The digital virtual assistant profession has grown considerably in recent years. Its appeal lies primarily in its flexibility in providing support. There are all sorts of digital virtual assistants: some specialize in training, others in customer service, administration, communications, or visual content creation. Let’s find out how much does a virtual assistant cost in 2025.
Every assistant is unique, with their own life story, training, professional experience, and desires as a business owner. This uniqueness, combined with the newness of the profession, presents a common challenge for all virtual assistants: how much should you sell your virtual assistance services for? If this sounds like you, stay here because this article will help you!
What are the prices on the virtual assistant market?
I won’t keep you in suspense. The correct price for a digital assistant varies from $38 to $61/hour. However, some assistants sell for $20/hour on the market. This is a mistake that should not be repeated. I’ll explain why in the next point. The price set for virtual assistant services depends on several factors.
The services you plan to offer, the specialization you choose, your years of experience, your target audience, the number of hours you plan to work, and your financial goals all help you set the price for your services.
For example:
- An assistant who only offers administrative services such as invoice editing and tracking, file filing, and customer relations will need to be in the lower price range ($38 to $44) if she wants to sell her services quickly.
- Conversely, a digital assistant trained to create and manage training platforms, integrate teaching modules, manage registrations, and handle customer follow-up will find it easier to justify their rate, even if it is in the higher range ($44 to $55/hour).
Virtual Assistant: Why Not Charge $25/Hour?
If you’re just starting out, you might be tempted to believe that lowering your prices will increase your chances of finding clients and help you make a living from your business more quickly. I’m sorry to tell you that these are false beliefs, limiting ones. I’ve been specializing in AVs for years, and I can assure you that charging $25/hour isn’t sustainable in the long run. Here’s why:
You discredit your work
Posting prices below market values is a bit like holding a sign that says, “I’m cheap because I don’t trust myself and my work.” And you can imagine, if you don’t trust yourself and your work, how can you ask your clients to trust you? Money doesn’t determine your value, but it does determine the value of your work.
Let me give you an example:
You’re looking for a quality pair of shoes that will last; will you go for a $10 or $50 pair? Definitely the $50 pair if your budget allows. Why? Because we assume that if the price is higher, it’s certainly because the raw materials used and the work provided are of higher quality. So yes, of course, this isn’t always true, but it’s the first idea we have. It’s the same for your services. The lower your price, the more you’ll give off an image of shoddy work.
You do not reimburse your expenses
By charging $25/hour for your services, you’re not covering your costs. You’ll tell me that you are?
Well, yes, at this point, maybe, but in the long term? If you are an independent entrepreneur (“EI” = micro-enterprise/self-employed), you certainly benefit from the ARCE. Your business expenses are reduced to 11% in the first year, yet they will reach 23% of your turnover.
Similarly, if you’re starting, you may still be working very simply, with the skills you already have. However, in the long run, you’ll likely want to improve or specialize by accessing training, which will incur additional costs. Working on new software also requires money; you must factor in monthly or annual subscriptions and the associated costs.
You’ll have to work twice as hard.
If you offer a lower price, you’ll have to work harder to achieve your financial goals and make a living from your business. Between a $50 service and two $25 services, you realize there’s a difference in work.
In the long run, this difference can be very burdensome and can discourage you. It’s very tiring to work nonstop and always feel like you’re “earning nothing” or “not making it.”
Virtual Assistant: How to Set Your Rates?
But then, how do you set your prices if you’re a virtual assistant? Setting your prices is a difficult step when you’re starting out as an entrepreneur, but one that you still need to fully consider.
Before we begin, let me tell you that it’s harder to raise your prices when you already have “low-priced” clients than it is to find clients with higher prices. As I told you above, to set your prices, you must take the following elements into account:
- Your background and training
- The type of service you want to offer: specific or not?
- The nature of collaboration
- The responsibilities entrusted to you
Your background and training
Your education and professional experience are factors you should consider when setting prices for your services. The more experience and qualifications you have, the better equipped you are to justify high prices. Of course, I’m not talking about justifying them to your clients, but internally, to your conscience.
The type of service you want to offer
If you specialize in a particular field, such as the stock market, photovoltaics, or libraries (for example), you must highlight and take advantage of this asset to stand out, of course, but also to increase your prices.
The frequency of work
One-off collaborations can be billed more expensively than long-term collaborations. Indeed, any collaboration requires time to process the client: creating a file/client profile, making contact, exchanging calls, etc.
The more you work with people who know you, the faster and more efficient the exchanges will be. As a result, one-off collaborations sometimes require more processing time, which is why you can afford to charge (slightly) more.
The responsibilities entrusted to you
Having responsibilities in a company that isn’t your own is no small feat. And as in any profession, when a mastermind offloads their responsibilities onto their right-hand man, it comes at a price. If your clients entrust you with primary responsibilities (like recruiting or making important decisions), you can increase the cost of your services.-
Something else is very important (but that’s my marketing business manager side), your hourly rate must be aligned with your financial ambitions. Let me explain: if you aim to generate $3,000 in monthly revenue, you can charge lower prices than if you aim to make $5,000. The calculation is straightforward: you have a defined number of hours of work, it’s up to you to adjust your hourly rate according to the expected turnover.
How to increase your virtual assistant rates?
Are you already self-employed and realize your prices are too low? Don’t panic, there are solutions to increase your prices without losing your customers. To start, you must communicate your price increase and announce that it will be done gradually.
To do this, you can write an email to your clients explaining the pace of this increase. For example, if you are currently at $25/hour, you can tell them that in 6 months you will increase to $30/hour and, in a year, to $35/hour.
This method allows your clients to project themselves (or not) into their collaboration with you, but it also allows you to (re)find clients if necessary. If you sign new clients, you should announce your final price directly (i.e., $35/hour).
How to deal with reluctant customers?
If some of your clients are reluctant to hear about your price change, you can take the time to explain to them why you need to increase your rates; no justification is better than another, even if it’s simply to feel more aligned with your status.
If you plan to explain this increase, I advise you to do it in an easily shareable format, such as a PDF brochure, a simple document, or an email you can copy and paste. This will save you valuable time if you must explain this change to several clients.
I hope you found the answers you were looking for!