Cost comparison tool
What is the real cost of an expert consultant compared with a permanent employee?
Our consultants bring proven experience across multiple sectors and demanding client environments. Many are already chartered, while others are actively working towards professional accreditation, backed by a range of relevant qualifications. As a result, our team integrates quickly, adds value from day one, and delivers measurable results without a long onboarding curve.
A landscape of rising employment taxes and overheads, engaging specialist consultants gives you access to market-leading expertise at a lower cost and with less risk than hiring full-time staff. The comparison table below sets out the typical cost of employing a full-time employee versus a representative consultant day rate, and shows what that buys you in consultant time.
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Standards behind the calculation, all adjustable
The comparison
Employee, first year
£72,350
including £3,000 recruitment
Consultant, same year
£93,500
220 days at £425
That year of employment buys 170 days of consultant support.
Around 9.3 months of an experienced consultant, for what one full-time hire costs you over the same year.
True cost per productive day worked: £315 against a consultant day rate of £425.
The cost of employment
| Base salary | £50,000 |
| Employer National Insurance (13.3%) | £6,650 |
| Employer pension (6%) | £3,000 |
| Company overheads (15% of salary) | £7,500 |
| Insurance | £500 |
| Professional membership | £500 |
| Equipment and technology | £1,200 |
| Ongoing annual cost | £69,350 |
| Indirect recruitment, one-off | £3,000 |
Days paid for but not worked
| Annual leave | 25 days | £4,808 |
| Bank holidays | 8 days | £1,538 |
| Sickness | 5 days | £962 |
| Training | 2 days | £385 |
| Productive days remaining | 220 of 260 | |
A consultant is paid only for days worked, so these days are the hidden part of the comparison. They are already inside the salary figure above, which is why they reduce the days available rather than adding cost twice.
Take this away as a PDF
A branded breakdown of these figures, ready for your own finance conversation.
This tool is a guide, not advice. It does not account for notice periods, IR35 status or the cost of a role sitting unfilled. Talk to us if you would like the numbers walked through against a real role.
