How many design hours per month make building a team cheaper than outsourcing?
The right question to ask is how many design hours you actually use each month, not how many deliverables.
The breakeven point is calculated based on the number of design hours actually used each month, not the number of tasks or publications. Compare that figure with the total actual cost of an equivalent internal employee in the Vietnamese market. There is no reliable common hour threshold to apply directly. You must calculate your threshold based on salary, benefits, recruitment costs, and the actual risk of vacancies in your business. When usage hours are not sufficiently high or fluctuate seasonally, flexible outsourcing is often cheaper than maintaining a fixed payroll year-round.
- hours used regularly exceed the threshold calculated based on Vietnamese salaries
- the volume is predictable for many months
- the hours used are not enough
- the volume fluctuates seasonally
- not wanting to bear fixed costs for the whole year
When considering whether to build an internal design team, businesses often ask one question. That question is: "How many banners and social media posts should we create each month to justify hiring someone?" This is the wrong unit of measurement. The number of publications does not indicate a designer's workload, as each type of work has very different hour requirements. The correct comparison unit is the actual design hours used each month.
Why should it be calculated in actual usage hours?
A month may include thirty social media posts and a capability profile. Twenty posts can be completed in two days if design templates are already available; the profile may take three weeks. Counting tasks will yield a figure that is completely skewed from reality. Only when you know the total actual design hours consumed each month can you compare it with the cost of maintaining an internal employee working those exact hours.
The simplest way: record the hours of each task over two to three consecutive months, then calculate the average. If there is no historical data, estimate based on the type of work and complexity level, then multiply by the average number of repetitions per month.
The true cost of internal operations: salaries are not everything
Salary is the most visible cost, but it is not the whole picture. When you hire an in-house designer, the true costs include:
- Pre-tax salary and mandatory benefits (social insurance, health insurance, unemployment insurance as per Vietnamese regulations)
- Costs for design software and resources (Adobe, Figma, licensed fonts)
- Recruitment costs when needing to replace someone (job postings, interview time, onboarding time for new hires)
- Vacant seat time (the time without a person working when staff are on leave or have left, but fixed costs still apply)
- The time for management and training from superiors.
Sources from Western design firms such as Orbix and Superside report that the actual costs of internal teams are often significantly higher than surface-level salaries. This is true in Vietnam, although the specific differential depends on each business.
Salary is the most obvious cost. The actual costs also include benefits, taxes, paid leave, recruitment fees, vacancy gaps, and software. Internal options appear cheaper than they actually are if only salary is considered.
Orbix, Superside (Western context)
How to calculate your own break-even threshold for your business
There is no common number of hours that is reliable enough to apply directly. You need to calculate your threshold in four steps:
- Step 1. Determine the pre-tax salary of a capable designer for the work you need in the Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City market.
- Step 2. Add hidden costs: estimate mandatory benefits, software, and a contingency for recruitment and vacancy costs.
- Step 3. Divide the total monthly costs by the actual working hours in that month (excluding holidays and average leave). This is the internal cost calculated per hour.
- Step 4. Compare that figure with the hourly rate of the outsourcing unit you are considering. When your actual usage hours are sufficiently high and maintained consistently over several months, the internal hourly cost will be lower than outsourcing at an hourly rate.
Common mistakes when comparing
- Using hourly thresholds from Western sources as a hard number, then applying them directly to the Vietnamese context without adjusting for actual wages and costs.
- Counting tasks instead of measuring actual hours, causing the comparison results to be completely skewed.
- Overlooking hidden costs and the risk of empty seats makes internal operations seem cheaper than they really are.
- Calculate the breakeven point based on peak season volume, but in reality, the low season volume is the figure you must bear year-round.
Decision checklist
Topic: Break-even point: when building a team is cheaper than outsourcing. Sinh Vũ guide, sinhvu.com
Tick each item that applies or that you can already answer, then print or save as PDF to take with you.
If you have marked most of the signs above, this is the time to discuss in more detail. Sinh Vũ can help you review and propose a direction.
References
Orbix, In-House Design Team vs Design Agency (Western context, needs adjustment for use in Vietnam). Superside, In-House vs Agency (Western context). Sinh Vũ, operational data for the outsourced brand operations service (hourly fund, internal practices). This is a perspective from studio operational practices, not financial consulting or result commitments.
Frequently asked questions
External sources suggest that if you spend more than 40 hours a month, you should hire internally. Does that figure apply to Vietnam?
Cannot be applied directly. That threshold is based on salary and benefits costs in Western markets, which are significantly higher than in Vietnam. You need to recalculate using the actual salary of an equivalent designer in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City, plus hidden costs, to find a threshold that suits you.
In addition to salary, what else should be considered when comparing internally with outsourcing?
You need to factor in mandatory benefits such as social insurance, health insurance, and unemployment insurance. Additionally, consider recruitment costs when replacing staff, design software fees, and gaps when personnel are on leave or resign. These costs are often overlooked in preliminary comparisons, making internal options appear cheaper than they actually are.
This article is for reference. The scope, pricing, and specific commitments of Sinh Vũ are detailed in the proposal and signed contract.