Outsourced Finance vs Part-Time Finance Director: Which Costs Less?

A part-time finance director can give a growing business access to senior financial expertise without the cost of a full-time hire. An outsourced finance department can also provide senior input, but usually combines it with the people handling bookkeeping, reporting and day-to-day finance work.

So, which costs less? In many cases, outsourced finance offers more coverage for the money. The better comparison, however, is not simply the monthly fee. It is what the business actually receives in return.

What Does a Part-Time Finance Director Cost?

The cost of a part-time finance director depends heavily on experience and the number of days required.

An August 2026 UK benchmark puts fractional director rates at roughly £900 to £1,500 per day, with standard engagements often costing £4,000 to £8,000 per month. A separate June 2026 guide puts fractional and part-time FD rates at around £600 to £1,400 per day.

Those figures can still be attractive compared with hiring permanently. Robert Half's 2026 UK Salary Guide puts the median starting salary for a full-time Finance Director at £109,500, rising to £138,000 at the 75th percentile.

Part-time finance directors therefore make sense when the business already has people handling transactional finance and primarily needs senior commercial input, forecasting, or board-level support.

How Does an Outsourced Finance Department Compare?

The difference is scope. Rather than paying primarily for senior FD time, outsourced finance services can give the business access to an outsourced finance team covering several levels of the function.

Sanay's Outsourced Finance Department starts from £1,000 per month and can include bookkeeping, accounts payable and receivable, payroll, credit control, management accounting, budgeting, forecasting, cash flow management, financial modelling and financial controls. The service is designed to act as an extension of the business rather than simply provide a set number of senior finance hours.

That makes the cost comparison quite different. A part-time finance director charging several thousand pounds a month may still represent good value when the existing finance team already handles day-to-day work. However, if the business also needs bookkeeping, reporting, forecasting, and financial control support, those costs need to be added to the FD fee.

Which Option Is Better Value?

A part-time FD is usually better value when you need a senior individual for a limited number of days and already have the operational finance function covered, while an outsourced finance department can make more financial sense when you need broader capacity across several finance roles.

An outsourced finance department can therefore be more cost-effective when the requirement extends beyond strategic finance leadership, particularly when one monthly service replaces the need to source several different finance roles.

A search for "outsourced finance team near me" may help businesses find local options, but the real comparison should focus on scope, reporting quality, systems experience, and the level of finance support included.

Sanay supports growing businesses with outsourced bookkeeping, remote financial management, and complete finance function outsourcing, helping clients build the right finance model without overcommitting to unnecessary headcount.

Book a call with Sanay today to discuss which support model makes sense for your business.