Security Budget Planning Guide
Strategic framework for allocating cybersecurity resources across people, process, and technology. Budget templates by company size with ROI calculations.
Quick Budget Framework
Allocate security budget across three categories: People (40-50%) - security team, training, consulting; Technology (35-45%) - tools, infrastructure, licenses; Process (10-15%) - assessments, audits, compliance. Total security budget should be 10-15% of IT budget. Use company size templates below to refine allocations.
The 40/40/15 Budget Framework
Effective security programs balance three critical categories. Most organizations underfund people and process while overspending on technology that sits unused.
- Security team salaries
- Workforce training programs
- vCISO / consulting services
- Incident response retainer
- Security tools (EDR, SIEM, etc.)
- Cloud security services
- Infrastructure hardening
- Tool maintenance & licenses
- Security assessments
- Penetration testing
- Compliance audits
- Policy development
Why This Framework Works
Tools don't implement themselves. The best technology fails without trained people and documented processes. This allocation ensures you have the expertise to use your tools effectively and the processes to maintain security long-term. Need help optimizing your security program? Our vCISO services provide strategic guidance.
Budget Templates by Company Size
50-100 Employees
Small-Medium Business
- vCISO: $7.5-10K/mo ($90-120K/yr)
- Security awareness: $2-3K/yr
- MSP/MSSP support: Included in IT budget
- EDR: $15-20K/yr
- Email security: $8-12K/yr
- MFA: $3-5K/yr
- Password manager: $2-4K/yr
- Backup/DR: $12-20K/yr
- Cloud security: $10-24K/yr
- Annual assessment: $15K
- Penetration test: $20-25K (every 2 years)
- Policy updates: Included in vCISO
Key Consideration: At this size, outsource specialized expertise (vCISO, pentesting) rather than hiring full-time. Focus technology spend on foundational controls: EDR, email security, MFA, backups.
100-250 Employees
Mid-Market
- Security analyst: $80-120K/yr OR vCISO at $10-12K/mo
- Part-time specialist: $40-60K/yr
- Training programs: $10-20K/yr
- IR retainer: $20-50K/yr
- SIEM: $30-50K/yr
- EDR: $25-40K/yr
- Email/web security: $15-25K/yr
- Identity mgmt: $10-20K/yr
- Vulnerability mgmt: $8-15K/yr
- Cloud security tools: $12-25K/yr
- Quarterly assessments: $30-40K/yr
- Annual pentest: $25-35K
- Compliance audit: $20-30K
Key Consideration: Decision point between internal hire vs. outsourced vCISO. Hybrid model often works best: security analyst for day-to-day + vCISO for strategy. Add SIEM for centralized visibility.
250-500 Employees
Growth Stage / Enterprise-Ready
- Security lead/manager: $150-200K/yr
- Security analyst(s): $80-120K each
- Strategic vCISO: $50-80K/yr (advisory)
- Training & certs: $20-40K/yr
- IR retainer: $50-100K/yr
- Enterprise SIEM/SOAR: $60-100K/yr
- EDR platform: $40-70K/yr
- Email/web/DNS security: $25-40K/yr
- Identity/PAM: $25-50K/yr
- Vulnerability mgmt: $15-25K/yr
- Cloud security suite: $30-60K/yr
- DLP: $15-25K/yr
- Threat intelligence: $10-20K/yr
- Continuous assessment: $40-60K/yr
- Annual pentest: $35-50K
- SOC 2 audit: $25-40K
- Tabletop exercises: $10-15K/yr
Key Consideration: Build internal team with 2-3 full-time security professionals. Add strategic vCISO for board reporting and compliance guidance. Implement enterprise-grade tools with SOC capabilities.
Return on Investment: Justifying Security Spend
Average Breach Cost
IBM Cost of Data Breach Report 2024
- Detection & investigation: $1.58M
- Notification & regulatory: $0.87M
- Lost business & reputation: $1.42M
- Legal & remediation: $0.58M
Investment Comparison
Comprehensive protection for 100-250 employees
Average cost of single security incident
ROI: Security investment pays for itself by preventing just one major breach every 15 years
Cyber Insurance
Strong security programs reduce premiums by 15-30%
Annual savings on insurance
Revenue Enablement
Enterprise sales require security certifications (SOC 2)
New revenue opportunities
Avoided Downtime
Average breach causes 21 days of business disruption
Lost productivity & revenue
Five Common Budget Mistakes
1. Tool Hoarding Without Expertise
Buying expensive security tools without staff to manage them. SIEM sitting unused is money wasted. Solution: Hire expertise first, then add tools. Consider managed services if you can't staff internally.
2. Skipping Assessments to Save Money
Implementing controls without understanding your risks. You end up overspending on low-priority areas while missing critical gaps. Solution: Annual security assessment is non-negotiable ($15-40K depending on size). Learn more: Security Assessment Services
3. Ignoring Training Budget
90% of breaches involve human error. Not training your workforce is gambling with your security. Solution: Budget $30-50 per employee annually for security awareness. Phishing simulations, role-specific training, regular updates.
4. No Incident Response Budget
Assuming breaches won't happen. When they do, scrambling to hire emergency IR at 3x normal rates. Solution: Incident response retainer ($20-100K depending on size). Pre-negotiated rates, guaranteed availability, existing relationship.
5. Treating Security as One-Time Project
Spending big in Year 1, then cutting to zero. Security is ongoing—threats evolve, tools need updates, compliance requires annual reviews. Solution: Maintain consistent annual budget with 5-10% growth for new threats and scale.
Your Security Budget Planning Checklist
Need Help Planning Your Security Budget?
Our security assessments identify your priority risks so you can allocate budget effectively. We'll show you exactly where to invest for maximum protection and ROI.
Security Assessment: $15,000 fixed fee • Risk-based budget recommendations • ROI calculations • 3-year roadmap • Technology vendor evaluations