The cheapest way to get CFO-level financial analysis for a £5m to £20m business
Jon Goodwin ·
Estimated reading time: 6 min
The short answer. For most businesses with £5m to £20m turnover, the cheapest credible route is a capable bookkeeper or financial controller for the monthly close, software that turns the ledger into a first draft of the analysis, and a fractional CFO on a light retainer for the board meeting and the big decisions. At 2026 UK market rates that adds roughly £23,000 to £35,000 a year to the cost of the close, against £34,000 to £52,000 for a fractional CFO one day a week and £165,000 to £290,000 for a full-time CFO.
Businesses in the £5m to £20m range need CFO-level thinking well before they can justify a CFO's salary. A lender wants covenant reporting, an investor wants a board pack, and the owner wants to know which customers make money. The question is how to buy that analysis without hiring for it. This guide prices the options using published UK market rates, and is plain about what each one does not give you.
What CFO-level analysis means
It helps to split the job into four parts, because each can be bought differently:
- A reliable monthly close. The ledger is complete, reconciled and tagged by the categories the business manages by.
- Analysis of what happened. What moved, why, and what it means, written so a board can act on it.
- A forward view. Cash runway, the forecast against plan, and the risks that could change it.
- Judgement. Pricing, hiring, financing, investment, and the conversations with the bank and the board.
The first is a bookkeeping and controller job. The second, and much of the third, can now be produced by software from the ledger. The fourth is why you pay a CFO.
What each route costs
| Route | Cost a year | What you get | What you do not get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full-time CFO | £165,000 to £290,000 total employment cost; base £130,000 to £220,000 | Ownership of finance, strategy, funding and the board relationship | A low fixed cost |
| Full-time finance director | Median base £105,000 to £125,000 at £20m to £30m turnover, plus a typical 15% to 25% bonus | Someone running the finance function every day | Always the strategic breadth of a CFO |
| Fractional CFO, two days a week | £67,000 to £104,000 | Senior judgement most weeks, plus some hands-on analysis | Day-to-day finance management |
| Fractional CFO, one day a week | £34,000 to £52,000 | A senior adviser for the board and the main decisions | Time to write the analysis every month |
| Board-level advisory retainer | £18,000 to £30,000 | One board meeting a month plus calls | Hands-on analysis |
| Software that writes the analysis | Stratavor from €499 a month, about £5,200 a year | Monthly analysis and commentary from the ledger | Judgement, relationships, the close itself |
The figures for people come from FD Capital, a UK finance recruiter: fractional CFO day rates of £600 to £1,200, monthly retainers of £1,500 to £2,500 for light board-level advisory, £2,800 to £4,300 for one day a week and £5,600 to £8,700 for two days, and full-time CFO base salaries of £130,000 to £220,000. Its finance director benchmarks, from placements in the first quarter of 2026, start at the £20m to £30m turnover band; it does not publish a band below £20m.
The combination that works
Much of a fractional CFO's time goes on preparing the analysis before the meeting: pulling the numbers, cutting variances, writing the commentary. That is the part software now does well, provided the close is clean and the figures are computed from the ledger rather than guessed by a language model.
So the cheapest credible combination is:
- A bookkeeper or financial controller who closes the month on time, with tracking categories kept, which you are probably paying for already.
- Software that drafts the analysis from the ledger every month. Stratavor connects read-only to Xero, QuickBooks Online, Sage, NetSuite or Deltek Vantagepoint, with HubSpot for customer and pipeline context, computes every figure in code, and writes commentary on each material movement, with the risks and the questions for the board.
- A fractional CFO on a light retainer who reads that analysis, challenges it, and brings judgement to the board meeting and the decisions that matter.
On FD Capital's rates, a light retainer plus software costs roughly £23,000 to £35,000 a year. The adviser's time goes on judgement rather than on building the pack.
When to hire full-time instead
A full-time finance leader becomes the cheaper option when the work is continuous rather than monthly:
- A fundraise, acquisition or sale that will run for months.
- A group of several companies, with consolidation, intercompany and more than one currency.
- Lender covenants close to their limits, needing weekly attention.
- A finance team of several people who need managing day to day.
- Turnover moving well beyond £20m with a board that expects a CFO at the table.
What to ask a fractional CFO
- Which parts of the monthly pack will you produce yourself, and which do you expect us or our software to produce?
- How many clients do you work with, and how many days a month will we get?
- What will you need from our bookkeeping and close to make your time count?
- How will you work with our bank and investors?
- What would make you recommend we hire full-time?
Sources
- FD Capital: how much a UK fractional CFO costs, April 2026
- FD Capital: finance director salary benchmarking, UK SME market, Q1 2026 placements
- Stratavor pricing, November 2026
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest way to get CFO-level financial analysis for a £5m to £20m business?
Combine a capable bookkeeper or controller for the close, software that drafts the monthly analysis from the ledger, and a fractional CFO on a light retainer for the board and the main decisions. At 2026 UK rates that adds roughly £23,000 to £35,000 a year, well below a fractional CFO one day a week or a full-time hire.
How much does a fractional CFO cost in the UK?
FD Capital's April 2026 guide puts UK fractional CFO day rates at £600 to £1,200, with most engagements between £700 and £900. Monthly retainers run from £1,500 to £2,500 for light board-level advisory, £2,800 to £4,300 for one day a week, and £5,600 to £8,700 for two days a week.
How much does a finance director cost for a £10m business?
FD Capital's 2026 benchmarks put median finance director base salaries at £105,000 to £125,000 for businesses with £20m to £30m turnover, plus a typical bonus of 15% to 25% of base. It does not publish a band below £20m; smaller businesses usually pay less, but employer costs and benefits add to the base.
Can software replace a CFO?
No. Software can now produce much of the monthly analysis a CFO would write, from the ledger, with every figure computed rather than estimated. It cannot exercise judgement, manage relationships with lenders and investors, or take responsibility for decisions. It changes how a CFO's time is spent, not whether it is needed.
Is a fractional CFO worth it for a £5m business?
Usually, once there is a board, a lender or an investor who expects regular reporting, or a decision large enough to need senior financial judgement. A light retainer, supported by software that produces the monthly analysis, keeps the cost to a small share of a full-time salary.