Virtual PA Or A New Hire? What Each One Really Costs You
Hiring somebody is the obvious answer when you are drowning in admin. It is also the most expensive one, and the slowest. A salary is only the start: you also carry employer National Insurance, pension contributions, holiday, sick pay, equipment, recruitment fees and the time you spend training and managing them.
A Mi PA PA costs one fixed monthly fee. There is no recruitment, no training, no probation and no notice period beyond a calendar month. Your Welcome Call comes first, and useful work usually starts a couple of days later.
Written by Emma Mills, Founder and Managing Director of Mi PA. Last reviewed September 2026.
A permanent hire or a Mi PA PA, side by side
The things buyers ask us about most often, answered straight.
| What you are weighing up | Hiring an employee | A Mi PA PA |
|---|---|---|
| What you pay | Salary, employer National Insurance, pension contributions, holiday, sick pay, equipment and often a recruitment fee. | One fixed monthly fee. |
| How long until they are useful | Weeks to advertise and interview, a notice period to serve, then training. | Welcome Call first, then useful work within a couple of days. |
| Who manages them | You do. Recruiting, training, motivating, appraising and developing. | We do. You get the output. |
| If it is not working | Probation, process and potentially a redundancy consultation. | One calendar month notice. |
| Scaling | Another recruitment round. | A conversation. |
Mi PA has answered calls and run diaries for UK business owners since 2008. We support over 500 businesses from our Salford office.
The cost you do not budget for
Most owners work out the salary and stop there. The costs that catch people out come later: the fortnight of your own time spent shortlisting and interviewing, the first two months where you are training rather than delegating, the holiday you cover yourself, and the awkward conversation if the fit is wrong.
None of that is an argument against hiring. It is an argument for being honest with yourself about the whole number before you commit to it.
I didn’t want to hire. I just needed someone to move projects forward without all the faff. Mi PA didn’t just get it done. They revolutionised my business.
Carolyne Wahlen, Founder, Gap HR and Golf HR
The bit nobody warns you about
The part our clients tell us they dreaded most was not the money. It was becoming somebody’s manager. Setting the work, motivating them, noticing when they are struggling, doing the appraisal. If you started your business to get away from that, adding a direct report is a strange way to buy back your time.
With a Mi PA PA, none of that lands on you. Your PA is trained, supported and managed by us. You get somebody who learns your goals and carves a path to reaching them, without becoming another thing on your plate.
When hiring is genuinely the better call
Employ somebody if you need them physically in your building, if the role is a specialist one that will grow into something bigger, or if the work is full time and predictable enough that a permanent hire will always be busy.
If somebody needs to be on site opening up, meeting customers face to face or handling stock, we are not the answer and we will say so.
Common questions
Is a virtual PA cheaper than an employee?
Usually, yes, once you count the whole cost of employment rather than the salary. An employee also brings employer National Insurance, pension contributions, holiday, sick pay, equipment and often a recruitment fee. A Mi PA PA is one fixed monthly fee with none of those attached.
How long does it take to get started compared with hiring?
Hiring typically means weeks of advertising and interviewing, then a notice period, then training. With Mi PA you have a Welcome Call first, and once we have your information and logins, useful work usually starts a couple of days later.
What if it does not work out?
Your notice period is one calendar month. There is no probation process, no consultation and no redundancy.
Can a virtual PA do everything an employee could?
Almost everything that does not need somebody physically present. Calls, inbox, diary, meeting preparation, lead follow up, customer service, travel and general administration are all handled remotely. If the work needs somebody in the room, an employee is the right answer.
Not sure whether to hire or delegate?
Book a free call with Emma and talk it through with somebody who has no interest in selling you something you do not need.
Or just ring us on 0161 820 6080. Somebody will answer.
Other comparisons
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What happens to your diary when one person is your entire support function and they go on holiday.
Mi PA vs AI
What AI genuinely handles well, what it still cannot do, and why our PAs use it anyway.
Mi PA vs an offshore VA
Where the cost saving is real, and where time zones, accents and data protection start to cost you more.
Our virtual assistant services
What a dedicated UK PA actually takes off your plate, day to day.
