Key takeaways

• Most founders in the US, UK and Canada pay $8 to $25 an hour for a skilled virtual assistant (VA).
• A part-time VA (20 hours a week) lands near $700 to $2,200 a month.
• A US administrative employee earns about $23 an hour in wages, but costs about $34 an hour once benefits and taxes are included.
• The cheapest hourly rate is often not the cheapest outcome once management time is counted.

What is the average virtual assistant hourly rate?

The average virtual assistant hourly rate for founders hiring in the US, UK and Canada falls between $8 and $25. The spread is wide because "virtual assistant" covers everything from inbox triage to full executive support, and because the hiring model changes who pays for taxes, equipment and downtime.

There are three common ways to hire, and each prices differently:

• Agency-employed VA: the agency vets, employs and manages the assistant. You pay an hourly rate that already covers the overhead.
• Independent freelancer: you negotiate directly, usually at a lower stated rate, and you take on the sourcing, vetting and management yourself.
• Local in-house assistant: a salaried employee in your own country, with the full cost of employment attached.

If you are comparing models, later in this guide we show how Nomad VAs structures hourly billing, and our guide on the future of hiring explains why more founders are choosing remote talent.

How much does a virtual assistant cost by role?

Cost follows the complexity of the work. The table below pairs the hourly wage for comparable US administrative roles with the loaded hourly cost an employer actually carries. The wage data comes from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The loaded cost divides wages by 0.685, the share of employer compensation that goes to wages for full-time private industry workers in the BLS Employer Costs for Employee Compensation release (June 2026).

Table 1: US annual wage, hourly wage and loaded hourly cost by administrative role

Hourly figures assume 2,080 paid hours a year. Loaded cost is a modelled estimate, not a quote.

An executive assistant earns about 59 percent more than a general administrator. A remote VA hired through an agency usually prices below the loaded figure in this table, which is the core of the savings case. You can browse the roles Nomad VAs places to see how those skills map to hourly work, from an executive VA to a healthcare VA for medical administration.

How much does a virtual assistant cost per month?

Monthly cost is hourly rate multiplied by hours worked. One month averages about 4.33 weeks, so 20 hours a week is roughly 86.7 hours.

Table 2: Monthly cost of a virtual assistant by hourly rate and weekly hours (USD)

If you are not sure how many hours you need, read how much time a VA can save you and the signs you are ready to hire your first VA. Most founders start at 10 to 20 hours and scale once the workflow is documented.

Is a virtual assistant cheaper than an employee?

Usually yes, and the reason is overhead. In the BLS data, wages and salaries make up about 68.5 percent of total compensation for full-time private industry workers. The other 31.5 percent is benefits and employer taxes. An employee paid $23.23 an hour therefore costs about $33.91 an hour before you add a desk, a laptop or software seats.

Employment also carries fixed time, not only fixed cost. You pay for holidays, sick leave and idle hours. An hourly VA bills for the time worked. The misclassification risk is real if you hire a freelancer who behaves like an employee, so the Department of Labor classification guidance is worth reading before you build a direct freelance arrangement.

Table 3: Virtual assistant versus employee versus freelancer

Why are some virtual assistants so cheap?

A very low rate usually reflects one of five things: lower local living costs, limited experience, no vetting, no management structure behind the worker, or a freelancer who must cover their own taxes, equipment and gaps between clients. Some of these are fine. Lower living costs in the Philippines, for example, are a legitimate reason a skilled assistant can offer a lower hourly rate than a local hire. Missing vetting and missing management are the risks.

The cost that does not show on the invoice is your time. The scenario below uses stated assumptions, not Nomad VAs client data. It compares a $6 an hour hire that needs heavy oversight against a $12 an hour hire that needs light oversight, both at 20 hours a week, with your time valued at $75 an hour.

Table 4: Illustrative all-in monthly cost of a cheap hire versus a vetted hire (USD)

The $100 recruiting line spreads an assumed $1,200 cost of recruiting a freelancer yourself over 12 months. It is an illustrative assumption, not a published benchmark. All other inputs are assumptions you can change.

In this model the hire that costs half as much per hour costs about 17 percent more per month. The lesson is not that cheap is bad. It is that the invoice rate is one input among several. For how Nomad VAs screens and supports assistants, see how we vet and place virtual assistants, and for the first weeks of work read how to onboard a virtual assistant.

How do costs differ by region?

Where the assistant lives sets the rate floor, and where you live sets what you would otherwise pay. Minimum wage law also shapes the local alternative. In the UK, the government publishes the current National Living Wage at GOV.UK. In Canada, wage data by occupation and province is on Job Bank. In Australia, the Fair Work Ombudsman lists current minimums.

Table 5: What drives the VA cost gap by region

Treat any cross-border comparison as directional. A national average wage compares poorly with a loaded employer cost, and an agency-employed VA is paid for skill and screening, not at a national average.

What does a Nomad VAs placement cost?

Nomad VAs publishes estimates, not a per-role rate card. Rates run from $9 to $11 an hour depending on the role, billed on hours actually worked. A 20-hour week comes to about $720 to $880 a month and a 40-hour week to about $1,440 to $1,760. Those package figures use a four-week month, so they sit slightly below the 4.33-week figures in Table 2. Estimates are confirmed in writing after a discovery call, and you can start with a paid trial. Slide to your own hours on the Nomad VAs pricing page.

How should you budget for a virtual assistant?

Use five steps to set a realistic budget before you hire.

1. List the tasks. Group them as inbox and calendar, research, bookkeeping, customer support and project work.
2. Estimate hours. Start with 10 to 20 hours a week. Measure for two weeks before committing to more.
3. Match the rate to the skill. Pay for the highest-skilled task you need done weekly, not the average one.
4. Add the hidden lines. Software seats, your management time and a buffer for onboarding.
5. Review at 90 days. Compare hours returned to hours paid. If the number does not clear your own hourly value, change the scope.

Delegation is a skill too. Our founder's guide to delegation shows how to hand off work without losing quality, and the Founder Time Calculator turns your hour value into a monthly figure. When you are ready, book a discovery call and we will scope the hours with you.

Frequently asked questions

Ready to see your own numbers?

Check the estimated rates or Book a Discovery Call.