Managed IT services for small accounting firms typically cost $2,500-4,500/month depending on firm size, number of users, complexity, and level of compliance support needed. This staff augmentation is significantly less expensive than hiring a single qualified IT person at $75,000- $ 95,000 salary plus benefits, and provides broader expertise, 24/7 coverage, and documented compliance support. For comparison, a single ransomware attack can cost $900,000+ on average, and cyber insurance without proper IT security can run 40- to 60 percent higher in premiums annually. Most small firms find that managed IT services pay for themselves through incident prevention, reduced insurance costs, elimination of emergency repair bills, and higher staff productivity (less time spent waiting for IT problems to be resolved). The real question isn’t whether you can afford IT services; it’s whether you can afford to operate without them, given the regulatory and security landscape facing accounting firms.