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Tool · 06 · Procurement~ 4 min to complete

Cost comparison · in-house vs. agency

Honest side-by-side. Fully-loaded cost, time-to-ship, risk profile. We don't flatter ourselves.

Outputs
Annualised delta
Free. Runs in your browser. Email only if you want the written report.

Select In-House Roles

Toggle on the roles you would need to hire. Adjust monthly salaries to match your market.

Marketing Strategist

Plans campaigns, manages budget, reports on ROI

$

/month

Content Writer

Blog posts, case studies, email sequences, social copy

$

/month

Graphic Designer

Ad creatives, social graphics, landing pages, presentations

$

/month

Ads Manager

Google Ads, Meta Ads, LinkedIn Ads, retargeting

$

/month

Data Analyst

Tracking setup, dashboards, attribution, reporting

$

/month

Tools & Subscriptions

CRM, analytics, design tools, ad platforms, email marketing, etc.

$500/mo$1,000/mo$2,000/mo

Brandon Digital Retainer

Select the retainer level that matches your marketing scope.

$3,500/mo$7,000/mo$10,000/mo
Quick Preview3 roles selected

In-House (est.)

$32K/mo

Brandon Digital

$7K/mo

Save $25K/mo (78%)

The Costs Most Companies Forget

Benefits & Taxes

25-30% on top of base salary for healthcare, retirement, insurance

Tools & Software

$500-2,000/mo for CRM, analytics, design, ad platforms, email

Management Time

15-20% overhead for supervision, meetings, coordination

Recruitment & Training

2-3 months salary to hire, 3+ months to full productivity

How it works

Three steps. No surprises.

STEP 01
Fully load both sides

Salaries, benefits, tooling, recruiting. The hidden costs of in-house are usually 30% above headline.

STEP 02
Score the delta

Positive delta = in-house costs more annually. Negative = agency costs more. Neither is automatically right.

STEP 03
Add the risk profile

Time to ship, single-point-of-failure, ramp time. Numbers don't capture this — write it down separately.

FAQ

Questions people ask about this tool.

How accurate is this cost comparison calculator?
The calculator uses market salary data and standard overhead percentages for B2B marketing roles. Actual costs vary by location, seniority, and company size. The tool is designed to give you a realistic estimate of total cost of employment, including the hidden costs most companies overlook.
What hidden costs are included in the in-house calculation?
Beyond base salaries, the calculator factors in employee benefits and taxes (25-30%), tools and software subscriptions (RM 2,000-9,000/month), management overhead (15-20%), recruitment costs (approximately 2 months salary), and training ramp-up time (3+ months to full productivity).
Why would I choose an agency over hiring in-house?
An agency gives you access to a full team of specialists at a fraction of the cost of hiring individually. You also avoid recruitment risk, training delays, and the overhead of managing additional employees. Agencies bring cross-industry experience and can scale services up or down based on your needs.
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Beyond the tool

The calculator gives you a number. Someone who runs this daily gives you a plan.

Have us run this on your account with your real numbers. A free check, in writing, yours to keep whether we end up working together or not.

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