What Should a Managed IT Support Contract Include?
A managed IT support contract should pin down five things: the pricing model (per-user now dominates), the exact scope and exclusions, SLA response targets with credits, data and offboarding terms, and the notice period - 90 days is common in UK agreements and worth negotiating.
Written by Nathan Hill-Haimes, Co-Founder, AMVIA
Quick answer
A managed IT support contract should pin down five things in writing: the pricing model (per-user now dominates - only 13% of MSPs still price per-device, per Huntress 2026), the exact scope and its exclusions, SLA response targets with service credits, data ownership and offboarding terms, and the notice period - UK procurement guidance flags 90-day notice as common and worth negotiating. AMVIA contracts run on the published GBP25/GBP40/GBP60 per-user ladder with scope agreed before signature.
Key Points
What you need to know.
Per-User Won
Only 13% of MSPs still price per-device (Huntress 2026, down from 17%) - per-user covers all of a person’s devices and scales with headcount, not kit.
Exclusions Are the Contract
Licences, projects, out-of-hours and on-site allowances are where quotes diverge - UK guidance lists licence admin at GBP2-5/user/month and out-of-hours at 150-200%.
Security Is the Driver
76% of MSPs say security is their clients’ top concern (Kaseya 2025 benchmark) - a contract without named security deliverables is a 2015 contract.
Co-Managed Is Normal Now
61% of MSP executives report co-managed revenue up year-on-year (Kaseya 2025) - contracts can supplement an internal IT lead, not just replace one.
The Five Clauses That Decide a Contract
| Feature | Clause | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pricing model | Per-user vs per-device vs tiered | Per-user with all devices included; published tier prices beat quote-on-request |
| 2. Scope + exclusions | What the fee covers, in writing | Licence fees/admin, projects, on-site allowance, out-of-hours rates all named |
| 3. SLA + credits | Response targets by severity | Measurable targets with service credits, not “best efforts” |
| 4. Data + offboarding | Who owns documentation, credentials, backups | Full handover obligations on exit, at no ransom fee |
| 5. Term + notice | Contract length and exit | 90-day notice is common (UK guidance) - negotiate, and diarise the renewal |
The pricing model clause
UK managed IT contracts now overwhelmingly price per user per month: the model covers every device a person uses and scales with headcount rather than hardware. Per-device pricing is fading - Huntress’s 2026 MSP pricing guide reports only 13% of providers still use it, down from 17% a year earlier. Tiered per-user plans (basic / enhanced / fully managed) are the standard shape; the UK market clusters at GBP30-50, GBP50-85 and GBP85-150 across those tiers (Compare the Cloud, February 2026; Computer Centric, June 2026). AMVIA’s contracts use the published GBP25 / GBP40 / GBP60 ladder - the numbers are on the site, not behind a discovery call; see how much is managed IT support.
Scope, exclusions and the fine print
Most contract disputes are scope disputes. UK procurement guidance names the usual gaps: Microsoft licences (and licence-administration fees of GBP2-5 per user per month at some providers), project work at day rates above GBP1,000 per engineer, hardware markup, on-site visit allowances, and out-of-hours surcharges of 150-200%. None of these is unreasonable if it is written down before signature; all of them are painful as surprises. Ask for the exclusion list as a schedule, not a conversation.
The SLA clause
Response targets only matter if they are measurable and carry consequences. A contract-grade SLA names severity levels, response and update targets per level, the measurement window, and service credits when targets are missed. Our MSP SLA guide covers the specific questions to ask, and AMVIA’s own SLA is published rather than negotiated in private.
Security deliverables belong in the contract
76% of MSPs say security is now their clients’ primary concern (Kaseya 2025 Global MSP Benchmark), and the UK government’s 2025/26 Cyber Security Breaches Survey found 46% of small businesses identified an attack in the last year. A modern contract therefore names its security deliverables - endpoint protection, patching cadence, MFA management, monitoring and response - per tier. If security is an optional bolt-on, price the bolt-on before comparing quotes.
Co-managed clauses
Contracts no longer assume you have no IT staff: 61% of MSP executives report co-managed IT revenue up year-on-year (Kaseya 2025), and two-thirds now earn a substantial share from supplementing internal teams. If you have an IT lead, the contract should define the split - who owns the helpdesk, who owns escalation, who owns the tooling - in a named schedule. See co-managed IT.
Frequently Asked Questions
Five things in writing: the pricing model (per-user is now standard), the exact scope with a named exclusion schedule, measurable SLA targets with service credits, data ownership and offboarding obligations, and the term/notice period. If any of the five lives in a conversation rather than the document, expect a dispute.
12-36 months is typical in the UK, with 90-day notice periods common per procurement guidance. Longer terms should buy something concrete (price locks, onboarding investment). Diarise the renewal date - auto-renewal plus 90-day notice is how businesses get trapped a year longer than intended.
Per user, for almost everyone: it covers all the devices a person actually uses and scales with headcount. The market agrees - only 13% of MSPs still price per-device (Huntress 2026 pricing guide, down from 17% the prior year). Per-device survives mainly for estates with many shared machines.
An agreement where the provider supplements your internal IT rather than replacing it - typically owning the helpdesk, monitoring and security tooling while your team keeps strategy and local presence. It is now mainstream: 61% of MSP executives report co-managed revenue growing year-on-year (Kaseya 2025 benchmark).
Full handover obligations: documentation, admin credentials, licence ownership, backup access and a defined offboarding period - at no additional “exit fee” beyond the notice period. A provider that resists writing down its offboarding duties is telling you how leaving will feel.
Want the fixed number for your business?
Tell us your headcount and what you run - we quote one fixed monthly price from the published GBP25/user ladder, scope agreed up front.
Related Resources
What Should an MSP SLA Include?
Response targets, credits and the small print that matters.
How Much Is Managed IT Support?
The attested per-user ladder with worked examples.
MSP vs Break-Fix
Why predictable monthly support beats pay-per-incident for most SMEs.
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