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Zazz and IT GOAT are both established managed IT services providers (MSPs). Each offers 24/7 help desk support, security operations and virtual CIO guidance. The real differences are in how they price, how fast you can get started, and the size of company each one is built for.
This comparison uses each provider’s published service pages. It’s meant for COOs, CFOs and IT leaders at companies with 20 to 500 employees who are choosing a long-term IT partner.
Zazz vs IT GOAT at a Glance
Criteria | Zazz | IT GOAT |
Core model | Fully outsourced IT department or co-managed with internal IT | Fully managed, co-managed, IT consulting, IT outsourcing |
Ideal client size | 20 to 500 employees | Startups through large enterprises |
Published pricing | Yes: $100, $125 and $150 per user per month, plus custom | Quote-based, “one predictable monthly price” |
Contract terms | Month-to-month to annual, no long-term contract required | Not published |
Support coverage | 24/7 help desk and NOC | 24x7x365 help desk, NOC and SOC |
Published response metrics | First response under 10 minutes for critical issues, under 30 minutes for standard requests | 80-second average call wait, 6-minute average resolution |
Onboarding | Starts in 5 to 7 business days, full transition in 2 to 4 weeks | “In days, not weeks” |
Point of contact | Dedicated Delivery Manager | Multichannel support (phone, email, chat) |
Standards and frameworks | ISO 27001, ISO 20000, ISO 9001, SOC 2 Type II team, ITIL-aligned | Compliance services for CMMC 2.0, NIST, PCI DSS, SOC 2, HIPAA, ISO 27001 |
Recognition | 5.0 rating on Clutch, 100+ businesses supported | Summer 2026 Clutch Global Award (Breach and Incident Response), 96.5%+ CSAT |
Both providers cover the essentials well. IT GOAT stands out for scale: it cites 1,700+ certified experts and 11,000+ industry certifications. Zazz stands out for transparency: every tier and inclusion is listed publicly, so buyers can model costs before the first sales call.
Service Scope and Delivery Model
How Zazz delivers managed IT
Zazz runs as an extension of your leadership team. Every client gets a dedicated Delivery Manager. You receive monthly reports on tickets, resolution times, patching, uptime and SLA compliance, plus quarterly strategic reviews. Its five-phase onboarding process starts with assessment and transition planning and ends with strategic IT enablement. That process includes an environment audit, security risk assessment, and validation of backups and patching.
Each tier adds a defined layer of capability:
- Essential: 24/7 help desk, remote monitoring and management, SaaS backup, endpoint protection, email security and security awareness training
- Professional: adds CIO advisory, identity and access management, business continuity planning, vendor management and compliance reporting
- Enterprise: adds vCISO advisory, active compliance management, annual external penetration testing and continuous dark web monitoring
How IT GOAT delivers managed IT
IT GOAT organizes its offering around four pillars: Help Desk Support, a Network Operations Center, a Security Operations Center with MDR and EDR, and vCIO services. Its support is fully USA-based. It also serves specialized segments such as defense contractors (CMMC 2.0) and schools and libraries through E-Rate program support.
The practical difference is packaging. IT GOAT scopes each engagement through a discovery call and a technical proposal. Zazz publishes its packages up front, so a finance team can approve a budget before procurement begins.
What Managed IT Really Costs: The Math
The fairest way to judge an MSP is to compare it with the cost of doing the same work in-house. The figures below use U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
Step 1: Fully loaded cost of one in-house IT administrator
- Median wage for network and computer systems administrators: $99,130 per year (BLS, May 2025)
- Wages make up 70.0% of total employer compensation costs in private industry; benefits make up the other 30.0%
- Loaded cost: $99,130 ÷ 0.70 = $141,614 per year
Step 2: Cost of matching 24/7 coverage in-house
- A week has 168 hours, and one full-time employee covers 40 of them
- 168 ÷ 40 = 4.2 FTEs to staff one seat around the clock
- 4.2 × $141,614 = $594,779 per year, before PTO, tooling or security software
Step 3: Zazz pricing for a 50-person company
Option (50 users) | Monthly cost | Annual cost | 24/7 coverage | Savings vs. 24/7 in-house |
Zazz Essential ($100/user) | $5,000 | $60,000 | Yes | $534,779 (89.9%) |
Zazz Professional ($125/user) | $6,250 | $75,000 | Yes | $519,779 (87.4%) |
Zazz Enterprise ($150/user) | $7,500 | $90,000 | Yes | $504,779 (84.9%) |
One in-house admin | $11,801 | $141,614 | No (business hours) | n/a |
In-house 24/7 team (4.2 FTE) | $49,565 | $594,779 | Yes | Baseline |
Step 4: The break-even point
How many users can Zazz support before its cost matches a single in-house admin?
- Essential: $141,614 ÷ ($100 × 12) = 118 users
- Professional: $141,614 ÷ ($125 × 12) = 94 users
- Enterprise: $141,614 ÷ ($150 × 12) = 78 users
So a 90-person company on Zazz Professional pays less than the salary and benefits of one IT hire. It also gets 24/7 coverage, a CIO advisor, identity management and compliance reporting that one person couldn’t deliver alone.
IT GOAT doesn’t publish per-user rates, so a direct dollar comparison needs a custom quote. Buyers can run the same three steps with any proposal they receive.
Security, Compliance and Accountability
Capability | Zazz | IT GOAT |
Security operations | Managed cybersecurity with SOC-led incident response, SIEM, breach detection | 24/7 SOC with MDR and EDR |
Executive security leadership | vCISO advisory (Enterprise tier) | vCIO and compliance formation |
Penetration testing | Annual external pen testing (Enterprise tier) | Not specified on service page |
Backup and recovery | Managed backup and DR, including Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace | Disaster recovery, ransomware recovery |
Compliance coverage | HIPAA, PCI, ISO 27001, SOC 2, GDPR | CCPA, CMMC 2.0, GDPR, HIPAA, ISO 27001, NIST, PCI DSS, SOC 2 |
Reporting cadence | Monthly performance reports, quarterly strategic reviews | Tracks wait time, one-call resolution and CSAT |
Security stack partners | Microsoft, AWS, Cisco Meraki, Palo Alto, SentinelOne, Sophos, Okta, Datto | Microsoft, Apple, Cisco Meraki, IRONSCALES, Nord Security |
Both providers bring mature security programs. IT GOAT’s compliance list is broader for regulated defense and public sector work. Zazz builds security leadership and testing directly into its tiers. That gives mid-market companies a clear path from basic protection to audit-ready governance without renegotiating scope.
Which Provider Fits Your Business?
Pick the provider whose strengths match your priorities.
Zazz is the stronger fit when you:
- Need to budget IT spend before a sales cycle starts, using published per-user pricing
- Want flexibility, with month-to-month terms and no long-term lock-in
- Value a single accountable owner, through a dedicated Delivery Manager and quarterly reviews
- Are a 20 to 500 employee company scaling into compliance, with vCISO, pen testing and compliance management available as you grow
- Run a mixed Microsoft, AWS and Google Workspace environment that needs multi-cloud depth
IT GOAT is a strong fit when you:
- Need CMMC 2.0 readiness as a defense contractor
- Require fully USA-based support staff as a policy
- Are a school or library using E-Rate funding
For most growing mid-market companies, the combination of transparent pricing, contract flexibility and executive-level governance makes Zazz the more predictable long-term partner.
Frequently asked questions
How much do managed IT services cost per user?
Zazz publishes rates of $100, $125 and $150 per user per month, depending on tier. IT GOAT quotes each engagement individually.
Is it cheaper to Which MSP onboards faster, Zazz or IT GOAT?IT or hire in-house?
Both promise fast starts. Zazz publishes a specific timeline: work begins in 5 to 7 business days, and mid-sized clients are fully transitioned in 2 to 4 weeks.
Can Zazz work alongside my internal IT team?
Yes. Zazz can act as your full IT department or co-manage with existing staff, taking over day-to-day workload while your team focuses on strategic projects.
Is outsourcing IT cheaper than hiring?
For most companies under 100 users, yes. One in-house administrator costs about $141,614 a year fully loaded. That covers 94 users on Zazz Professional, with round-the-clock support included.
Build an IT Function That Scales With You
The right MSP should lower risk, clarify costs and give leadership time back. If you’re comparing providers, Zazz can run a no-cost review of your current environment and model what your first year would cost per user. Talk to a Zazz IT strategist.
