What Costs Does an IT Service Provider (Systemhaus) Charge? Prices & Examples 2026

Whether it is a server outage, a cyber attack or simply setting up a new workstation: as soon as IT in a company is to run reliably, there is hardly any way around professional support. But what does a Systemhaus cost? (In Germany a “Systemhaus” is an IT service provider that supplies and looks after hardware, software, networks and support for businesses.) The price ranges are wide – from a single hourly rate to monthly all-round care. We show the common cost models and typical prices and work through several practical examples.

Many small and medium-sized businesses commission a specialised IT service provider from their own region, which looks after hardware, software, network and support from a single source. What that costs depends above all on the chosen service model.

Note on prices: the amounts quoted were collected by spot checks at various providers and serve only as a rough guide. Actual costs vary from provider to provider, sometimes considerably – depending on region, scope of service, response times and company size. We therefore deliberately give the prices as ranges (from–to). For reliable figures it is always worth directly comparing several providers.

What does a Systemhaus actually do?

An IT Systemhaus is the all-round service provider for company IT. Typical services are:

Procurement and setup of hardware (PCs, servers, network) and software
Support and maintenance (helpdesk, on-site service, remote maintenance)
Managed services (ongoing care, monitoring, updates)
IT security (firewall, backup, antivirus, emergency plans)
Cloud and Microsoft 365 (migration, licences, operation)
Consulting and projects (network setup, server migration, digitalisation)

Depending on need, you pay for these services individually, per project or through a fixed monthly flat fee.

The 3 cost models at a glance

Model	Typical cost	Suitable for whom?
Hourly rate (time & material)	90–180 €/hr	Occasional help, individual problems
Maintenance contract / service flat fee	from approx. 199 €/month	Regular, plannable support
Managed services (per workstation)	50–150 €/workstation/month	Worry-free package incl. monitoring
Project flat fee	1,500–25,000 €	One-off projects (e.g. server move)

Rule of thumb: anyone who only needs IT occasionally is better off with the hourly rate. Anyone who wants plannable costs and fast response times is better served with a flat fee or managed services.

1. Hourly rates in detail

Hourly billing is the classic model for individual tasks:

Service	Typical hourly rate
Remote/remote maintenance	90–130 €/hr
On-site visit	120–180 €/hr
Specialist (security, cloud architecture)	150–200 €/hr
Emergency / outside business hours	+ 25–50% surcharge

For on-site appointments, travel costs (0.50–1.20 €/km or a call-out flat fee of 25–60 €) are often added.

2. Managed services and flat fees

With managed services, the Systemhaus looks after your IT on an ongoing basis – usually billed per device or per user:

Service	Typical cost/month
Managed workplace (per PC/user)	50–150 €
Managed server (per server)	100–300 €
Firewall/network monitoring	50–200 €
Managed backup (per device)	5–20 €
Managed security / antivirus (per device)	5–15 €
Microsoft 365 support (per user)	5–15 € (plus licence)

The big advantage: plannable monthly costs, fixed response times (SLA) and proactive maintenance before anything fails. Smaller companies pay towards the upper end per workstation; larger ones benefit from economies of scale (sometimes under 60 €/workstation).

3. Project costs

One-off projects are usually calculated as a fixed price or by effort:

Project	Typical cost
Setting up a new workstation	100–300 € (one-off)
Network/Wi-Fi setup (small office)	1,500–6,000 €
Server migration / rebuild	3,000–15,000 €
Switch to Microsoft 365 / cloud	2,000–10,000 €
Firewall setup and configuration	1,000–4,000 €
IT security check / audit	800–5,000 €

Hardware and licence costs

The service alone is only part of the bill – devices and licences come on top:

Item	Price
Business notebook	800–1,800 €
Business PC	600–1,400 €
Server (hardware)	3,000–12,000 €
NAS/backup system	500–3,000 €
Firewall (appliance)	500–3,000 €
Microsoft 365 Business (per user/month)	6–22 €

Practical examples: what does a company really pay?

Example 1: small office (5 employees)

Item	Cost/month
5 managed workplaces (at ~90 €)	450 €
1 managed server	150 €
Backup and security	60 €
Microsoft 365 (5 × ~13 €)	65 €
Total	approx. 725 €/month

Plus, once only, around 1,500 € for the initial setup. With such small teams the price per workstation is at the upper end, because the basic effort is spread over few users.

Example 2: growing mid-sized company (25 employees)

Item	Cost/month
25 managed workplaces (at ~65 €)	1,625 €
2 managed servers (at 150 €)	300 €
Firewall/network monitoring	150 €
Backup and security (25 devices)	~400 €
Microsoft 365 (25 × ~13 €)	~325 €
Total	approx. 2,800 €/month (all-in)

Larger projects (e.g. connecting a site) come on top if needed.

Example 3: a single project only

A business needs just a new server – with no ongoing contract:

Server hardware: 6,000 €
Migration and setup (8 days of 8 hrs × 120 €): 7,680 €
Total: around 13,700 € one-off

Which factors influence the price?

Company size – the more users and devices, the higher the basic costs (but often a cheaper unit price).
Response times (SLA) – a guaranteed 1-hour response costs more than “within 24 hours”.
On-site vs. remote – remote maintenance is considerably cheaper than any on-site visit.
Industry and compliance – medical practices, law firms or financial service providers have higher security and data protection requirements.
Age of the IT – outdated systems cause more maintenance effort.
Cloud vs. on-premises – your own servers mean hardware and maintenance costs; the cloud shifts these into monthly fees.
Contract term – a longer commitment is often rewarded with better terms.

Buying (break-fix) vs. managed services

Criterion	Hourly billing	Managed services
Cost	only when needed	fixed monthly flat fee
Plannability	fluctuating	constant
Response time	“when there is time”	contractually guaranteed
Maintenance	reactive (after the failure)	proactive (preventive)
Ideal for	very small businesses, infrequent need	companies that depend on IT

For companies whose operations come to a standstill without working IT, managed services usually pay off – a single longer outage often costs more than several monthly flat fees.

Money-saving tips with a Systemhaus

Define your needs clearly: not every company needs the fastest SLA tier. Realistic response times noticeably lower the costs.
Flat fee instead of timesheets: for regular support a contract is almost always cheaper than individual billing.
Move to the cloud: Microsoft 365 and the like save your own servers and their maintenance – especially for small teams.
Standardised hardware: uniform devices reduce support and spare-part costs.
Compare quotes: pay attention not only to the price but to the exact scope of service (what is included in the flat fee, what is charged extra?).
Check contracts: watch for notice periods, minimum terms and hidden extra fees.

Are the costs tax-deductible?

Yes. IT services, hardware and software are business expenses and reduce profit. Under the Federal Ministry of Finance (BMF) circular of 22 February 2022, computer hardware and software may be assigned a useful life of one year and thus be written off completely in the year of purchase; servers, network technology and other assets over 800 € net, on the other hand, are generally depreciated over their useful life. How such ongoing expenses affect you overall is explained in our guide to the costs of self-employment – and a tax adviser can help with booking them optimally.

Conclusion: what should you expect?

The costs of a Systemhaus depend heavily on the model:

Situation	Rough cost guide
A single problem	90–180 €/hr
Small office (managed)	600–1,000 €/month
Mid-sized company (25 staff, all-in)	2,500–4,000 €/month
One-off project	1,500–25,000 €

For most companies a fixed managed-service flat fee is the most economical solution: plannable costs, guaranteed response times and considerably fewer unplanned outages. Anyone who only rarely needs help is better off with hourly billing. In the end, what matters is not the lowest hourly rate but a transparent scope of service – so always compare quotes on substance, not just on price.