Part-Time vs. Full-Time Virtual Assistant: How Many Hours Do You Need?
How to decide between a part-time and full-time virtual assistant, with a simple hours audit and the retention tradeoffs most owners miss.
Starting part-time feels safer. Sometimes it is. Sometimes it creates a VA who’s distracted by three other clients. Here’s how to size the role.
Run a one-week hours audit
For one week, log every task you’d delegate and how long it took. Multiply by 1.25 (VAs will be slower at first, and you’ll discover tasks you forgot). That number, rounded, is your starting point.
- Under 10 hours/week: consider a project-based freelancer or batching tasks.
- 10–25 hours/week: part-time VA.
- 25+ hours/week: full-time VA.
Remember to add the tasks you should be doing but aren’t: database nurture, review requests, social posting. Those often push a part-time role to full-time.
The case for part-time
- Lower commitment while you learn to delegate
- Good for narrow specialties (bookkeeping, content)
- Fine for asynchronous work where response time doesn’t matter
The case for full-time
- Exclusivity and focus. Full-time VAs usually work for one client, so you get their best hours.
- Easier hiring. Many of the strongest candidates want full-time stability.
- Better retention. A part-time VA is always looking for more hours, sometimes from someone else.
- Responsiveness. They’re available when things come up.
- Room to grow. Freed-up capacity becomes new projects instead of idle time.
A middle path
Hire full-time but split the role across two functions, for example inbox/calendar in the morning and CRM/lead follow-up in the afternoon. You get a committed VA and a full workload.
Or share a full-time VA across two people on your team, with clear priorities on who gets what.
Costs at each level
At $9/hour:
| Hours/week | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 20 | $9,360 |
| 30 | $14,040 |
| 40 | $18,720 |
Placement fees are the same regardless of hours, so full-time spreads them across more output. Run your scenario in the cost calculator.
Our recommendation
If your audit shows 20+ hours, go full-time. You’ll fill the extra hours faster than you think. If you’re under 20, start part-time with a candidate who wants to grow into full-time.
Start your match; our intake asks about hours and recommends the right setup.
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