How Much Does It Cost to Outsource Customer Service?

First of all, the customer service outsourcing cost depends on the geo and delivery model. Consider the following industry-average hourly rates: US & Canada: $36–$50/hr, LatAm: $17-$24/hr, Western Europe: $33- $41/hr, Eastern Europe: $12–$22/hr, Africa: $12- $19/hr, and Asia: $9–$17/hr.

So, we can say that the average cost to outsource customer service is between $9 and $50 per hour, depending on the agents’ geo, with the US being the most expensive and Asia the most cost-effective. However, the BPO provider’s delivery location is not the only thing that impacts the rates. Let’s dive in to further investigate the differences in that price rate and the reasons behind.

Call Center Outsourcing Costs and Pricing Plans

We have analyzed some of the top outsourcing providers to provide a clear, accurate call center pricing guide. To better understand the difference between costs and plans, let’s compare the most expensive market with the least expensive one.

Outsourcing Cost Calculator: BPO & Customer Service

Average Agent Cost

Despite an average agent salary of $15 per hour within the industry worldwide (where net per hour pay to the agent may vary from $4/hr for data-entry to $60/hr for highly skilled technical support specialists), the overall BPO and call center costs in the most expensive geos can escalate to approximately $35-$55 per hour, inclusive of payroll taxes, social contributions, health insurance, other benefits, hardware, software, office space, team management and overhead, and be as low as $9 – $15/hr cost with regard to the lowest pricing models and locations.

Moreover, agent salaries range from $1,000 to $10,00 per month, with hourly rates charged to Clients of $13-$18 based on a 40-hour workweek. These figures may not account for overtime during holidays and peak seasons, which are often twice the normal rates. As a result, in some cases, you might end up with monthly expenditures of $13,000-$17,000 per agent by the end of the month.

Shared or Dedicated Teams Cost and Pricing Models Differences

If your contact volume is on the lower side, you can choose between a shared team and a dedicated one, or hire a hybrid team where a Shared team acts as the first line of support and Dedicated agents act as the second line of support.

A shared team is typically a team of 5+ agents with the Team Leader working on 5-6 programs at the same time. This reduces the required investment but adds operational complexity. The Shared Team cost typically starts at $1,500/month and depends on the number of contacts/interactions, the task’s complexity, average handling time, and SLA commitments. The Shared teams usually provide only triage and Level 1 support because agents need to be trained on 5-6 projects and retain that knowledge well.

A dedicated team means that you have a team specially devoted to your project. This option might cost you more compared to shared team if the contact volume is very low, but you will get more as well: more expertise and product knowledge within the customer service team. The Team Lead is also dedicated to one specific project or workflow, and has the time and resources to provide in-depth reports, upgrade the knowledge base, improve canned responses or workflows, more time to inspect and train the agents, can act as an escalation point, etc.

An average small outsourced customer support dedicated team of 5 agents and a Team Leader (a minimum required setup for 24/7 support) would cost you between $10,000 and and $30,000. A dedicated team delivers better outsourced contact center performance, driving higher revenue, more upsell and cross-sell opportunities, higher CSAT, and faster resolution times.

Larger, dedicated customer service outsourcing teams may involve thousands of agents and cost up to $100 million per month. For instance, some Big Tech, Global Telecom, and Banking single outsourced programs account for 10,000 to 30,000 agents. Such programs are typically divided between several large BPO companies.

By the way, there’s also a hidden benefit for less experienced companies with the outsourcing model: you do not need to additionally pay for the management, hiring, training, and onboarding of your new agents.

Call Center Pay-Per-Minute Model and costs:

The Global Average Call Center Outsourcing Cost (Per Minute):
✅ Global benchmark: 👉 $0.75 – $1.50 per minute is the most commonly cited industry average.

📊 More detailed breakdown:
🟢 Low-cost / offshore (India, Philippines): $0.50 – $1.00 / min. Good for High-volume, simple support.

🟡 Mid-range / nearshore (Eastern Europe, LatAm): $0.80 – $1.50 / min. Balanced cost + quality (this is where Bulgaria sits).

🔴 Premium / onshore (US, UK): $1.20 – $3.00 / min
Complex or regulated support.

The price depends on various criteria. Thus, a thousand 5-minute calls will cost around five thousand dollars. The amount of money your company invests in an outsourced call center affects the overall cost of ownership for your organization. But cost doesn’t equal quality and efficiency. All BPO vendors are different.

Analyzing inbound outsourced call center pricing, you can find rates from $0.50–$3 per minute, depending on the country where the service provider operates and the type of service you require (technical support, order processing, collection services, healthcare advice, etc.). Many call center companies offer flat-rate packages based on expected usage, such as 1,000 minutes for $1,100 (which comes out as $1.10 per minute).

Typically, the more minutes included in the plan, the lower the cost per minute.

On the other hand, BPOs / call center companies often charge by the hour, ranging widely from $10–$50 per hour. Outsourced agents receive proper training and product or service knowledge and often speak different languages.

So, How Much Does it Cost to Outsource a Call Center?

To answer this question we need to take a closer look at the key variables that impact the pricing with regard to our service because it’s not only the time of the call that counts or it might not count that much.

Variables affecting the price at WOW24-7

We already know, the pricing greatly depends on your particular needs. You can choose between Shared or Dedicated delivery models with pre-defined number of interactions your project requires or pre-defined number of agents or hours the agents needs to work. Apart from the number of contacts, other variables also affect outsourced call center pricing. They are:

Expected agent schedule (business hours, after-hours or 24/7 coverage)
Languages (one or multiple languages)
Communication Channels (voice is usually higher priced than digital channels)
Required services (customer support, call center, operational support, and etc.)
Industry and the level of complexity required (L1 or L2 or L3 support)
Pay per hour or pay per productive hour
Quality Assurance coverage (excluded, manual selected contacts checked – usually between 2% and 5%, 100% Quality Assurance)
Attrition Training (included in the rate or excluded)
Public holidays, sick leaves, and vacations (who pays: BPO or a Client?)

When it comes to WOW24-7, our pricing not only aligns with industry averages but excels in providing exceptional value. With rates more competitive than the industry standard, we offer a cost-effective solution without compromising quality.

But what truly sets us apart is the operational efficiency and flexibility we offer our clients.

For instance, if you are a retail fashion brand, you know that you have seasonal spikes and you would need assistance during these peak seasons, but after that, you don’t need that big amount of agents. WOW24-7 lets you stop worrying about the seasonality, one month your team might consist of 20 agents and the other of 50, and back again.

Final Thoughts

The cost of outsourced customer service varies from program to program because it depends on a number of factors, such as location, languages, AI assistance, the overall CX tech stack required, number of interactions, communication channels, coverage, expertise, industry, and so on. But the main idea is to pay only for what you actually need.

At WOW24-7 Experience Centers, you have this flexible possibility. Need to add a cost of automation, agentic AI, or Human-in-the-Loop AI enterprise-grade capabilities in your rate (CCaaS, Agentic AI, 100% QA, predictive CSAT, 100% VOC analytics, HITL, accent correction software)? Expanding into new markets and need additional language skills, such as Japanese, Dutch, Norwegian, or German-speaking agents? Some spikes expected? No problem, we’ll have those agents hired and trained in no time, and we can double or triple your team fairly quickly. Don’t need so many agents anymore? We’ll scale the team down as required.

So, if you are looking for a reasonable solution to cover your call or contact center business needs – contact us!