Free tools/Cyber Essentials cost
Estimate your Cyber Essentials cost
Answer five questions to see the likely certification, support and remediation cost for a UK SME. No email needed.
Build your estimate
Certification, analyst support and practical remediation.
Based on official 2026 fee bands and fixed pricing.
Get expert advice from a UK based assessor.
Method
How this estimate is calculated
Nothing is modelled behind the scenes. Every number comes from two published sources, the official IASME fee schedule and the Intelance price list, and the logic is set out here in full so you can check it, quote it or rebuild it in a spreadsheet.
The official Cyber Essentials assessment fee is £320 to £600 + VAT, set by organisation size and identical through every certification body. Cyber Essentials Plus adds an independent technical audit, priced by each certification body. The Intelance price is from £1,150 + VAT, fixed in writing before work starts. Most UK SMEs should plan a first year total between the official fee alone and a few thousand pounds once preparation and fixes are counted.
The official IASME assessment fee
IASME runs Cyber Essentials on behalf of the National Cyber Security Centre. The fee covers the assessment portal, review of your answers by a qualified assessor, a resubmission window, and your certificate and badge on passing.
Source: the published IASME fee schedule, checked 17 July 2026.
The Intelance published prices
Intelance is an IASME licensed certification body. Our own assessors carry out the assessing, and everything we add to the official fee is a published fixed price. These are the only Intelance figures the estimator uses.
What moves the total
Device count and site answers do not change the certificate fee, and this estimator does not pretend they do. They change the realistic first year planning range and the time to allow, because they shape how much preparation, coordination and fixing sits around the certificate.
Devices and device types
A Plus audit tests a sample across every operating system in use. More variety means more testing time and more preparation.
Sites and remote workers
Testing is arranged around where devices are. Dispersed estates take longer to coordinate, though remote testing over screen share works well.
The state of the estate
Unsupported software, missing multi factor authentication and shared admin accounts drive most remediation bills. The certificate simply presents that bill.
Deadlines
A certificate needed in a fortnight for a contract leaves no room to fix things calmly. Starting before the deadline exists is the cheapest move available.
Failures and retests
A failed Plus audit costs time and sometimes fees to put right. An honest readiness check before the audit is cheaper than a second audit.
The market
How these prices compare across the UK
The certificate is identical wherever you buy it. The difference is what is wrapped around it, and whether the wrapping is declared.
A good quote shows the official assessment fee on its own line and prices every service separately, so you can decline the parts you do not need. If a provider will not show you that split, treat it as a warning sign. The full reasoning is in our complete Cyber Essentials cost guide.
Questions
Questions about the cost calculator
Plain answers on fees, timelines and what moves the price. If the question is specific to your organisation, ask a licensed assessor.
How much does Cyber Essentials cost for a small business in the UK?
A small business with 10 to 49 employees pays the official assessment fee of £440 + VAT to self-assess. With guided support the typical all in figure is commonly £800 to £2,500 + VAT, depending on how much fixing the IT estate needs first.
How much does Cyber Essentials Plus cost?
Each certification body prices its own audit, and most UK businesses pay between £1,500 and £3,000 + VAT. The Intelance price is from £1,150 + VAT, fixed in writing before work starts and delivered in one to three weeks. The basic Cyber Essentials fee applies as well, because Plus requires it as a prerequisite.
Is the Cyber Essentials fee the same with every certification body?
Yes. The assessment fee of £320 to £600 + VAT is set by IASME and is identical through every certification body. Anything charged above the official fee pays for support services and should be itemised separately on the quote.
Does the number of devices change the price?
Not for basic Cyber Essentials, where the fee depends only on headcount. For Cyber Essentials Plus, device count and variety shape the audit sample and the time it takes, which is why complex estates cost more with most providers. Intelance confirms a single fixed fee before starting, so the number you agree is the number you pay.
Do we pay the cost every year?
Yes. Certification lasts twelve months and the official fee applies at each renewal. Renewal effort is usually much lower than the first year because the estate was brought up to standard the first time round.
Does certification include insurance?
Eligible UK organisations that certify the whole business and have under £20 million turnover receive cyber liability insurance with £25,000 of cover included with certification at no extra cost.
How long does certification take?
A prepared organisation can complete basic Cyber Essentials in one to two weeks, since assessor review takes up to three working days per submission. Cyber Essentials Plus is delivered by Intelance in one to three weeks, and the audit must be completed within three months of the basic certification, so the two are booked together.
Is this estimate a quote?
No. It is planning guidance built from published prices, and the floors shown are real. For a binding figure, book a strategy call and you will get a fixed fee in writing, even if the answer is that you should self-assess for the official fee alone.
Get your estimate fixed in writing
Thirty minutes with the assessor team that will certify you. A clear recommendation and a fixed fee in writing, even if the answer is that you should self-assess for £320. A reply within one UK business day.
Keep reading
Related guides and services
Cyber Essentials cost guide
The full pricing breakdown behind this estimator, including the hidden costs most buyers miss.
Cyber Essentials certification
Self led and guided routes with the certification body itself, prices published.
Cyber Essentials Plus certification
The independently audited level, from £1,150 + VAT with a dry run before audit day.
Cyber and ISO hub
Every cyber and ISO engagement in one place, from certification to ISO 27001.
All Intelance tools
Every free calculator and scorecard in one place.
Written and maintained by the Intelance assessor team. Figures last reviewed 17 July 2026 against the published IASME fee schedule. Intelance Digital Enablement Services Ltd is an IASME licensed certification body for Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus.