A Comprehensive Guide to Salesforce Consulting Rates
Everything you need to know about how much Salesforce Consultants cost per hour, the different pricing models, and how to select the right option.
The 3 Pricing Models for Salesforce Consultants
Before you dive straight into how much you should be paying per hour to engage Salesforce Consultants, it's critical to identify the right pricing model for your set of initiatives.
Here are the standard payment structures for engaging Salesforce Consultants or Partners. Keep in mind the right choice may depend on the project - but all else being equal, always focus on maximizing flexibility.
Salesforce Consulant Hourly Rates
As we outlined in pricing models, the cost of fixed-cost Salesforce projects will depend on the scope of the project and there’s far too much variability to cover all potential variables here.
When it comes to monthly retainers, you're paying for a bucket of hours but that total cost per month should be based on the standard hourly rate for Consultants - so make sure the math checks out!
Below, we focus on the hourly rate you should expect to pay for a Salesforce Consultant across 5 common disciplines.
Cost to Hire a Salesforce Administrator
The skills and experience of an Admin vary when looking at job title alone, so the hourly rates can be wide.
Be sure to have a clear understanding of your needs and the role you expect them to play. In short, a good Salesforce Admin handles everything from setup and user support to building powerful workflow automations and integrations to AppExchange products.
Nearshore
$35/hr-$55/hr
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Onshore
$85/hr-$115/hr
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Offshore
$30/hr-$50/hr
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Cost to Hire a Salesforce Developer
The only way to fully leverage Salesforce is with more complex customizations using Apex or deeper integrations, both requiring a Developer's skill set.
Companies leverage Developers in various ways. Some will just focus on tactical execution, while others will help prioritize features, streamline Dev Ops process, and contribute more proactively.
Hourly rate will be determined by what you want.
Nearshore
$45/hr-$70/hr
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Onshore
$90/hr-$125/hr
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Offshore
$45/hr-$65/hr
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Cost to Hire a Salesforce Architect
Nearshore
$80/hr-$95/hr
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Onshore
$135/hr-$170/hr
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Offshore
$70/hr-$85/hr
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Cost to Hire a Marketing Cloud Developer
Easily one of the most complex tools in the Salesforce Product suite, it's unique because it requires deep expertise throughout the whole journey, both implementing the platform and using it.
There are two main skill sets that most Marketing Cloud Developers fall into: Application Specialists help with the technical setup, APIs etc. whereas Campaign Strategists work within the tool to execute day-to-day activities.
Nearshore
$45/hr-70/hr
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Onshore
$90/hr-$130/hr
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Offshore
$45/hr-$60/hr
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Cost to Hire a RevOps Consultant
"Rev Ops" has become a catch-all term in the world of B2B, which can include anything from a Deal Desk Analyst to an Enablement Manager, or a GTM Strategy Advisor.
Rev Ops Consultants often serve in very specialized roles rather than coming in as Generalists. While the functions outlined above will handle GTM Systems, a Rev Ops Consultant will spearhead initiatives around GTM Strategy, Enablement, Deal Desk Operations, or other strategy & process oriented roles.
Nearshore
$0
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Onshore
$20
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Offshore
$40
Per Hour, Billed Monthly
Where to Hire Salesforce Consultants
Before you dive straight into how much you should be paying per hour to engage Salesforce Consultants, it's critical to identify the right pricing model for your set of initiatives.
Here are the standard payment structures for engaging Salesforce Consultants or Partners. Keep in mind the right choice may depend on the project - but all else being equal, always focus on maximizing flexibility.
FoundHQ
FoundHQ is the #1 platform for hiring Salesforce Consultants, listing over 8,000 pre-vetted, independent Salesforce Consultants. These Consultants range from Salesforce Administrators to Salesforce Architects and can lend their expertise in everything from CPQ Cloud to Marketing Cloud and more.
Every Consultant Profile details their full work history, Salesforce Certifications, Salesforce Cloud expertise, location, and hourly rate while enabling you to schedule interviews directly through the platform. The FoundHQ pre-vetting process verifies their technical skills through detailed assessments and their past performance through reference checks.
Salesforce AppExchange
If you’ve never used it before, here’s an overview of what the Salesforce AppExchange is and how you can use it.
On the AppExchange, there are two places to look for Consultants: Partner Listings or Salesforce Developer Consultants. The Partner Listings is a well maintained directory of Certified Salesforce Partners, searchable by their specific cloud or industry expertise, location, practice size, ratings, and more. The listings are verified by Salesforce, so there are quality mechanisms in place to ensure the accuracy of what's listed here. Consulting Partners are best suited for larger scale projects and you should expect to pay a premium when engaging this type of vendor.
The Salesforce Developer Consultant Listings are, unfortunately, more challenging to use. Those listings aren’t verified by Salesforce and many of them are outdated, so you may find a Consultant that is no longer available.
Additionally, you cannot contact listed consultants through their profile pages, so you’ll need to manually search for that individual on LinkedIn or elsewhere.The alternative is to search for the consultant you need via Google, which is a time-intensive, manual process.
Staffing Firms
Most recruitment agencies focus on full-time, permanent staffing for companies looking to hire employees. However, some also provide access to temporary, contract or part-time staff.
Hiring through a recruitment agency can be a good option if you want someone else to help find and pre-vet experts according to your own bespoke requirements, but that service isn’t free. TwentyPine is a reputable recruitment agency that’s been in the business since 2014 and has helped companies like ESPN, Workday, General Motors, and Yelp build their Salesforce teams.
Get Matched to the Right Salesforce Consultant
FoundHQ is the easiest way to get work done in Salesforce.
