One of the most common questions we hear from clients is "how much will SOC 2 cost?" — and almost every time, they're thinking only about the audit fee. At Agency, we help companies budget accurately for the full readiness investment so there are no surprises mid-program. Here's what we see across our client base.
SOC 2 readiness costs — the investment required before the formal audit engagement begins — are frequently underestimated by companies budgeting for their first SOC 2 compliance program. Readiness encompasses everything from the initial gap assessment and GRC platform deployment to policy development, control implementation, engineering time for security configurations, and consulting fees for expert guidance. In most cases, readiness costs equal or exceed the audit fee itself, yet many companies budget only for the audit and are surprised by the total investment required to reach audit-ready status. Understanding the complete readiness cost picture — broken down by tooling, consulting, internal labor, and company-specific variables — enables more accurate budgeting and prevents the mid-program surprises that delay timelines and strain resources.
This article benchmarks the pre-audit readiness costs companies incur across company size and security maturity levels, covering GRC platform subscriptions, readiness assessment engagements, consulting fees for gap remediation and policy development, internal engineering time for implementing controls, and training costs.
Readiness Cost Overview
Readiness vs Audit: Where the Money Goes
| Cost Category | Percentage of Total SOC 2 Program Cost | Typical Range |
|---|
| Pre-audit readiness (total) | 50-65% of first-year total cost | $30,000-$200,000+ |
| Audit engagement fee | 35-50% of first-year total cost | $20,000-$100,000+ |
Most companies focus on the audit fee when budgeting for SOC 2. In our experience, readiness — getting the organization to the point where it can pass an audit — represents the larger share of the total investment, particularly for the first engagement.
Total Readiness Cost by Company Size
| Company Size | Employees | Annual Revenue | Total Readiness Cost Range | Typical Readiness Cost |
|---|
| Early-stage startup | 10-25 | Under $5M | $25,000-$60,000 | $35,000-$45,000 |
| Growth-stage startup | 25-100 | $5M-$25M | $40,000-$100,000 | $55,000-$75,000 |
| Mid-market company | 100-500 | $25M-$100M | $75,000-$175,000 | $100,000-$130,000 |
| Enterprise | 500-2,000 | $100M-$500M | $125,000-$300,000 | $175,000-$225,000 |
| Large enterprise | 2,000+ | $500M+ | $200,000-$500,000+ | $275,000-$400,000 |
Readiness Cost by Security Maturity Level
| Starting Maturity | Description | Readiness Cost Multiplier | Typical Range |
|---|
| Minimal | No formal security program; policies non-existent; basic cloud setup without security hardening | 1.5-2.0x base | Higher end of range — significant gap remediation required |
| Basic | Some security practices in place informally; partial policies; basic access controls but not documented | 1.0-1.3x base | Middle of range — gap remediation plus formalization |
| Moderate | Written policies exist but may be outdated; access controls documented; some monitoring in place | 0.7-1.0x base | Lower end of range — primarily gap closure and evidence formalization |
| Strong | Comprehensive security program; current policies; monitoring and logging in place; prior compliance experience | 0.5-0.7x base | Below typical range — readiness focuses on audit-specific preparation |
Readiness Cost Breakdown by Category
GRC Platform Costs
| Platform Tier | Annual Subscription | What You Get | Best For |
|---|
| Entry-level (Sprinto, Scytale) | $5,000-$10,000/year | Core compliance automation, policy templates, basic integrations, evidence collection | Early-stage startups with straightforward SOC 2 scope |
| Mid-market (Vanta, Drata, Secureframe) | $10,000-$25,000/year | Comprehensive automation, 200+ integrations, continuous monitoring, auditor portal, multi-framework support | Growth-stage companies through mid-market |
| Enterprise (Vanta Enterprise, AuditBoard, Hyperproof) | $25,000-$75,000+/year | Advanced workflow automation, custom integrations, dedicated support, multi-entity support, GRC reporting | Mid-market through enterprise organizations |
GRC Platform Cost Notes:
- Most platforms require annual commitments; some offer monthly billing at a premium
- Multi-framework bundles (SOC 2 + ISO 27001 + HIPAA) typically cost 30-60% more than single-framework pricing
- Platform costs are ongoing — they do not end after the first audit; budget for annual renewal
- Some platforms include policy templates and training modules that reduce consulting costs elsewhere
Readiness Assessment Costs
| Assessment Type | Cost Range | What It Includes | Timeline |
|---|
| Self-assessment using GRC platform | $0 (included in platform subscription) | Platform-generated readiness scoring based on automated checks and questionnaire responses | 1-2 weeks |
| Advisory firm readiness assessment | $5,000-$20,000 | Expert review of control environment; gap analysis; remediation roadmap; priority recommendations | 2-4 weeks |
| Audit firm readiness assessment | $8,000-$25,000 | Detailed assessment against Trust Service Criteria; specific gap identification; audit-aligned findings | 3-6 weeks |
| Comprehensive readiness assessment (advisory firm) | $15,000-$40,000 | Full gap analysis plus remediation support; policy drafting; control design; implementation guidance | 4-8 weeks |
Assessment Selection Guidance:
- GRC platform self-assessments are useful for baseline orientation but miss organizational and process gaps that automated tools cannot detect
- Advisory firm assessments provide practical remediation guidance but do not carry the same audit-alignment as assessments performed by audit firms
- Audit firm readiness assessments align most closely with what the formal audit will evaluate, but the assessing firm typically cannot serve as your audit firm (independence requirements)
- Companies with strong internal security teams may only need a focused advisory assessment; companies with minimal security maturity benefit from comprehensive assessments
Consulting and Advisory Costs
| Service | Cost Range | What It Covers | When Needed |
|---|
| Policy development (full set) | $8,000-$25,000 | Drafting 10-15 SOC 2-aligned policies from scratch, customized to your organization | Companies with no existing security policies |
| Policy review and update | $3,000-$10,000 | Reviewing and updating existing policies to meet SOC 2 requirements | Companies with policies that need modernization |
| Control design and implementation guidance | $10,000-$30,000 | Designing controls for identified gaps; providing implementation specifications for engineering teams | Companies needing expert guidance on control architecture |
| Ongoing compliance advisory | $3,000-$8,000/month | Fractional compliance leadership; ongoing guidance during readiness period; audit preparation support | Companies without in-house compliance expertise |
| vCISO services | $4,000-$12,000/month | Virtual CISO providing security leadership, compliance oversight, and strategic guidance | Companies needing executive-level security leadership without a full-time hire |
| Audit preparation support | $5,000-$15,000 | Preparing evidence packages, system description drafting, auditor communication, pre-audit review | All companies approaching their first audit |
Internal Labor Costs
Internal labor is the largest and most frequently underestimated readiness cost category because it draws on multiple team members across engineering, security, IT, and management.
| Role | Estimated Hours (First SOC 2) | Fully Loaded Hourly Cost | Total Labor Cost |
|---|
| Engineering lead / DevOps | 80-200 hours | $100-$175/hour | $8,000-$35,000 |
| Security engineer | 60-150 hours | $100-$175/hour | $6,000-$26,250 |
| Compliance lead / coordinator | 120-300 hours | $75-$150/hour | $9,000-$45,000 |
| IT administrator | 40-100 hours | $65-$120/hour | $2,600-$12,000 |
| HR representative | 20-50 hours | $60-$100/hour | $1,200-$5,000 |
| Department managers (access reviews, risk input) | 20-60 hours (aggregate) | $80-$150/hour | $1,600-$9,000 |
| Executive sponsor | 10-30 hours | $125-$250/hour | $1,250-$7,500 |
| Total internal labor | 350-890 hours | | $29,650-$139,750 |
Internal Labor by Activity
| Activity | Hours Range | Who Is Involved |
|---|
| GRC platform setup and integration configuration | 30-80 hours | Engineering lead, security engineer |
| Security control implementation (MFA, encryption, logging, etc.) | 60-150 hours | Engineering lead, DevOps, security engineer |
| Policy review and customization | 30-60 hours | Compliance lead, department managers |
| Access control configuration and access reviews | 20-50 hours | IT administrator, department managers |
| Training program deployment and tracking | 15-30 hours | HR representative, compliance lead |
| Evidence collection and organization | 40-100 hours | Compliance lead, engineering lead |
| Vendor risk assessment | 15-40 hours | Compliance lead, security engineer |
| Risk assessment process | 15-30 hours | Security engineer, executive sponsor, compliance lead |
| Audit preparation (system description, evidence packaging) | 30-60 hours | Compliance lead, engineering lead |
| Project management and coordination | 40-80 hours | Compliance lead, executive sponsor |
Training Costs
| Training Type | Cost per Employee | Coverage | Notes |
|---|
| Security awareness training (platform-based) | $5-$25/employee/year | All employees | Often included in GRC platform subscription; KnowBe4, Curricula, or similar |
| Security awareness training (custom development) | $10,000-$25,000 total | All employees | Custom content development for industry-specific scenarios |
| Compliance team SOC 2 training | $500-$2,000 per person | Compliance team (1-3 people) | AICPA or third-party SOC 2 training courses |
| Role-specific security training | $200-$1,000 per person | Engineering, DevOps, IT teams | Secure development, incident response, access management procedures |
| Executive briefing | $0-$2,000 | C-suite and board members | Often performed by advisory firm as part of readiness engagement |
Cost Reduction Strategies
How to Reduce Readiness Costs
| Strategy | Cost Impact | Trade-Off |
|---|
| Use GRC platform policy templates instead of custom policy development | Save $5,000-$15,000 on consulting | Templates may need customization; generic policies may not fully reflect your operations |
| Leverage GRC platform automated evidence collection instead of manual processes | Save 100-200 hours of internal labor ($10,000-$35,000) | Requires GRC platform investment; not all evidence can be automated |
| Start with Security-only scope (no additional Trust Service Criteria) | Save 15-25% on total readiness cost | May not meet buyer expectations in certain industries; adding criteria later requires additional readiness |
| Pursue Type I before Type II | Spread readiness costs across two phases; lower initial investment | Type I has limited market acceptance; may need Type II within 12 months |
| Assign internal champion with compliance background | Reduce consulting dependency by 30-50% | Requires existing employee with relevant experience; diverts them from other responsibilities |
| Address security fundamentals before formal readiness | Reduce gap remediation time and consulting hours | Requires upfront investment in security without immediate compliance benefit |
ROI of Readiness Investment
| Investment Area | Cost | Return |
|---|
| Comprehensive readiness assessment | $10,000-$25,000 | Identifies all gaps before audit; prevents audit findings that require re-testing; can save 20-40% of audit time |
| GRC platform deployment | $10,000-$25,000/year | Reduces ongoing internal labor by 60-80%; automates evidence collection; reduces audit preparation time |
| Policy development with expert guidance | $8,000-$25,000 | Policies pass audit review on first submission; reduces back-and-forth with auditor; establishes foundation for ongoing compliance |
| Security control implementation | $15,000-$50,000 (internal labor) | Eliminates audit exceptions; builds security infrastructure that protects the business beyond compliance |
| Pre-audit evidence review | $5,000-$10,000 | Catches evidence gaps before the auditor discovers them; prevents sampling extensions and audit timeline delays |
Cost Benchmarks by Scenario
Startup SOC 2 Readiness (25-Employee SaaS Company)
| Cost Component | Low Estimate | Typical | High Estimate |
|---|
| GRC platform (Year 1) | $8,000 | $12,000 | $18,000 |
| Readiness assessment | $0 (platform-based) | $8,000 | $15,000 |
| Policy development | $0 (templates) | $5,000 | $12,000 |
| Consulting / advisory | $0 | $10,000 | $25,000 |
| Internal labor | $15,000 | $25,000 | $40,000 |
| Training | $1,000 | $2,500 | $5,000 |
| Total readiness | $24,000 | $62,500 | $115,000 |
Growth-Stage Company (100-Employee SaaS)
| Cost Component | Low Estimate | Typical | High Estimate |
|---|
| GRC platform (Year 1) | $12,000 | $18,000 | $30,000 |
| Readiness assessment | $5,000 | $12,000 | $25,000 |
| Policy development / review | $3,000 | $10,000 | $20,000 |
| Consulting / advisory | $5,000 | $20,000 | $45,000 |
| Internal labor | $30,000 | $50,000 | $85,000 |
| Training | $3,000 | $5,000 | $10,000 |
| Total readiness | $58,000 | $115,000 | $215,000 |
Mid-Market Company (300-Employee Company)
| Cost Component | Low Estimate | Typical | High Estimate |
|---|
| GRC platform (Year 1) | $20,000 | $35,000 | $60,000 |
| Readiness assessment | $10,000 | $20,000 | $35,000 |
| Policy development / review | $5,000 | $15,000 | $25,000 |
| Consulting / advisory | $15,000 | $35,000 | $70,000 |
| Internal labor | $50,000 | $80,000 | $130,000 |
| Training | $5,000 | $10,000 | $20,000 |
| Total readiness | $105,000 | $195,000 | $340,000 |
Readiness Cost Factors
What Drives Readiness Costs Up
| Factor | Cost Impact | Why |
|---|
| Low starting security maturity | +50-100% on readiness costs | More gaps to close; more controls to implement from scratch; more policies to develop |
| Multiple Trust Service Criteria (beyond Security) | +15-25% per additional criterion | Each criterion adds controls, evidence requirements, and testing scope |
| Complex technology architecture | +20-40% on engineering labor | Multi-cloud environments, microservices, container orchestration, and complex CI/CD pipelines require more configuration effort |
| Regulated industry requirements | +10-30% on overall readiness | Healthcare (HIPAA alignment), financial services (SOX alignment), government (FedRAMP awareness) add compliance complexity |
| Large employee population | +5-15% for access management and training | More users means more access reviews, more training to coordinate, and more endpoint devices to manage |
| Remote and distributed workforce | +10-20% on endpoint and access controls | Distributed teams require additional endpoint management, zero-trust configurations, and access monitoring |
| No existing compliance team | +$50,000-$150,000 for consulting or vCISO | Without internal expertise, external advisory fees fill the gap |
What Drives Readiness Costs Down
| Factor | Cost Impact | Why |
|---|
| Prior ISO 27001 or HIPAA compliance | -30-50% on readiness costs | Significant control overlap means many SOC 2 controls are already in place |
| Strong existing security program | -25-40% on gap remediation | Fewer gaps to close; readiness focuses on documentation and evidence rather than control implementation |
| Modern cloud-native architecture | -10-20% on engineering labor | Cloud-native environments integrate more easily with GRC platforms and have built-in security features |
| Experienced internal compliance lead | -20-30% on consulting costs | Reduced dependency on external advisory; faster internal decision-making |
| Security-only scope (no additional criteria) | -15-25% on overall readiness | Fewer controls, less evidence, and narrower scope reduce all cost categories |
| Prior audit experience (any framework) | -10-20% on readiness effort | Team understands audit processes, evidence expectations, and compliance workflows |
Year-Over-Year Readiness Cost Trends
| Cost Category | Year 1 (First SOC 2) | Year 2 (Renewal) | Year 3+ (Mature) |
|---|
| GRC platform | $10,000-$25,000 | $10,000-$25,000 | $10,000-$25,000 |
| Readiness assessment | $5,000-$25,000 | $0-$5,000 | $0 |
| Policy development / review | $5,000-$25,000 | $2,000-$5,000 | $1,000-$3,000 |
| Consulting / advisory | $10,000-$45,000 | $5,000-$15,000 | $0-$10,000 |
| Internal labor | $30,000-$85,000 | $15,000-$40,000 | $10,000-$30,000 |
| Training | $2,000-$10,000 | $2,000-$5,000 | $2,000-$5,000 |
| Total readiness | $62,000-$215,000 | $34,000-$95,000 | $23,000-$73,000 |
Readiness costs decline significantly after the first year because foundational work (policy development, control implementation, GRC platform configuration) does not need to be repeated. Year 2 and beyond focuses on maintaining and updating existing controls, addressing any findings from the prior audit, and managing employee lifecycle compliance. What we see across our client base is that companies who invest properly in Year 1 readiness typically see 40-60% reduction in readiness costs by Year 2.
Key Takeaways
- We consistently see SOC 2 readiness costs represent 50-65% of the total first-year compliance program cost, typically ranging from $30,000 for an early-stage startup to $200,000+ for mid-market and enterprise organizations — making readiness the larger investment compared to the audit fee itself
- In our experience, internal labor is the single largest readiness cost category, accounting for 350-890 hours across engineering, compliance, IT, HR, and management teams — we recommend that companies plan carefully for internal labor to avoid the timeline delays that come from underestimating it
- We recommend GRC platform investment ($10,000-$25,000 annually for mid-market options) because it reduces internal labor by 60-80% through automated evidence collection, policy management, and continuous monitoring — making it the highest-ROI readiness investment we see
- Starting security maturity is the strongest predictor of readiness cost — what we see across our client base is that organizations with minimal security programs pay 1.5-2.0x the base cost due to extensive gap remediation, while those with strong existing programs may pay only 0.5-0.7x
- Readiness costs decline 40-60% after the first year because foundational work (policy development, control implementation, GRC platform configuration) does not repeat, and ongoing readiness focuses on maintenance rather than net-new implementation
- We recommend a comprehensive readiness assessment ($10,000-$25,000) as the first step because it provides the highest return by identifying all gaps before the formal audit, preventing exceptions that require re-testing, and enabling accurate budget and timeline planning
- For companies without internal compliance expertise, we advise budgeting an additional $50,000-$150,000 for consulting or vCISO services to fill the knowledge gap — in our experience, this is the most underestimated category in readiness budgeting
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do readiness costs often exceed the audit fee?
What we tell clients is that readiness costs exceed the audit fee because the audit itself only evaluates controls that are already in place — the audit firm tests your existing security program and generates a report. The readiness phase is where the actual work happens: designing controls, writing policies, implementing security configurations, deploying monitoring, establishing evidence collection, and training personnel. The audit fee pays for testing and reporting; the readiness investment pays for building the security program being tested. Based on what we see, companies with strong existing security programs may find readiness costs are closer to parity with the audit fee, but organizations building a compliance program from scratch should expect readiness to be 1.5-2x the audit fee in Year 1.
Can I reduce readiness costs by skipping the GRC platform?
What we tell clients is that technically yes — SOC 2 can be achieved without a GRC platform by managing policies in documents, collecting evidence manually, and organizing everything in spreadsheets and file storage. However, in our experience, this approach typically increases internal labor costs by $20,000-$50,000 or more due to the manual effort required for evidence collection, policy management, and audit preparation. For most organizations, the $10,000-$25,000 annual GRC platform cost is recovered through labor savings within the first six months. The calculation changes for very small companies (under 15 employees) with simple architectures, where manual evidence management may be manageable without a platform. Based on what we see across our client base, for most growth-stage and larger companies, the GRC platform is a net cost reducer, not a net cost.
How do I budget for readiness when I do not know my starting maturity?
We recommend starting with a readiness assessment — either a GRC platform self-assessment ($0 additional cost) or an advisory firm assessment ($5,000-$20,000) — to establish your baseline maturity level and identify specific gaps. The assessment results allow you to estimate gap remediation costs with much better accuracy than guessing. Without an assessment, use the mid-range estimates for your company size as a starting budget, then refine after the assessment reveals your actual gap profile. Based on what we see, companies that budget without a maturity assessment typically underestimate by 30-50%. Our team at Agency can provide readiness assessments that include detailed cost projections based on your specific environment.
What is the minimum viable readiness investment for a startup?
Based on what we see across our client base, the minimum viable readiness investment for an early-stage startup (10-25 employees, cloud-native architecture, basic security practices already in place) is approximately $25,000-$35,000 total. This assumes using a GRC platform with policy templates (no custom policy development), performing a self-directed readiness process with platform guidance (no external consulting), having an internal team member lead the compliance effort, and pursuing Security-only scope without additional Trust Service Criteria. What we tell clients is that this minimum scenario requires that the startup already has reasonable security practices in place and has an employee who can dedicate 120-200 hours to the compliance program. In our experience, startups with minimal security maturity or no compliance experience should budget $45,000-$75,000 to include advisory support that prevents costly mistakes.
