Managed Services Explained
Every Service Type, What It Means, and Who Needs It
What it is
Complete outsourcing of IT operations to a single provider. The MSP becomes your IT department — monitoring, maintaining, securing, and supporting all technology for a fixed monthly fee.
What is typically included
24/5 or 24/7 remote monitoring and management, unlimited remote helpdesk for common issues, on-site support (usually defined hours per month), patch management for OS and applications, antivirus and basic security management, backup monitoring, vendor management, IT documentation maintenance, hardware procurement assistance, new user setup and departing user offboarding.
Who needs it
Businesses without dedicated IT staff, typically 5-150 employees. The most common managed service model for SMBs.
What to look for
RMM platform, PSA platform, security stack, backup platform, dedicated technician vs shared pool, QBR cadence.
Typical Pricing
$80-$175/user/month depending on scope and tier.