Transparent Pricing in RMM: Why Per-Endpoint Models Win

Introduction

Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) tools sit at the core of modern IT operations. They provide visibility, control, and automation across distributed devices, whether those endpoints are Windows laptops, Linux servers, macOS desktops, or mobile devices running iOS and Android. The operational footprint of an RMM is directly tied to how many endpoints it manages, which makes pricing models a critical factor in cost efficiency and scalability.

Yet the industry has long been dominated by opaque and inconsistent pricing schemes. Tiered bundles, per-technician licenses, and arbitrary minimums disconnect cost from actual workload, creating a mismatch between what IT teams pay and what they manage. Transparent per-endpoint pricing fixes this by aligning cost with the true atomic unit of IT management: the endpoint itself.

In this blog, we will analyze why per-endpoint models provide superior predictability and fairness, break down the technical implications of licensing at the device level, and demonstrate how Level’s $2 per endpoint approach is built to scale alongside IT organizations with precision and transparency.

Why Pricing Transparency Matters in IT Management

Budgetary Accountability

CIOs and IT directors face increasing pressure to produce cost justification. Gartner forecasts IT services spending will hit $1.5 trillion in 2025, but finance leaders are demanding direct visibility into how each line item maps to business value. An RMM license billed in vague “tiers” or “packages” obscures this linkage.

Margin Protection for MSPs

For MSPs, the delta between cost-per-device and billable-per-device is the most critical profitability metric. Service Leadership Inc.’s 2023 benchmark shows best-in-class MSPs consistently achieve higher operating margins because they tightly align tool costs to the number of managed endpoints. A model that charges for technicians or arbitrary feature unlocks introduces variability that erodes these margins.

Operational Predictability

Compliance, SLAs, and resource allocation all depend on predictable operating costs. If your RMM doubles its license fee when a technician is added, or if critical features only exist behind a higher-priced tier, financial forecasting becomes unstable. Transparent per-endpoint pricing restores cost predictability and supports accurate capacity planning.

The Flaws in Legacy RMM Pricing Models

Tiered Bundles

• Problem: Feature-locking results in overpayment. IT teams frequently purchase “Gold” packages for one or two must-have features while subsidizing unused tools.
• Technical flaw: Bundles do not reflect endpoint workload. A 10,000-endpoint deployment may only require patching and monitoring, yet bundled licensing forces payment for unrelated modules.

Per-Technician Licensing

• Problem: Directly penalizes staff growth.
• Technical flaw: Monitoring overhead is not tied to technicians. A patch cycle, script deployment, or monitoring threshold is executed per endpoint, not per admin. This disconnect results in distorted cost scaling.
  
  

Contract Minimums

• Problem: Forces overpayment for capacity not used.
• Technical flaw: A vendor minimum of 1,000 endpoints means an MSP with 650 endpoints subsidizes unused licensing for 350 phantom devices. Tool costs per device skyrocket, reducing competitiveness.

Hidden Fees

• Problem: Backup, integrations, or scripting are paywalled.
• Technical flaw: These functions are workload multipliers, not separate product lines. An endpoint patch policy often requires automation scripts. Separating them breaks operational logic and inflates total cost of ownership (TCO).
  
  

Channel Futures reports that 62% of MSPs rank pricing unpredictability among their top tool challenges. Legacy licensing models are a key driver of this dissatisfaction.

The Technical Case for Per-Endpoint Pricing

Endpoints as the Atomic Unit of Management

Every operational function of an RMM is device-centric:

• Monitoring: Metrics such as CPU utilization, memory pressure, and disk IO are collected per device.
• Automation: Scripts execute within the context of an individual device OS.
• Patch Management: Updates apply to specific devices based on role and OS version.
• Remote Access: Session initiation is always linked to a device.

It follows logically that the most accurate licensing metric is the endpoint.

Workload-to-Licensing Alignment

• Patch cycles: If 500 endpoints each require 15 patches, the workload is 7,500 operations. Licensing must reflect this scaling.
• Alerting systems: Alert thresholds are applied per device. Costs per technician do not account for increased event volume.
• Automation libraries: Scripts scale with device count, not staff size.

Predictability in Forecasting

A per-endpoint model allows direct modeling of IT tool costs:

Example:

• MSP manages 1,200 endpoints.
• RMM cost: $2/endpoint.
• Monthly expense: $2,400.
• MSP charges clients $5/endpoint.
• Gross margin: $3,600.

This clean calculation enables precise profitability modeling.

Scaling Scenarios With Per-Endpoint Models

Healthcare

A hospital scaling from 4,000 to 6,000 endpoints during an EMR migration can calculate RMM costs linearly:

• 4,000 endpoints x $2 = $8,000
  
  
• 6,000 endpoints x $2 = $12,000
  Budget variance is entirely predictable. This stability supports compliance reporting under HIPAA and SOC 2.

Education

Universities often expand endpoint fleets at semester turnover. A school managing 2,000 laptops in fall and 3,500 in spring can adjust licensing without contract renegotiation. Procurement processes benefit from transparency and forecastable variance.

MSP Growth

An MSP onboarding three new SMB clients with 150 endpoints each knows precisely that 450 devices will increase costs by $900. Billing those at $5 per endpoint yields $2,250 gross margin.

Addressing Common Concerns

Seasonal Endpoints

Retail expansions for peak seasons double endpoint fleets. Transparent per-endpoint models allow month-to-month scaling without annual lock-in.

Endpoint Class Differentiation

Some vendors apply differential pricing to servers vs workstations. This is acceptable only if fully disclosed. Transparency means no “hidden server tax.”

Automation Efficiency

As automation coverage increases, operational efficiency rises while licensing remains stable. A technician can handle more devices without inflating per-technician costs. This aligns technical performance with financial savings.

The SaaS-Wide Shift to Usage-Based Pricing

Per-endpoint pricing is not unique to RMM. It mirrors usage-based billing across modern SaaS ecosystems:

• AWS: EC2 charged per compute hour.
• Snowflake: Billed by compute and storage consumed.
• Twilio: Charged per SMS or API call.
  

OpenView’s 2024 SaaS Benchmark Report found that transparent, usage-based SaaS firms grow 29% faster than peers. RMMs adopting per-endpoint billing are aligning with a proven market trend toward trust-driven licensing.

Advantages of Level’s Per-Endpoint Model

Level has committed to absolute transparency: $2 per endpoint.

• No Feature Lockouts: Automation, monitoring, scripting, and remote access included.
• No Minimums: Scale from 50 to 50,000 endpoints without arbitrary floors.
• No Per-Technician Penalties: IT staff growth does not inflate licensing.
• Automation Native: Policies, triggers, and patch rollouts included at no extra cost.
• Support Included: Dedicated support is not a paid add-on.

For MSPs, this allows clean pass-through billing. For internal IT, it allows budget committees to approve endpoint expansion with predictable cost scaling.

Conclusion

RMM licensing must reflect operational reality. Endpoints are the true unit of IT workload, making per-endpoint pricing the only technically consistent model. Opaque bundles, per-technician models, and contract minimums create misalignments that distort costs, erode profitability, and destabilize forecasting.

Transparent per-endpoint pricing restores clarity, fairness, and trust. It maps directly to workload, scales without penalty, and aligns IT budgets with operational reality.

Level embodies this principle. With a $2 per endpoint model, automation included, and no hidden fees, Level provides IT leaders with both the technical and financial transparency required to scale securely and predictably.

References

1. Gartner. Forecast: IT Services, Worldwide, 2022-2028, 2Q24 Update. 2024.
2. Service Leadership Inc. MSP Benchmark Reports. 2023.
3. Channel Futures. MSP 501: State of the Industry Report. 2023.
4. TechTarget. IT Operations Survey. 2024.
5. OpenView. SaaS Benchmarks Report. 2024.