Per-seat pricing: how the cost grows and where your break-even sits
A per-person plan charges one price for each login. That is a small bill for a team of three and a different bill for a team of twelve. Here is how the cost grows, what flat and usage plans change, and how to find the headcount where having your own built starts to win.
Every number below is invented. Replace them with yours in the build, buy or rent calculator, on the Rent route.
Sources checked 19 October 2026. Prices and indexes move, so check the date.
How per-person pricing grows with your team
Per-person pricing multiplies one monthly price by the number of people, so the bill rises with every hire, not only with price rises. Five people at $12 is $60 a month. Ten people is $120 a month. Count the people you expect to add within two years, not only today's team.
Example (invented numbers): $12 per person a month is $144 per person a year. A team of 5, then 8, then 12 pays $720, then $1,152, then $1,728. That is $3,600 over 3 years, against $2,160 if the team stayed at 5.
Where to find the price and the headcount: see subscription price per person.
When does a per-person plan get expensive?
It gets expensive when the team is large enough that its total passes what paying someone to build the tool would cost. In the calculator's default example that happens at 25 people over 3 years. Below that, renting costs less than paying someone. The number moves with your price, your quote and your years.
The sums are in the break-even section below. For all four routes side by side, read custom vs off-the-shelf software. For every cost to count, read software total cost of ownership.
Per-seat vs a flat company plan
A flat company plan charges one price for the whole team, so it wins once enough people share it. Divide the flat price by the per-person price to find the crossover. Check what the flat plan limits, such as storage or features, before you count it as equal.
Example (invented numbers): A flat plan at $90 a month against $12 per person. $90 ÷ $12 = 7.5, so flat is cheaper from 8 people. At 7 people per-person costs $84 a month. At 8 it costs $96. At 5 people, over 3 years, flat costs $3,240 and per-person $2,160.
Ask what happens when you outgrow the flat plan. In the calculator, choose "One price for the company" to enter it.
Usage and credit pricing
Usage or credit pricing charges for what you use, so the bill follows your workload, not your headcount. Estimate it from a busy month, because that is the month that surprises you. The calculator's usage option takes one monthly figure, so enter your honest busy-month guess.
Example (invented numbers): 9 quiet months at $30 and 3 busy months at $75 is $495 a year, or $1,485 over 3 years. Twelve busy months is $900 a year, or $2,700 over 3 years. The busy-month figure is a ceiling, not a forecast.
Annual vs monthly billing
Annual billing can show a lower monthly price because it assumes you pay for a full year. Compare both on the same total, and ask whether an early stop is refunded. The calculator takes a monthly price, so enter the monthly figure for the billing you would really choose.
Example (invented numbers): $12 a month, or $10 a month billed yearly, for 5 people. Monthly is $720 a year and $2,160 over 3 years. Yearly is $600 a year and $1,800 over 3 years. Leave after 4 months with no refund and yearly cost $600, against $240 on monthly.
Price rises
Prices can rise after you sign, and a per-person plan multiplies each rise by your headcount. Our worst case adds 10% a year to the subscription. That 10% is our assumption, not a forecast. Vertice's SaaS inflation index put SaaS price inflation at a record 16.4% in June 2026 and 12.7% in August (preliminary).
Vertice sells procurement software, describes no calculation method, and its figure moves each month. More in price rises.
Source type: estimate
Source: Vertice SaaS inflation index.
Example (invented numbers): 10 people at $12 is $1,440 a year. With 10% a year it is $1,440, then $1,584, then $1,742. That is $4,766 over 3 years, against $4,320 with no rise.
How to find your break-even number of people
Your break-even number of people is the pay-someone total divided by what one person costs over the same years. Round down, then add one. That is the first headcount where having it built costs less. The calculator shows it as "Building wins from N people".
Building wins from N = pay-someone total ÷ (price × 12 × years), rounded down, plus one.
- Pay-someone total: the quote plus upkeep for each year. The calculator starts upkeep at 25% of the quote.
- One person's cost: monthly price × 12 × years.
- Divide, round down, add one.
Example (invented numbers): Quote $6,000, upkeep 25% so $1,500 a year, 3 years: $6,000 + $4,500 = $10,500. One person: $12 × 12 × 3 = $432. $10,500 ÷ $432 = 24.3, so 25 people. Check: 24 people cost $10,368 and 25 cost $10,800. Over 5 years the same inputs give $13,500 ÷ $720 = 18.75, so 19 people.
Source type: our arithmetic on invented inputs
Two cautions. First, the sum leaves out your own hours. Second, quotes can run over. Flyvbjerg and Budzier studied 1,471 IT projects. The average cost overrun was 27%, and about one in six overran by 200% on average (paper).
As a test, add 10% a year to the subscription and raise upkeep to 40% of the quote. The pay-someone total is $6,000 + 3 × $2,400 = $13,200. One person is $144 × (1 + 1.1 + 1.21) = $476.64. $13,200 ÷ $476.64 = 27.7, so 28 people. The calculator's break-even uses the plain totals, so this test is ours, not its number.
The 3-year default has an anchor: US tax law depreciates off-the-shelf computer software over 36 months (26 U.S.C. 167(f)). That is not a rule for your business. Ask your accountant about tax.
Questions
Is per-user pricing cheaper than flat pricing?
It depends on headcount. Per-user is cheaper for a small team. A flat company plan is cheaper once the team is big enough to share it. Divide the flat price by the per-person price to find the crossover. Then check what the flat plan limits.
How do I calculate what per-seat pricing will cost?
Multiply the monthly price per person by the number of people, by 12, by the years. Use the headcount you expect, not only today's. The calculator does this sum for the Rent route.
When does SaaS get expensive?
When the team grows, when prices rise, or when the total passes what having the tool built would cost. The first two are easy to see. The third is the break-even number of people, and the section above shows how to find it.
Is annual billing worth it?
Only if you will keep the tool for the full year. Compare the yearly total with twelve monthly payments, and ask whether an early stop is refunded. We could not give you a typical saving, because it differs by vendor.
How much do software prices rise each year?
Vertice's SaaS inflation index put SaaS price inflation at a record 16.4% in June 2026 and 12.7% in August (preliminary). Vertice sells procurement software, describes no calculation method, and the figure moves each month. The calculator's worst case uses +10% a year. That 10% is our assumption, not a forecast.
Run your numbers
Enter your price per person, your headcount, your years and a quote. The calculator shows your break-even number of people and marks which numbers are yours and which are examples.
Run your numbers →
Where each input comes from: estimate software costs.
Sources
Anything not listed here is our assumption or plain advice, and is labeled that way. This is not financial, tax or legal advice.