Pricing
What a virtual assistant costs in the UK
No packages you have to decode and no "contact us for pricing". Rates start at £32 per hour, fall to an effective £27.50 on the largest retainer, and cover worked time only — no National Insurance, pension, holiday pay or equipment on top.
Book a free 20-min callThe rates
Three ways to work together
Most clients start ad-hoc on one specific task, then move to a retainer once the real monthly workload is known. Moving between them is a conversation, not a renegotiation.
Ad-hoc hours
£32
per hour
£32 effective hourly rate
One-off projects, backlogs and busy spells with nothing committed in advance.
- Two-hour minimum booking
- No monthly commitment
- Booked as and when you need it
- Ideal for a first trial task
Monthly retainer
£480
per month · 16 hours
£30 effective hourly rate
Steady, predictable cover for a recurring workload — the most common starting point.
- Priority slot in the diary
- Discounted hourly rate
- Roll over up to 2 unused hours
- No long tie-in
Extended retainer
£880
per month · 32 hours
£27.50 effective hourly rate
For businesses handing the admin function over properly rather than dipping in.
- Best effective hourly rate
- Regular check-in calls
- Scale up or down between months
- Documented processes as we go
Included
What the rate covers
- Only productive, worked time is billed
- Your own systems — no software to buy or migrate to
- Written confidentiality agreement as standard
- UK business hours, UK time zone, one named person
- No recruitment, onboarding or training cost
- No desk, equipment or office overhead
Never charged
What you don't pay for
- Employer National Insurance
- Workplace pension contributions
- Holiday pay and bank holidays
- Sick pay and cover during absence
- Payroll administration
- Redundancy or notice-period liability
This is the part that makes an hourly comparison against a salary misleading. See the VA versus employee breakdown.
Worked examples
What common tasks actually cost
Indicative ranges based on typical small-business workloads. Your first call establishes real numbers for your business rather than these averages.
| Task | Typical time | Indicative cost |
|---|---|---|
| Daily inbox triage and replies | 5–7 hours a month | £150–£224 |
| Raising and chasing monthly invoices | 3–5 hours a month | £96–£160 |
| Diary, travel and meeting coordination | 4–6 hours a month | £128–£192 |
| Client onboarding packs and follow-ups | 4–8 hours a month | £128–£256 |
| One-off filing, CRM or backlog clear-out | 6–12 hours, once | £192–£384 |
Want the numbers for your own week? The ROI calculator and the quote builder work it out in under a minute.
Questions
Pricing FAQs
- How much does a virtual assistant cost in the UK?
- UK virtual assistant rates commonly sit somewhere between roughly £25 and £50 per hour depending on experience, specialism and whether you go through an agency. Wise Resolutions charges £32 per hour ad-hoc, falling to an effective £30 per hour on a 16-hour monthly retainer and £27.50 per hour on a 32-hour retainer.
- Why is a virtual assistant more per hour than an employee?
- Because you are only paying for worked hours and nothing else. There is no employer National Insurance, pension contribution, holiday pay, sick pay, payroll admin, equipment, desk space, recruitment fee or notice period on top. Comparing a VA hourly rate directly against a salary hourly rate is not a like-for-like comparison.
- What is the minimum I can spend?
- Two hours — £64. Most clients start with a single specific task on ad-hoc hours before deciding whether a retainer makes sense.
- Is there a contract or tie-in?
- Ad-hoc work carries no commitment at all. Retainers run month to month with no long tie-in, so support can be scaled back or paused when your workload changes.
- Do unused retainer hours roll over?
- Up to two unused hours roll into the following month on the 16-hour retainer. Beyond that, hours reset — the retainer reserves capacity in the diary, which is what keeps the effective rate below the ad-hoc rate.
- Are rates higher for clients outside London?
- No. Rates are identical everywhere in the UK because support is delivered remotely. Location makes no difference to price or response time.
- How and when am I invoiced?
- Retainers are invoiced monthly in advance. Ad-hoc work is invoiced on completion, with a timed breakdown of what was done so you can see exactly where the hours went.
- Do you charge for the initial call?
- No. The introductory consultation is free and carries no obligation. Its purpose is to work out where your hours are actually going and whether delegating is worth it for you at all.
Get a straight answer on what your admin would cost
Twenty minutes, no obligation, and an honest view on whether delegating is worth it for you yet.
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