So you want to be an associate virtual assistant? (Or how much an associate gets paid!)

“They’re paying HOW MUCH for an associate virtual assistant???!”  Yes, the outraged exclamations on Facebook Groups for an associate (subcontracted) virtual assistant job always raises a lot of eyebrows…  But you know, the virtual assistants doing these associate jobs aren’t necessarily doing the same job as the Lead VA is for the money.  Let’s explain:

So, how much does a Lead VA pay?

This ranges massively from as little as 30% of the end client fee, up to 90% in some cases.  The main deciding factor is usually how much responsibility the associate VA is taking on for the end result. 

So if the Lead VA is outsourcing something they don’t know how to do, the % fee will be higher than general admin on a job managed and checked by the Lead VA. 

Pre-IR35, if it was a task the Lead VA could do themselves, they set the rate; and if it was something outside their expertise, the Subcontract VA would be asked what they would charge.  However, now that IR35 has appeared, the correct thing to do is to ask the associate what they charge.

Lead VAs do seem to get an incredibly bad reputation for “ripping VAs off” when, in actual fact, there are legitimate business expenses involved in having associate VAs do the work, just as if you had an employee doing the work.  If you don’t want to work as an associate, no one is forcing you to.  But the rates will be agreed to a very tight budget to enable the Lead VA to make a reasonable profit and enable their income to be sustainable.

So why are associate fees not as high as client fees?

The associate stats…

Getting the associate fee right is often the key to a successful VA business.  We take our average costs per job, and we split them into our hourly fee to consider how much we can pay an associate.  And as a comparison,  Caroline Wylie asked a fellow VA to do the same for work she outsources (which she doesn’t have skills for and where the Subcontract VA manages the client herself and then remains ultimately responsible for that client).

You can see where the differences lie and why her VAs get paid a big chunk more than Caroline’s VAs in terms of an hourly rate, despite us both billing to the end clients at similar rates.

So here’s a little calculation about what our fees are made up of (and if you want the client fee comparison, please visit Jo’s excellent article over at VA Pro):

Time spent marketing to get the virtual assistant client

Time spent marketing to get the virtual assistant client.

For a start, there’s very little outlay in terms of getting the client; they simply get given to them by the Lead VA.  There is no time spent in networking events, paying for groups, sending out postcards or time following up; the client just gets given to them.  And then ongoing work to check in with the client, introduce them to new services, etc. is done by the Lead VA and will be part of their ongoing expense of servicing the client. 

Part of any standard VA charge should be comprised of money that you spend on marketing and promotion to ensure a steady stream of clients. 

Associate VAs aren’t outlaying that money to get this work either upfront or on an ongoing basis.

Briefing the virtual assistant task

At a VA Conference this year, we spoke to a few VAs about how hard it is to get clients and to hand work across – even when they have paid upfront! 

The hand-holding involved to get a client to brief a project properly and then break it up into individual tasks is a real skill.  So you, as an associate VA, may be copy typing some handwritten notes, but the Lead VA has also briefed a graphic designer to design images based on those notes, created a PowerPoint presentation and handouts for the seminar, which the client is holding… 

All of that project management takes time, and it’s not necessarily all chargeable, so it is included in the hourly fee so that you get a clear set of instructions to work from.

Tools needed to get the VA task done

As a VA, you’d be expected to provide your own computer with Microsoft Word, but your Lead VA may well have extra tools and gizmos to make a job work, either for you doing the work or for the client using a VA.  So that might be an online workspace so everyone can collaborate, it might be a social media management tool with team capacity like Hootsuite, or possibly it’s a CRM system such as InfusionSoft or Aweber.  The Lead VA would pay for these tools, so it’s included in the hourly rate.

Getting paid as a virtual assistant

Whether or not the Lead VA gets paid by the end client, as an associate VA your client is the Lead VA, and they should always pay you.  Essentially, the Lead VA is taking on the risk of the client defaulting or paying late.  That’s bankable!

(Being stiffed by a Lead VA when working as an associate?  Do let us know…  As an organisation designed to help one another, we take complaints very seriously.)

Experience gained as a virtual assistant

For a new start VA, gaining valuable experience of working with clients is priceless.  It allows you to see the kinds of tasks which get outsourced, and the Lead VA will specify how they usually do them – these processes are often developed over a number of years by a system of trial and error, so by replicating them in your own business, you bypass a lot of rookie mistakes!  You’ve just saved yourself a big headache and got paid in the process.

Secondly, you get honest feedback.  A good Lead VA will let their associates know when they have made a mistake and when they’ve done well.  We know exactly how long it should take, what it should look like and where they’ve gone wrong or right. 

“Real clients” won’t necessarily tell you you’ve gone wrong; they simply won’t use you again.   The learning curve is steep, but it makes you a better VA!

Flexibility as a virtual assistant

Most associate VAs will be able to say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to jobs as they come in…  So if you have client work at full rate, you can just refuse any subcontract work that comes in at your associate rate.  That way, you never lose out on higher-paying work and still have some income during quiet periods.

We’ve all had a nightmare client….  Since they know what drives you nuts, VAs tend to make good clients themselves.  They won’t micromanage you (unless you ask for help), they aren’t going to plague you with phone calls, they brief jobs properly, and they know what they are asking you to do (because they’ve done it themselves).  

Checking work as a virtual assistant

I’m going to raise my hand here: I am a control freak, I must control All.The.Things.  I’m pretty unapologetic about it these days because that’s why clients love my work.  The vast majority of my time as a Lead VA is checking the work which the associate VAs are doing and being what I call “The Fat Controller” of all the work (I think professionally they call this “Traffic Management”, but I spend a lot of my time reading Thomas The Tank Engine, so bear with me!).

I make sure work gets done on deadline.  I make sure work is done to the standard the client expects.  I change all the little quirks and preferences they have on fonts/tone/layout, etc, before the client even has to think about it.  I’m up at 2am typing if one of the VAs calls in sick, having accepted a job, because that is what is required to hit the deadline.  The clients aren’t charged for that facility, but that is a large part of why they use me, so it’s built into the hourly fee.

Insurance

Also, you’ll often find that the Lead VA isn’t just ensuring their work, they are also ensuring your work too – professional indemnity for teams of VAs gets expensive fast, and a Lead VA should not be risking outsourcing without seeing policies or underwriting the cost themselves.

Now, not all Lead VAs work that way; some will charge for checking, on top of whatever work the associate VA does.  Others will not be capable of completing the tasks the associate VA is undertaking themselves, so they are unable to check it.  And in those instances, you would expect to receive a higher percentage of the client fee, hence the variation.

What is the average rate for associates in the UK?

The UK VA Survey 2025 shows us that the average rate charged by associate VAs comes in at £21.97p – and that is taken from read VAs in real-time.

A final thought

Associate virtual assistant rates can look shocking at first glance, particularly when they are compared directly to end client fees. However, when the full picture is considered, including responsibility, risk, systems, client management, quality control and business overheads carried by the Lead VA, those figures begin to make far more sense.

Working as an associate virtual assistant is not about being taken advantage of. It is about choosing a different business model. For some Virtual Assistants, associate work provides flexibility, valuable experience, consistent income and a lower barrier to entry into the industry. For others, it will not be the right fit, and that is perfectly acceptable.

What matters most is clarity, transparency and informed choice. Virtual Assistants should understand what they are being paid for, what responsibilities sit with the Lead VA, and what benefits they gain in return. When associate relationships are set up properly and managed professionally, they can be commercially sustainable, professionally rewarding and beneficial for everyone involved.

That is what best practice within the Virtual Assistant industry should always strive to achieve.