FREE CALCULATOR

Your customer service team costs more than you think. Here's the actual maths.

Salaries are only ~60% of it. NI, pension, tools, training, desk space, sick days — they add up to a 1.32× multiplier in 2026. We're not here to fire your team — we're here to show you what your next hire would actually cost, and what the AI-led alternative looks like.

Calculate my CS cost ↓ See the response-time benchmark →

ONS-sourced UK defaults, June 2026. Outcomes vary — this is an estimate, not a guarantee.

Your numbers — what is your CS team actually costing you?

Three inputs. We'll show your total annual CS team cost, your average cost per FTE, what CLOSER Growth costs by comparison, and the honest net-saving if CLOSER handled the volume of one FTE.

Total annual CS team cost
£75,240
Average cost per FTE: £37,620
CLOSER Growth tier — annual
£10,188 / year
£849/mo flat. No per-seat. All channels.
If CLOSER handled the volume of ONE FTE
Net saving: £27,432 / year
This isn't about firing your team. It's about what your next hire would actually cost vs scaling without one. Every CLOSER client kept their existing CS staff — the savings come from not hiring the third, fourth, fifth as the business grows.

Where the default numbers come from.

We don't make these numbers up. Here's the source for each default:

£28,500
Average CS salary
ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2026, customer service representatives, UK gross mean. Updated April 2026.
1.32×
On-cost multiplier
CIPD UK 2026 employment-cost benchmark. Covers NI (15.05%), auto-enrol pension (3%), L&D, sick/holiday cover, tools, desk.
£849/mo
CLOSER Growth tier cost
Flat fee. No per-seat. Includes 24/7 WhatsApp, phone, IG, email — every channel your team handles today.

Want this as a PDF for your accountant or partner?

Drop your email below and we'll send (1) a PDF of your result, (2) a sector-specific CS-cost benchmark, and (3) the calculator results saved so you can come back and edit. No sales call until you ask for one.

We don't sell your email, we don't pass it to a third party, and we won't call you until you ask us to.

Three things you can do this week — without us.

Whether or not you ever talk to us, here are three free actions that move the number above before any tooling conversation:

  1. Audit your CS team's actual hours. Pull the last 4 weeks of inbox + phone logs. How much was actually sales-impacting vs admin? Most SMEs find 40%+ of CS time is internal admin, not customer-facing.
  2. Calculate your true cost per ticket. (Annual CS team cost) ÷ (tickets handled/yr). UK SME median: £8-£14 per ticket. If yours is £20+, you've got a structural problem before any AI conversation.
  3. Run a 1-week WhatsApp + IG response-time audit. How long does your fastest channel take to first-reply during business hours? Out of hours? The gap is where CLOSER lives.

Want us to show you what your AI-led setup would look like?

20 minutes, real example tickets from your sector, honest answers about what AI can and can't do. No PowerPoint. No script.

Book a 20-min demo → Talk to us →

Or call 0207 252 3333 — we answer.

This calculator is an estimate based on UK industry benchmarks (ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2026, CIPD employment-cost benchmark, internal client data). Your actual numbers will vary. Not a substitute for accountant or HR advisor consultation.
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