What an office admin really costs in the UK, what you get for it and when outsourcing is the better fit.
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The short answer. Hiring an office admin makes sense when you have steady work for most of a week and you want someone on site. Outsourcing makes sense when your admin comes in waves or you cannot afford gaps when someone is off. It also suits you if you want help from someone who already knows the trade. Below is what each option involves, with UK figures you can check.
Pay is only part of the bill. On top of wages an employer pays National Insurance and a workplace pension contribution. This table uses official UK figures for the 2026 to 2027 tax year to show three common set ups.
| Set up | Yearly pay | Employer National Insurance | Employer pension | Total before Employment Allowance and other costs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full time at the National Living Wage | £24,785 | £2,968 | £556 | £28,309 |
| Full time at typical pay for administrative jobs | £32,042 | £4,056 | £774 | £36,872 |
| Part time (20 hours) at typical hourly pay | £17,420 | £1,863 | £335 | £19,618 |
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How we worked it out. The National Living Wage is £12.71 an hour for workers aged 21 and over from April 2026. Typical pay comes from the Office for National Statistics: the median for full time administrative occupations is £32,042 a year and £16.75 an hour. Employer National Insurance is 15% of pay above £5,000 a year. The minimum employer pension contribution is 3% of pay between £6,240 and £50,270 a year. We assumed a 37.5 hour week paid for 52 weeks. The sources are listed at the bottom of this page.
Two things can change these totals. If you qualify for the Employment Allowance you can reduce your employer National Insurance bill by up to £10,500 a year. For these examples that could remove the National Insurance column entirely and bring the full time median total down to about £32,816. GOV.UK explains who qualifies. And pay for the work you need may sit above or below the national median, because the ONS figures cover every industry.
When you outsource you do not employ anyone. A specialist team does your admin remotely. At Multicore every client has one dedicated person who knows their business. We log into the job management software you already use to book jobs and keep your diary in order. If you do not have one we can recommend one to suit your business, because we have used many over the years. We answer calls in your business name, prepare quotes, send invoices and chase late payments. We work Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 5pm.
Michael has about 17 years across the trades, electrical wholesale and trade administration. He understands the work and can answer technical questions from your customers.
Pricing depends on how many calls, emails and quotes you handle. You agree a package with monthly allowances and extra items are charged per item, so the cost is set by your workload rather than a fixed working week. There is no setup fee and no fixed contract. A standard plan can be ended with two months notice. See the packages for what each one includes.
| Feature | Hire an office admin | Outsource to a specialist | Do it yourself |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | A wage plus employer costs whatever the workload. | Set by the package and workload you agree. Extra items are charged per item. | Your own time. |
| Holidays and sickness | You arrange cover. | Ask any provider how absences are covered. | Nobody covers you. |
| Trade knowledge | Depends on who you hire and how long they take to learn. | Choose a provider that only works with trades. | You have it already. |
| On site | Yes. | No, the work is done remotely. | Yes. |
| Employer duties | Payroll, pension, insurance and leave. | None. | None. |
| Control | Direct and day to day. | Agreed tasks with a weekly summary. | Complete. |
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Hire when you have steady admin for most of a working week and you want someone in your workshop or office. You also need to be ready to manage an employee and carry the employer duties above.
Outsource when your admin comes in busy spells or you have no space for another person. It also fits when you want someone who already understands quotes, suppliers and trade language, or when you want to avoid being an employer.
Do it yourself when you handle only a handful of calls, quotes and invoices a week and the admin is not costing you jobs.
Figures checked on 8 November 2026. Rates change each April, so check the source pages for the latest.