How Much Does IT Support Cost for Small Businesses in Perth?

If you have ever asked a Perth IT company what their support costs and walked away with a vague answer, you are not alone. Pricing in this industry is patchy, inconsistent and often deliberately unclear. The reality is simpler than most providers make it sound, and worth understanding before you sign anything.

The three pricing models you will actually be quoted

Almost every IT support arrangement in Perth falls into one of three buckets: ad-hoc hourly, monthly retainer, or fully managed (per user or per device). Each suits a different stage of business and risk appetite.

1. Ad-hoc hourly support

You pay only when you need help. Typical Perth rates in 2026 sit between $120 and $180 per hour for remote, with on-site work usually quoted at the higher end and in 30-minute increments. There are usually call-out fees of $90–$150 on top for site visits inside the metro area.

This model works for very small teams (1–5 people) with a stable, simple setup and no compliance pressure. It stops working the moment you have more than a few staff or you start needing security, backups and consistent uptime, and those things cannot be done well in occasional 30-minute bursts.

2. Monthly retainer

A halfway house. You pay a fixed monthly fee (typically $300 to $700) that includes a block of hours and priority response. Hours that go over are billed at a discounted hourly rate.

Retainers suit Perth businesses with 5–15 staff who want predictable IT spend and faster response than ad-hoc, but who do not yet need a full managed agreement. They also build a real relationship with your provider, which means they actually know your environment when something breaks.

3. Fully managed IT (per user)

The most common arrangement for Perth businesses with 15+ staff. You pay a flat monthly fee per user (typically $80–$130) and the provider becomes your IT department: unlimited helpdesk, 24/7 monitoring, patching, antivirus, backups, vendor management and quarterly strategy reviews.

Managed pricing is per user, per month. A 25-person business is looking at $2,000–$3,250 per month all-in. It feels like a lot until you compare it with the cost of a single in-house IT hire ($85k+ per year fully loaded) or the cost of one serious unplanned outage.

Where the hidden costs hide

Headline rates rarely tell the full story. Watch for the following:

• Onboarding fees: most managed providers charge a one-off setup fee. Reasonable; just make sure it is quoted.
• Microsoft and security licensing: sometimes bundled, sometimes billed separately. Always ask which.
• Project work: major migrations or rollouts are typically excluded from managed and quoted as projects.
• After-hours rates: some providers charge 1.5x or 2x outside business hours. Confirm what counts as after-hours.
• Lock-in contracts: some providers tie you in for 24 or 36 months. We do not, and you should not need to.

A simple way to choose

Add up your number of staff and ask yourself: how much downtime can you actually afford? Up to about five staff with very low risk, ad-hoc is fine. Five to fifteen, get on a retainer. Fifteen plus, or anyone in regulated industries (health, finance, legal, government supply chains), go managed. The maths almost always works.

What we charge at Unibyte

For full transparency: $130/hr for ad-hoc, $350/month for our small business retainer (3 hours included), and from $80/user/month for fully managed IT. No setup fees on retainer, no lock-in contracts, no after-hours surcharges for managed clients. If a Perth IT provider will not give you numbers as plainly as that, ask why.