Key Takeaways
- Outsourced lead generation typically costs between $4,000 and $15,000 per month on a retainer model, or $100–$500+ per qualified meeting, depending on your industry, ACV, and ICP complexity.
- Don't compare vendors on sticker price alone; always normalize to cost per qualified meeting and cost per opportunity, and map those to your close rates and average deal size.
- In-house SDRs often cost $9,800–$14,200 per month fully loaded when you factor in salary, benefits, tools, data, and management overhead, making quality outsourcing 30-50% cheaper on a cost-per-meeting basis in many cases.
- High-ticket B2B tech and SaaS companies routinely pay around $200 per lead and ~$700 CAC on average, so paying $300–$500 for a well-qualified outbound meeting can be very profitable if your sales motion is dialed in.
- You can cut your effective cost per meeting by 20-40% just by tightening qualification criteria with your vendor, improving show rates, and aligning on clear ICP tiers and disqualification rules.
- Short, flexible agreements (or month-to-month like SalesHive offers) reduce your risk dramatically compared to agencies that lock you into 12-month contracts before you've seen a single closed-won deal.
- Bottom line: outsourced lead generation is worth it when the vendor can consistently deliver qualified meetings at a CAC that keeps your LTV:CAC ratio at 3:1 or better-and you have the sales process to convert.
Why outsourced lead gen pricing feels all over the map
Outsourced lead generation can look wildly inconsistent on paper: one vendor quotes a low monthly retainer, another pushes pay per meeting lead generation, and a third bundles “everything” into a bigger number. The problem isn’t that the market is irrational—it’s that teams compare different scopes, different definitions of “qualified,” and different levels of operational maturity. If you want a clean answer to “what does it cost,” you have to start by normalizing the math.
In 2025, most serious B2B programs land somewhere between a fixed monthly retainer and performance-based pricing, and those models behave differently depending on your ACV, your ICP complexity, and the channels involved. A cold email agency running light personalization and email-only sequences should not cost the same as a cold calling agency operating a true multichannel motion with list building services, dialing, deliverability management, and tight reporting. The “right” price is the one that produces qualified opportunities at a CAC your business can live with.
At SalesHive, we push clients to treat this as unit economics, not a shopping exercise. The goal isn’t cheap meetings—it’s efficient pipeline you can convert. Once you compare vendors on cost per qualified meeting, cost per qualified opportunity, and ultimately cost per closed-won deal, the price ranges start to make sense.
What you’re actually paying for when you outsource
A good SDR agency isn’t selling “someone to send emails.” You’re buying a compact outbound engine: prospecting and targeting, enrichment and list hygiene, messaging and iteration, and the day-to-day execution across channels like b2b cold calling services, email, and sometimes LinkedIn outreach services. When a b2b sales agency bundles this into one fee, it can feel expensive until you price out the same stack internally.
This is where teams get tripped up: they compare an outsourcing invoice to an SDR’s base salary and call it a day. But US SDR compensation alone is often $53,000–$75,000 per year before you add tools, data, management overhead, and ramp time. That gap is why “sales outsourcing” can be cheaper even when the vendor’s monthly fee looks higher than a payroll line item.
The cleaner comparison is “fully loaded cost per qualified meeting,” using the same qualification rubric across options. Whether you hire SDRs, build an outsourced sales team, or use a pay-per-appointment model, the inputs are the same: total spend, qualified conversations created, and downstream conversion into opportunities and revenue.
The real baseline: fully loaded in-house SDR economics
If you want to evaluate cold calling companies or an outbound sales agency fairly, you need a credible in-house benchmark. A productive internal SDR commonly costs $9,800–$14,200/month fully loaded once you factor in compensation, benefits, tooling, data, enablement, and management time. That number is often surprising because those costs are spread across budgets and don’t show up as one clean line item.
| Model | Typical monthly cost | Typical cost per qualified meeting (10–14/mo) |
|---|---|---|
| In-house SDR (fully loaded) | $9,800–$14,200 | $821–$1,150 |
| Outsourced SDR program (all-in) | $4,000–$12,000 | Varies by ICP and qualification (often below in-house when run well) |
That cost-per-meeting range is the number you should keep in your head during vendor conversations. If an outsource sales provider claims they’re “half the price,” but their meetings don’t convert, you didn’t save money—you just moved the cost downstream into AE time and missed pipeline. Conversely, a higher-priced sales development agency can be a bargain if it consistently puts the right decision-makers in front of your team.
One practical move: calculate your true in-house cost per qualified meeting by dividing fully loaded monthly cost by the meetings your AEs would actually accept. If that result lands near $900 per meeting, paying $300–$500 for a well-qualified outbound meeting can be excellent economics—assuming you can convert it.
How outsourced lead generation is priced (and what those models incentivize)
Retainers are the most common structure because they fund consistent capacity: reps, management, data, and tooling. In fact, about 68% of successful lead gen agencies use some form of retainer-based pricing, and the typical range often falls between $2,500 and $12,000 depending on scope. For a mature sdr agency running multichannel outreach, that “all-in” approach often maps best to predictable output.
Pay-per-meeting is popular for de-risking spend, especially in high-ACV motions, but you have to define “qualified” in writing or you’ll buy calendar fills instead of pipeline. A common range for B2B appointment setting is $100–$500+ per qualified meeting, with enterprise decision-maker meetings priced higher when the ICP is narrow and senior. If you go this route, your disqualifiers, required titles, and acceptance criteria must be operationally tight.
Hybrid models try to balance both: a base fee to fund quality execution and a performance layer to align incentives. This is often the sweet spot when you want a vendor to invest in list quality, messaging iteration, and b2b cold calling, but you still want a direct connection between output and spend. Whatever the model, your goal is the same: a cost per qualified opportunity that supports your revenue targets.
The only number that matters isn’t cost per lead or cost per meeting—it’s cost per closed-won deal after your real conversion rates.
The ROI framework: normalize everything to CAC and LTV:CAC
If you want to compare a cold call services provider to an in-house hire sdr plan, run the same waterfall for each option: total monthly spend → qualified meetings → qualified opportunities → closed-won deals. Then compute CAC using your historical conversion rates, not the vendor’s best-case assumptions. This is where many teams realize a “cheaper” option is actually more expensive once meeting quality and opportunity conversion are accounted for.
Use market benchmarks to sanity-check your expectations, but don’t let them replace your own math. For B2B tech/SaaS, the average cost per lead is often cited around $208/lead, and average SaaS CAC benchmarks are frequently around $702—numbers that make a $300–$500 truly qualified outbound meeting look reasonable if your process converts. The guardrail we like is maintaining an LTV:CAC ratio of 3:1 or better; if you can’t get there, the issue is either targeting, qualification, or downstream sales execution.
Also budget for ramp and iteration: the first 60–90 days should be treated like paid R&D, not a pass/fail test. You’re buying learning cycles—ICP refinement, messaging tests, deliverability tuning, and objection handling—so month one rarely reflects steady-state performance. The teams that win are the ones that model this ramp up front and focus on trendlines, not a single month of output.
Common mistakes that quietly inflate your real cost per meeting
The most expensive mistake is choosing the cheapest vendor based on headline price. Low-cost providers often cut corners on data quality, personalization, and qualification, which creates no-shows and “tire-kicker” conversations that burn AE time. Your spreadsheet might show a low cost per meeting, but your actual CAC goes up because those meetings don’t convert.
Another common issue is ignoring the fully loaded cost of in-house SDRs when benchmarking outsource sales pricing. If you compare a $60K salary to a $6K/month outsourced program, you’re missing the tools, enrichment, dialers, deliverability infrastructure, and management time that can double the real cost. Outsourcing often includes these components, which is why the right comparison is all-in to all-in.
Finally, teams frequently sign contracts before defining “qualified” clearly, and then wonder why volume doesn’t equal pipeline. If your vendor isn’t working from a written rubric—ICP tiers, required seniority, deal size, timeline, disqualifiers—performance-based pricing becomes a volume game. Tight definitions, short pilots, and flexible terms reduce risk dramatically compared to long lock-ins that you can’t unwind once you realize the meetings aren’t right.
How to lower your effective cost per meeting without changing vendors
Most teams can cut effective cost per meeting by 20–40% by tightening qualification and improving show rates. That doesn’t mean making the rubric so strict that you starve the calendar—it means clarifying what your AEs actually want, aligning on disqualifiers, and ensuring meeting notes capture the buying context. The quickest path to better unit economics is fewer bad meetings, not more meetings.
Operationally, your internal SLAs matter as much as your vendor’s outreach volume. If inbound and outbound meetings aren’t followed up within a consistent window, conversions drop and the vendor gets blamed for downstream leakage. Align your team on how meetings are accepted, how outcomes are dispositioned, and how “not yet” prospects are nurtured so the program creates compounding pipeline instead of one-and-done conversations.
Channel mix also changes efficiency: a cold calling team paired with strong email sequences can recover conversations that email-only or phone-only efforts miss. For complex ICPs, multichannel outreach generally wins because it creates more chances to connect and more signals to qualify with. If you’re evaluating the best cold calling services, ask how they coordinate phone, email, and targeting so the program improves over time instead of repeating the same motion every month.
What to do next: pick the right model for your ACV and scale safely
Start by choosing a pricing model that matches your ACV and risk tolerance. If you sell higher-ACV deals (for example, $25K+), pay-per-meeting or hybrid structures can cap downside while you prove qualification and conversion. If your ACV is lower or you need consistent volume, a retainer often drives better cost per opportunity—assuming the vendor can maintain quality at speed.
Then pilot one focused segment before you scale. Pick an ICP slice where you’ve historically closed deals, run the program long enough to learn (often 60–90 days), and measure show rate, meeting acceptance, opportunity creation, and early-stage pipeline. This approach works whether you’re partnering with a sales agency, a b2b sales outsourcing provider, or building an internal team to hire sdrs.
Finally, build your vendor scorecard around outcomes, not activity. Ask for expected conversion benchmarks from meeting to opportunity, and have them map spend to CAC using conservative assumptions. When you do that, outsourced lead generation becomes a controllable growth lever—especially with flexible agreements—rather than a leap of faith.
Sources
- SalarySolver (SDR salary benchmarks)
- OutboundSalesPro (fully loaded SDR cost and cost per meeting)
- SalesHive (outsourced SDR program cost range)
- DesignRush (B2B lead generation statistics)
- Usermaven (CAC benchmarks)
- PhantomBuster (lead generation cost by channel)
- Monetizely (retainer-based pricing prevalence)
- SalesCaptain (appointment setting cost ranges)
📊 Key Statistics
Expert Insights
Always Normalize To Cost Per Qualified Opportunity
Don't stop at cost per lead or cost per meeting-ask vendors how many of their meetings typically convert to second calls, proposals, and pipeline. Then map that to your historical close rates. The only number that really matters is cost per closed-won deal, not who offers the cheapest meetings.
Match Pricing Model To Your ACV
If your ACV is high (say $25K+), pay-per-meeting or hybrid pricing can cap downside risk and keep you honest on ROI. If your ACV is lower, a fixed retainer model usually drives a better cost per opportunity as long as volume and qualification are solid.
Budget For Ramp And Iteration
Treat the first 60-90 days as paid R&D, not a pass/fail test. You're paying to refine ICP, messaging, and targeting. Build that into your ROI model so you're not panicking when month one doesn't instantly match the performance of a mature, in-house team.
Don't Underestimate Data And Tooling
A lot of teams compare vendor pricing to SDR salary and ignore the thousands per month they already spend on data, enrichment, dialers, and deliverability tools. When you outsource, those costs are usually baked in-so factor that into your total cost comparison.
Quality Beats Volume In Enterprise Sales
If you're selling high-ticket, multi-stakeholder deals, paying more per meeting for true decision-makers is almost always worth it. Optimize for meetings that match your ICP, budget, and timeline, not for the vendor promising the most calendar invites at rock-bottom rates.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Choosing the cheapest vendor based purely on headline price per lead or per meeting
Low-cost vendors often cut corners on data quality, personalization, and qualification, which floods your AEs with no-shows and tire-kickers. That destroys morale and quietly inflates your real CAC.
Instead: Compare vendors on cost per qualified opportunity and expected revenue, not just unit price. Ask for clear qualification criteria, example meeting notes, and historical conversion benchmarks.
Ignoring the fully loaded cost of in-house SDRs when benchmarking outsource prices
Comparing a $60K salary to a $6K/month outsourced program is apples-to-oranges; you're missing benefits, tools, data, management, and ramp time, which can double or triple the real cost.
Instead: Build a full cost model that includes salary, benefits, tech stack, data, enablement, and management overhead for in-house. Then compare that to all-in outsourced pricing on a cost-per-meeting basis.
Not defining 'qualified' clearly before signing a contract
If you don't define ICP, buying power, timeline, and disqualifiers up front, vendors will naturally optimize for volume. You end up paying good money for conversations your AEs should never be in.
Instead: Collaborate with the vendor on a written qualification rubric and disqualification checklist. Tie performance and pricing (especially in pay-per-meeting models) to that shared definition.
Locking into long-term contracts before validating fit
Twelve-month commitments with no performance out clause can trap you with a misaligned vendor, turning 'outsourcing' into a sunk-cost problem instead of a flexible growth lever.
Instead: Start with pilots, shorter terms, or month-to-month agreements. Scale up only once you've seen real meetings, real show rates, and early pipeline results that justify a longer partnership.
Expecting the vendor to fix a broken sales process
Even the best lead gen partner can't compensate for slow follow-up, messy qualification, or a weak offer. Leads will stall, and you'll blame the vendor when the real issue is downstream.
Instead: Tighten your sales process in parallel: SLAs for follow-up, clear qualification stages, strong discovery frameworks, and a plan for nurturing 'not yet' prospects generated by the program.
Action Items
Calculate your true in-house SDR cost per qualified meeting
Add up SDR salaries, benefits, tools, data, management time, and ramp, then divide by actual qualified meetings per month. Use this as your baseline when evaluating outsourced retainer or per-meeting options.
Define a clear, written qualification profile with your team
Document ICP, required titles, budgets, deal sizes, timelines, and disqualifiers. This becomes the spec you hand to any outsourced lead gen vendor so you're paying for meetings your AEs actually want.
Choose a pricing model that matches your ACV and risk tolerance
If your ACV is low to mid, lean toward a fixed monthly retainer with volume expectations. If your ACV is high, consider pay-per-meeting or hybrid pricing so you pay more only when qualified meetings show up.
Ask vendors for projected cost-per-opportunity and CAC, not just CPL
Have each vendor walk you through the math from fee → meetings → opportunities → closed-won, using conservative conversion assumptions. Compare those side by side before signing anything.
Align internal SLAs around outsourced meetings
Commit to follow up on every booked meeting within a set timeframe, and agree on how AEs will disposition outcomes. This keeps your actual conversion rates close to what the vendor models in their ROI projections.
Pilot with one focused segment before scaling
Start your outsourced program on a well-defined ICP where you've historically closed deals. Validate performance there first, then expand to additional segments or geographies once the unit economics check out.
Partner with SalesHive
Our pricing is flat-rate and transparent-packages start around $4,000 per month for Philippines-based SDR programs and scale up to multichannel US-based teams at $8,000–$12,000 per month, all-in. That includes data, tooling, strategy, and management, so you’re not getting nickel-and-dimed for enrichment, dialers, or personalization software. Instead, you get a dedicated strategist, a custom sales playbook, and SDRs who live in the trenches of your market, making 150-500+ touches per day.
Because we run both phone and email at scale, with eMod AI personalization driving ultra-relevant cold emails, our focus is on quality pipeline, not just vanity metrics. Monthly contracts and risk-free onboarding mean you can test outsourced lead generation without betting the farm, then scale once the math works for your CAC and LTV targets.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
How much does outsourced lead generation usually cost per month?
For B2B outbound, most serious providers fall in the $4,000–$15,000 per month range on a retainer or per-SDR model. Lower-cost shops may come in under that, but often by cutting corners on data quality and management. High-end enterprise programs with multi-channel orchestration, senior SDRs, and tight integration with your team can run much higher, but they're typically justified for six-figure ACV scenarios.
What's a reasonable cost per meeting for B2B appointment setting?
In 2025, pay-per-meeting pricing for B2B commonly ranges from about $100 to $500 per qualified meeting, with some providers in high-ticket, niche markets charging even more. The right number for you depends on ACV, win rate, and what 'qualified' actually means. A $400 meeting that closes at 10% into a $40K deal is far better economics than a $150 meeting that rarely converts.
Is outsourcing lead generation cheaper than hiring in-house SDRs?
Often, yes-especially when you include all the hidden costs of in-house teams. A single SDR can easily cost $9,800–$14,200 per month fully loaded once you factor salary, benefits, tools, data, and management time. Many outsourced programs deliver similar or greater meeting volumes for $4,000–$12,000 per month all-in, plus you avoid recruiting and ramp risk. The key is comparing cost per qualified meeting, not just monthly line items.
How should I evaluate ROI on an outsourced lead gen program?
Start with simple unit economics: total monthly fee divided by qualified meetings to get cost per meeting, then multiply by your conversion from meeting to closed-won to get CAC. Compare that CAC to your LTV and aim for a 3:1 LTV:CAC ratio or better. Also track softer but important metrics like show rate, sales cycle length, and AE feedback on meeting quality to make sure the numbers are sustainable.
What factors drive outsourced lead generation costs up or down?
Main drivers include your ACV, deal complexity, ICP seniority (C-suite vs manager), target geography, and the channels used (cold calling, email, LinkedIn, etc.). Highly technical, compliance-heavy markets with C-level buyers and strict data requirements will cost more per meeting than simpler SMB plays. Volume commitments, contract length, and whether you keep the data also influence pricing.
Is pay-per-meeting better than a monthly retainer?
It depends on your goals and ACV. Pay-per-meeting is great for testing, de-risking spend, or very high ACV deals where you're comfortable paying a premium for each qualified conversation. Retainers or per-SDR models usually win on cost per opportunity once you want consistent volume and deeper integration. Many teams ultimately land on a hybrid model-base retainer plus performance fees tied to high-quality meetings or pipeline.
How long before an outsourced lead gen program becomes profitable?
Expect a ramp period of 60-90 days to tune messaging, targeting, and cadence. Pipeline usually starts to materialize meaningfully in months two to four, with closed-won deals following your normal sales cycle length. For many B2B teams, that means you're evaluating true ROI around months four to six. If a vendor promises instant, guaranteed ROI in 30 days on a complex B2B sale, be skeptical.
Can outsourced providers handle complex enterprise sales, or only SMB?
The good ones absolutely can handle enterprise. The cost per meeting will be higher, because you're going after senior decision-makers with longer sales cycles and multiple stakeholders. But if you pick a provider experienced in your space and align tightly on messaging, qualification, and handoff, outsourced SDRs can be a powerful way to give your enterprise AEs more at-bats without blowing up your fixed headcount.
