Compare your options

The right CTO model, without the guesswork.

Full-time hire, traditional agency, or a fractional CTO? Here's an honest side-by-side — including where we're not the right fit.

Best value
Option A

Fractional CTO

From $1k/ month

Senior, hands-on CTO leadership on a flexible monthly subscription. No equity, no lock-in, deployed in 48 hours.

View Plans & Pricing
Option B

Full-time CTO

$440k/ year

A permanent executive hire. Full commitment and availability — at full cost, with hiring risk and a long recruitment cycle.

Compare costs
Option C

Dev Agency

Variesper project

Execution capacity for defined builds. Great hands, but no strategic ownership or board-level accountability.

When to use one
 
Fractional CTO
RECOMMENDED
Full-time CTO
Dev Agency
Typical monthly cost
From $1,000
$36,000+
$15,000+
Time to deploy
48 hours
3–6 months
2–4 weeks
Strategic ownership
✓
✓
—
Board & investor reporting
✓
✓
—
Hands-on with your team
✓
✓
Project only
Equity required
None
Often
None
Lock-in / commitment
None
Permanent
Per contract
Scales up or down
✓
—
Slowly
Fractional CTORECOMMENDED
Typical monthly costFrom $1,000
Time to deploy48 hours
Strategic ownership✓
Board & investor reporting✓
Hands-on with your team✓
Equity requiredNone
Lock-in / commitmentNone
Scales up or down✓
Full-time CTO
Typical monthly cost$36,000+
Time to deploy3–6 months
Strategic ownership✓
Board & investor reporting✓
Hands-on with your team✓
Equity requiredOften
Lock-in / commitmentPermanent
Scales up or down—
Dev Agency
Typical monthly cost$15,000+
Time to deploy2–4 weeks
Strategic ownership—
Board & investor reporting—
Hands-on with your teamProject only
Equity requiredNone
Lock-in / commitmentPer contract
Scales up or downSlowly

Full-time cost reflects total package (base + super + recruitment) for a senior CTO in Australia. Figures indicative.

When a fractional CTO fits
✓You need senior technical judgement but can’t justify a $440k salary yet
✓You’re scaling, raising, or preparing for due diligence
✓You have a dev team that needs direction and accountability
✓You want flexibility to scale CTO involvement up or down
When it doesn't
—You need a hands-on-keyboard engineer writing production code daily
—You’re a large enterprise needing a full-time executive on-site
—You only need a one-off build with no ongoing strategy
—You want someone available 40 hours a week, every week
Free 45-minute discovery call

Not sure which model is right for you?

Book a free call and we'll give you a straight answer — even if the answer is a full-time hire.

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Sister brand: CISO Advisory Australia — independent cyber security & Virtual CISO services