Outsourced SDRs are usually priced in one of three ways: a monthly fee per SDR, a fee per qualified meeting, or a mix of both. What you're really paying for is a trained, managed rep with data, tools and reporting included — so the fair comparison is with the full cost of an in-house hire, not just a salary.
The three pricing models
- Monthly fee per SDR (retainer). You pay for dedicated capacity. Predictable for both sides, and the agency can invest in learning your market. Best when you want a long-term program.
- Pay per meeting. You pay for each meeting booked or held. Low risk on paper, but it can push volume over quality — check carefully how a "qualified" meeting is defined and who validates it.
- Hybrid. A lower monthly fee plus a bonus per qualified meeting or opportunity. It aligns incentives while keeping the program stable.
What should be included
Whatever the model, ask what the price covers. A complete program usually includes:
- Recruiting, onboarding and training of the SDRs
- Day-to-day management, call reviews and quality control
- Account and contact research, and data enrichment
- Sales tools: dialer, email sequencing, LinkedIn Sales Navigator
- Work in your CRM, with reporting every week
- Replacement and handover if someone leaves
If several of these are billed separately, the headline price isn't the real price.
The real cost of an in-house SDR
An in-house SDR costs more than a salary. When you compare, add up:
- Base salary, commission and payroll costs
- Recruiting time or agency fees
- Ramp-up: the months before a new rep is fully productive
- Management time from a sales manager
- Tools and data licences
- Turnover: SDR roles often have short tenures, and each departure restarts recruiting and ramp-up
A simple way to compare
Use the same unit for every option: cost per qualified meeting held.
- Add up the full monthly cost of the option (fees, or salary plus all the items above).
- Divide by the number of qualified meetings it produces per month once it's up to speed.
- Then look at what those meetings turn into: opportunities and revenue.
Spread one-off costs — recruiting, ramp-up — over the first year for an in-house hire, so the comparison is honest.
What changes the price
- Languages. Bilingual or trilingual SDRs (for example French and English in Québec, French and Dutch in Belgium) are harder to find than single-language reps.
- Market difficulty. Senior buyers and niche sectors take more research and more touches per meeting.
- List building. Researching accounts from scratch costs more than working a list you already have.
- Channels. Phone, email and LinkedIn together cost more than email alone — and usually work better.
- Commitment. Longer programs and more SDRs usually lower the price per SDR.
Questions to ask before you sign
- How is a qualified meeting defined, and what happens with no-shows?
- Who owns the data, the sequences and the call recordings?
- What's the minimum term, and how much notice to stop?
- What do weekly reports include?
The cheapest SDR is the one whose meetings turn into pipeline.
Want a quote for your market and languages? Book a strategy call with our team.
Written by
Pratura team
Our SDR, customer experience and RevOps teams share what works on the floor — in Canada, France, Belgium and beyond.
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