One of the first questions businesses ask when considering Cyber Essentials Plus is: “How much is this going to cost?” It is a perfectly reasonable question, but the answer is not as simple as a single number. The total cost of CE+ certification depends on several factors, including your organisation's size, the complexity of your IT environment, and how much preparation is needed before you are ready for the assessment.
This guide provides a transparent breakdown of the costs involved, explains what drives those costs, and helps you understand the return on investment that CE+ certification delivers.
Understanding the Cost Components
The total cost of achieving Cyber Essentials Plus certification is made up of several distinct components. Understanding each one helps you plan your budget and avoid surprises.
1. Basic Cyber Essentials Assessment Fee
Because Cyber Essentials Plus requires you to first hold a current basic Cyber Essentials certificate, the basic assessment fee is the starting point. Basic CE assessment fees are set by IASME and are based on organisation size:
| Organisation Size | Number of Employees | Basic CE Fee (Approx.) |
|---|---|---|
| Micro | 0 – 9 | £300 + VAT |
| Small | 10 – 49 | £300 + VAT |
| Medium | 50 – 249 | £400 + VAT |
| Large | 250+ | £500 + VAT |
2. Cyber Essentials Plus Assessment Fee
The CE+ assessment fee covers the cost of the independent technical audit conducted by a qualified assessor. Unlike the basic CE fee, the CE+ assessment fee is not fixed — it varies by certification body and depends on the scope and complexity of your environment.
Factors that influence the CE+ assessment fee include:
Number of devices in scope: More devices means more testing time, which increases the fee.
Number of locations: Multi-site organisations require more assessment time, especially if the assessor needs to visit multiple locations.
Complexity of the IT environment: Organisations with complex network architectures, multiple cloud services, or hybrid environments typically face higher fees.
Remote vs on-site assessment: Some assessments can be conducted remotely, which may reduce costs. Others require on-site visits.
CE+ Assessment Fee Estimates by Organisation Size
3. Preparation and Remediation Costs
This is often the largest variable cost component and the one that is hardest to predict without a gap assessment. Preparation costs depend entirely on the current state of your IT environment relative to the five Cyber Essentials technical controls.
If your organisation already has strong security practices — up-to-date systems, properly configured firewalls, anti-malware deployed, and good access controls — the preparation work may be minimal. If there are significant gaps, remediation could involve:
Software upgrades: Replacing end-of-life operating systems or applications (e.g., migrating from Windows 10 to Windows 11 before end of support, replacing legacy applications).
Hardware upgrades: Replacing network equipment with outdated firmware that can no longer be updated, or deploying new firewall appliances.
Consultancy and engineering time: If you work with a managed service provider for remediation, this will typically be charged as professional services time.
Software licences: Anti-malware licences, endpoint protection platforms, or MFA solutions if these are not already in place.
4. Ongoing and Renewal Costs
CE+ certification is valid for 12 months, so you will need to recertify annually. Renewal costs include:
Annual basic CE fee: The IASME assessment fee for basic Cyber Essentials (same as above).
Annual CE+ assessment fee: The independent technical audit fee for CE+.
Ongoing maintenance: The cost of maintaining your security controls throughout the year — patching, updating anti-malware, managing user accounts, and so on.
Total Cost Estimates
To give you a realistic picture, here are estimated total costs for first-year CE+ certification across different organisation sizes:
| Cost Component | Micro/Small | Medium | Large |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic CE assessment | £300–£400 | £400–£500 | £500+ |
| CE+ assessment | £1,500–£2,500 | £3,000–£5,000 | £5,000–£10,000 |
| Preparation/remediation | £1,000–£3,000 | £3,000–£8,000 | £8,000–£20,000+ |
| Estimated total (Year 1) | £2,800–£5,900 | £6,400–£13,500 | £13,500–£30,500+ |
The Return on Investment
While the costs are real, so is the return. Understanding the ROI of CE+ certification helps justify the investment to stakeholders and budget holders.
Revenue Protection and Growth
Government contracts: CE+ certification is mandatory or strongly preferred for a wide range of UK government contracts. The government spends approximately £49.7 billion annually with third-party suppliers. Without CE+, you are locked out of a significant portion of this market.
Private sector contracts: Large enterprises and prime contractors increasingly require CE+ from their supply chain. Each new contract won through CE+ certification contributes directly to revenue growth.
Competitive differentiation: In competitive tenders, CE+ can be the factor that tips the decision in your favour. The certification fee is negligible compared to the value of the contracts it helps you win.
Cost Avoidance
Reduced breach risk: Implementing the five controls can prevent around 80% of common cyber attacks. The average cost of a cyber breach for a UK small business is £4,200 (DCMS Cyber Security Breaches Survey), but costs can escalate dramatically for more serious incidents — ransomware attacks, for example, can cost tens or hundreds of thousands of pounds.
Cyber insurance savings: Many insurers offer reduced premiums for CE+ certified organisations. Some provide free cyber liability insurance (up to £25,000) with basic Cyber Essentials certification through IASME. The premium savings alone can offset a significant portion of the certification cost.
Regulatory compliance: CE+ helps demonstrate compliance with data protection regulations including UK GDPR. Non-compliance with GDPR can result in fines of up to £17.5 million or 4% of annual global turnover — making the certification cost negligible in comparison.
Calculating Your ROI
Consider this simple calculation:
Value of one government contract won through CE+: £50,000 (conservative)
Cost of CE+ certification (Year 1, small business): £3,000–£5,000
Insurance premium reduction: £500–£1,500/year
Breach risk reduction value: £3,360/year (80% of £4,200 average breach cost)
Net first-year ROI: 10x to 20x the investment
How to Reduce Your Costs
There are several practical strategies for managing and reducing your CE+ certification costs:
Start with a gap assessment: Understanding your current position before committing to full remediation allows you to budget accurately and avoid unnecessary work.
Invest in security proactively: If you maintain good security practices year-round (regular patching, proper access controls, up-to-date anti-malware), the remediation component of CE+ preparation will be minimal.
Use a managed service provider: While there is a cost for professional services, an experienced CE+ partner like Cloudswitched can often achieve certification more efficiently than an in-house effort — especially if you factor in the opportunity cost of diverting your own staff from their core roles.
Bundle with ongoing IT support: If you already use a managed IT service provider, adding CE+ to your existing agreement can be more cost-effective than engaging a separate certification consultancy.
Plan ahead for renewal: Annual renewal is typically less expensive than the initial certification because much of the foundational work has already been done. Budget for this from the start.
Hidden Costs to Watch For
Be aware of potential costs that are sometimes overlooked:
Staff time: Even with a managed service, your team will need to invest some time in the process — providing access, answering questions, and coordinating with the assessor.
Retesting fees: If you fail the CE+ assessment and need to be retested, there may be additional fees. Working with an experienced partner who runs pre-assessment testing dramatically reduces this risk.
Infrastructure upgrades: If your gap assessment reveals that hardware or software needs to be replaced (e.g., end-of-life servers, unsupported routers), these capital costs can be significant but would likely be necessary regardless of CE+ certification.
Process changes: Implementing proper access controls, patching processes, and security monitoring may require changes to how your team works. While these changes are beneficial, they do require investment in training and process development.
Cloudswitched: Transparent, Managed Pricing
At Cloudswitched, we believe in transparent pricing for our Cyber Essentials Plus service. We provide a clear quote after conducting an initial gap assessment, so you know exactly what to expect before committing to the full certification process.
Our fully managed service includes gap assessment, preparation and remediation across all five controls, licensing and registration, pre-assessment vulnerability testing, examination coordination, and ongoing support — all for a single, predictable fee. No hidden charges, no surprise invoices.
Ready to Get Certified?
Cloudswitched handles your entire Cyber Essentials Plus certification end-to-end with transparent, managed pricing — no hidden costs or surprises.
View CE+ ServicesThe cost of Cyber Essentials Plus certification is an investment, not an expense. When measured against the contracts it unlocks, the breaches it prevents, and the competitive advantage it provides, the return on investment is compelling for businesses of every size. The question is not whether you can afford to get certified — it is whether you can afford not to.
CloudSwitched
Centrally located in London, Shoreditch, we offer a range of IT services and solutions to small/medium sized companies.