What a fractional or virtual CISO really costs per month, and how it stacks up against a full-time hire.
A fractional or virtual CISO (vCISO) typically costs $3,000 to $15,000 per month, versus a base salary of $300,000+ for a full-time CISO before equity and benefits. The price depends on whether you need advisory only or hands-on program execution, your company size, and whether compliance work like SOC 2 is included. traztech's fractional CISO runs roughly $3K to $8K per month and runs the program, not just advises.
Fractional CISO pricing splits into two models. Advisory-only engagements give you strategy, a roadmap, and someone to answer to in meetings; they sit at the lower end. Operator engagements add hands-on execution: writing the policies, running SOC 2, answering security questionnaires, remediating findings, and leading incident response. Those sit higher because someone is doing the work, not just directing it.
Three things move the number: the scope (advisory vs full program execution), your company size and complexity (more systems, more compliance, more customer security reviews), and whether compliance frameworks like SOC 2 or ISO 27001 are bundled in. A pure advisor checking in monthly is cheaper than an operator who owns your audit and your questionnaires.
A full-time CISO base salary typically starts around $300,000 and climbs well past that in major markets, before equity, benefits, and recruiting fees. The total loaded cost is often far more than the base. A fractional engagement gives you the same accountable security owner for a fraction of that, and you can adjust scope month to month instead of carrying a fixed salary whether the work fills a week or not.
The other hidden cost of full-time is time: hiring a senior CISO takes three to six months, and a strong candidate may not exist in your market. A fractional CISO is engaged and producing within days.
Move to a full-time CISO when the workload genuinely fills a full week, you have an internal security team that needs daily management, or a board or regulator expects a full-time executive. A good fractional will tell you when you are approaching that line, and help you hire and transition.
| Fractional / vCISO | Full-time CISO | |
|---|---|---|
| Typical cost | $3K–$15K / month | $300K+ base, plus equity and benefits |
| Time to value | Engaged within days | Three to six months to hire and ramp |
| Scope | Scaled to your stage, adjustable monthly | Fixed full-time role |
| Best for | Startups and scale-ups | Companies with a security team to manage |
| Scaling down | Adjust scope any month | Fixed salary regardless of workload |
For most startups, $3,000 to $8,000 per month buys an operator who runs the actual program. Pure advisory can be less; large or highly regulated companies that need more days per week can be more. The key question is whether the rate includes doing the work or only advising on it.
Almost always, at startup and scale-up size. A full-time CISO is a $300K-plus fixed cost before equity and benefits, for a role that may not yet need a full week. A fractional engagement gives you the same accountable owner for a fraction of that and flexes with your needs.
It varies by provider. At the operator end it includes owning the security strategy, running SOC 2 and other compliance, answering customer security questionnaires, managing vendor reviews, leading incident response, and sitting in the audit. Advisory-only engagements include the strategy without the hands-on execution.
Yes. What they want is a named, accountable security owner who can answer for the program, and a fractional CISO is exactly that. Credibility comes from the person, not the employment arrangement.
The terms are used interchangeably. Both mean a part-time, outsourced security leader. Some providers use "vCISO" for more remote, advisory engagements and "fractional" for more embedded, hands-on ones, but there is no strict industry definition.
A fractional CISO who owns the strategy and does the work, engaged within days. Tell us your stage and we will scope it.
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