The most common question after "how much does it cost?" is "how many hours a week should I hire a virtual assistant for?" Buy too few and the important work waits. Buy too many and you pay for idle time. Here is how to size it.
The Four Monthly Packages
Every role comes in the same four sizes. Prices below are for an Administrative Assistant at the Skilled VA level:
- Starter, 20 hours a month (about 5 a week): $240. Inbox triage, scheduling and a few recurring tasks.
- Growth, 40 hours a month (about 10 a week): $456, 5% off the hourly rate. The most popular size for solo owners.
- Professional, 80 hours a month (about 20 a week): $864, 10% off. A true part-time team member.
- Full-Time Dedicated, 160 hours a month (about 40 a week): $1,632, 15% off. One assistant working your full business day.
Specialist roles cost more per hour. A bookkeeping assistant or executive assistant starts at $320 a month, and a US-Based Specialist costs about 90% more than the Skilled VA level. See every role on the pricing page.
How to Size Your Package
Track one normal week. Every time you do something an assistant could do, note the task and the minutes. Most owners are surprised: email, scheduling, data entry and follow-ups add up to 8 to 15 hours a week.
- Under 5 hours a week: Starter, or pay-as-you-go hours
- 5 to 10 hours a week: Growth
- 10 to 20 hours a week: Professional
- A full day, every day: Full-Time Dedicated
Start one size smaller than your estimate. Delegation takes a couple of weeks to settle, and you can upgrade any time.
Monthly Retainer vs Pay-As-You-Go
A monthly retainer (our monthly package) gives you the same dedicated assistant every month, a US account manager and rollover of unused hours, plus a trained backup on the Professional and Full-Time packages. It is the best value for ongoing work.
Pay-as-you-go hours cost 20% more per hour but need no commitment. Buy 10, 20 or 50 hours, use them within 90 days and stop when the project is done. They suit seasonal work such as tax season or a product launch.
Flexible Contracts
You should never need a long contract to hire a virtual assistant. Our packages renew month to month, there is no setup fee, and you can cancel before the next invoice. Prepaying 3, 6 or 12 months is optional and saves 5%, 8% or 12%.
Part-Time vs Full-Time: Which Is Cheaper Per Hour?
The bigger the package, the lower the hourly rate. A full-time administrative assistant works out at $10.20 an hour, compared with $12 on the Starter package and $14.40 for pay-as-you-go hours. That is still a fraction of the full time virtual assistant cost of hiring in-house, once you add payroll taxes, benefits, equipment and office space.
Next Step
Open the order form, choose a role and a package, and the price updates as you go. Not sure which size fits? Our hours calculator estimates it from the tasks you pick.