Most MSPs I talk to are excited about AI. They’re watching demos, testing MSP AI tools, and trying to figure out how AI fits into their service desk. That’s a good thing.
Where I see teams get stuck isn’t on features or capability, it’s on pricing.
We talk a lot about AI readiness for MSPs, and pricing is part of that conversation whether people realize it or not. AI isn’t just a tool you turn on. It’s something your team has to actually use every day. And the way AI pricing models are structured plays a much bigger role in adoption than most MSPs expect.
Predictable AI Pricing Drives Real Adoption
AI only works if your team feels comfortable using it. That sounds obvious, but it’s easy to miss when you’re evaluating AI tools for managed service providers.
When pricing is tied to tokens, usage, or overages, people start to hesitate. They second-guess whether they should use AI for a task. They limit experimentation. Over time, AI becomes something they avoid instead of something that helps them.
You can’t tell your team to embrace AI and then make them feel like every click costs money. Token-based AI pricing might work in some environments, but for MSPs it often slows MSP AI adoption. If AI is meant to be part of how your business operates, pricing needs to encourage usage instead of punish it.
Pricing Should Reduce Friction, Not Add to It
Introducing AI into a service desk already brings change. Tickets may land in different places. Dispatch works differently. Some work gets automated, and some roles evolve.
That kind of change requires leadership and buy-in. The last thing you want is pricing to become another point of resistance.
When AI pricing is simple and predictable, it’s easier for leaders to roll new tools out confidently. It’s easier to explain internally. And it lets your team focus on learning new workflows instead of worrying about cost.
MSP Growth Requires Cost Confidence
Pricing becomes even more important when you think about growth.
MSPs don’t just use AI internally, they build services around it and deliver those services to customers. If AI costs fluctuate based on usage, it becomes difficult to package, price, and scale those services.
If you don’t know what AI costs you, you can’t confidently sell it. Predictable AI pricing gives MSPs the confidence to standardize services, protect margins, and grow without surprises.
Pricing Reflects How a Vendor Expects AI to Be Used
One thing I always encourage MSPs to think about is what pricing says about a product’s philosophy.
Is AI meant to be core to daily operations, or something you’re supposed to use sparingly? Is experimentation encouraged, or subtly discouraged? Pricing answers those questions whether vendors intend it to or not.
When evaluating AI pricing for MSPs, don’t just ask what the software can do. Ask whether the pricing aligns with how you want your team to use AI — and how you want your MSP to grow over time.
AI Is a Long-Term Investment
AI isn’t a feature you turn on and forget about. It’s a long-term investment in your team, your processes, and your ability to scale.
Capabilities matter. Features matter. But pricing often determines whether AI actually becomes part of your MSP or stays on the sidelines.
The best AI tools are the ones your team actually uses. And pricing has a bigger impact on that than most people realize.
What to Do Next
If you’re evaluating AI tools today, pricing is just one piece of AI readiness. Adoption, process change, and team buy-in matter just as much.
If you want help thinking through AI readiness — from process to pricing — we’re always happy to have that conversation. You can actually book a meeting directly with me if you want to discuss.
