, even P1s drop. Less downtime usually means fewer tickets and lower total cost over 12 months.

For larger teams (60–90 users) around Milton, Toowong and Eight Mile Plains business parks, tiered SLAs work well: P1 in 30 minutes, P2 in 2 hours, P3 same day. Add vulnerability scans and phishing training quarterly. Expect $12k–$20k per month with projects billed separately.

Where can you save without adding risk? Standardise laptops, retire that last on-site file server, push MFA to all users, and move line-of-business apps to stable cloud hosts. Ticket volumes drop and your monthly cost per user often follows.

FAQs

Q1: How much does managed IT cost per user in Australia in 2025?

Most SMEs pay $110–$220 ex GST per user/month for core support. With EDR, email filtering, MFA, web protection and 365 backup, expect $160–$280. Server care adds $150–$300 per server. Onboarding is usually $100–$250 per user or a fixed $1.5k–$6k based on complexity.

Q2: What’s included in a maintenance plan and what’s extra?

Included: helpdesk, remote support, monitoring, patching, asset reporting, and agreed security stack. Often extra: Microsoft 365 licences, backup storage beyond quotas, projects (migrations, office moves), new hardware, after-hours or public holidays, and on-site travel outside inner Brisbane.

Q3: Is per-user or per-device pricing better?

Per-user is simple and suits office-based teams. Per-device fits shared environments or lots of kiosks. Many Brisbane MSPs use a hybrid: per-user for staff plus small per-device fees for servers, network gear, and shared machines. Pick the model that mirrors how your team actually works.

Sources and further reading

Many MSPs align to ITIL service practices for incident, request and change. Security stacks often map to the ASD Essential Eight and the NIST Cybersecurity Framework. Useful SLA metrics include response and resolution targets by priority, first-contact time, patch cadence, and backup RPO/RTO. Use these frameworks to compare quotes consistently.

Wrap-up and next steps

Set your budget using the ranges above, lock in the SLA that fits your risk, and ask each Brisbane MSP to list inclusions line by line. Then pick the model that keeps staff productive and costs steady. Service:
Managed Maintenance Plans