Virtual assistant cost comparison (2026)
The hourly rate is only the visible part of the price. Who employs the VA, who manages them, and what happens when they leave decide what you actually pay.
| Option | Hourly rate | Full-time monthly cost | What you're really getting |
|---|---|---|---|
| US freelance VA | $25-45/hr | $4,300-7,800 | You recruit, manage, and handle 1099 paperwork yourself; no backup if they leave |
| Offshore budget VA (marketplace) | $8-16/hr | $1,400-2,800 | Cheapest sticker price; you carry vetting, training, quality control, and frequent re-hiring |
| VA agency / staffing service | $35-75/hr equivalent | $2,800-5,600+ | Managed, but usually part-time hour blocks with markups and a shared assistant |
| GetGuru dedicated Guru | ≈ $15/hr | $2,550 flat ($1,275 bi-weekly) | Senior, vetted, full-time and dedicated; payroll, health + vision insurance, provident fund, and free replacement included — one clean invoice |
Full-time = approximately 173 working hours per month. GetGuru rate is all-in with no placement fees; you pay nothing until you hire.
How much does a virtual assistant cost per hour?
The virtual assistant hourly rate splits cleanly by geography and seniority. In the US and Canada, general admin VAs charge $25-45/hour, and specialized US assistants (executive support, bookkeeping, marketing) run $50/hour or more. Offshore, general VAs in Pakistan, the Philippines, and India charge $8-16/hour on marketplaces, with senior offshore specialists at $15-25/hour.
The trap is comparing hourly rates instead of hourly output. A $10/hour VA who needs constant supervision, produces work you redo, and quits after four months costs more per finished task than a $15/hour senior professional who works independently. Hourly rate is what you're billed; cost per outcome is what you pay.
Virtual assistant pricing models explained
Virtual assistant pricing comes in five common structures. Which one fits depends on how many hours of help you actually need each week.
- Hourly (pay-as-you-go) — $8-45/hour depending on location. Flexible, but rates are highest and availability is not guaranteed.
- Hour packages — Prepaid blocks of 10-40 hours/month, typically $250-1,600. Unused hours often expire; overages bill at premium rates.
- Part-time retainer — A fixed 20-hours-per-week arrangement, usually $700-2,500/month depending on location and skill.
- Full-time dedicated — One assistant, 40 hours/week, exclusively yours. GetGuru's model: a flat $1,275 bi-weekly (~$2,550/month), all employment costs included.
- Per-project — Fixed quotes for defined tasks (data cleanup, research sprints). Fine for one-offs, expensive as a recurring model.
What drives the cost of a virtual assistant?
Five factors explain almost all of the price spread between a $8/hour listing and a $75/hour agency line item.
- Location — US/UK-based VAs cost 2-4x more than equally capable offshore professionals — the largest single factor.
- Experience and seniority — An assistant with 5+ years of experience who works unsupervised commands 50-100% more than an entry-level generalist — and typically returns more than the difference.
- Specialization — General admin sits at the bottom of the range; skills like bookkeeping, CRM operations, design, or marketing execution price 30-80% higher.
- Engagement model — Ad-hoc hourly help costs the most per hour; committed full-time arrangements cost the least per hour of actual work.
- Who carries the employment — Marketplace hires leave payroll, compliance, benefits, and replacement risk on you. Managed services price that in — the honest ones itemize it as one flat invoice.
The hidden costs of a cheap virtual assistant
Budget marketplace hires look 40-60% cheaper on paper. Three hidden line items usually erase the gap.
- Your management time — Junior VAs need detailed briefs, checking, and rework. Five hours a week of founder oversight at any reasonable value of your time doubles the real cost.
- Churn and re-hiring — Marketplace VA relationships commonly end within 3-6 months. Every cycle costs weeks of sourcing, interviewing, and retraining — and stalls whatever the VA was running.
- Tools, security, and compliance — Software seats, password management, data-access risk, and misclassified-contractor exposure all sit on your side of a DIY hire. With an employer-of-record model, they don't.
When each option makes sense
There is no universally right answer — the right option follows directly from your weekly volume and how much management you want to do.
- US freelance VA — You need under 10 hours/week of help that genuinely requires US business hours or phone-native English, and budget is secondary.
- Offshore marketplace VA — Light, well-documented admin tasks, a tight budget, and you have time to vet, train, and absorb turnover.
- VA agency hour blocks — Short-term overflow or seasonal spikes where a shared, part-time assistant is enough.
- Dedicated full-time Guru — You need 20+ hours/week ongoing, want one accountable senior person who learns your business, and don't want to run payroll, benefits, or replacements. At $1,275 bi-weekly it undercuts even the budget option once management time and churn are priced in.