Fractional HoT vs
full-time hire.
The real numbers. What a full-time Head of Testing costs a UK business in year one, what a fractional engagement delivers for less, and when each model makes sense.
Quality decisions happen
whether you own them or not.
Every engineering team makes quality decisions. Which tests to skip before a release. Whether this defect warrants a delay. How much regression is enough. The question is not whether you need someone to own those decisions — it is who is making them, and with what expertise.
For most growing UK businesses, the choice is not simply "hire full-time or don't hire." It is: hire a senior QA professional full-time, engage a fractional Head of Testing on a retainer, or continue making quality decisions implicitly. This page breaks down the first two options in financial terms. The third is not a strategy.
What a Head of Testing actually costs in the UK.
Salary is the number people quote. It is not the number that matters.
Salary range uses 2025–26 market data for UK Head of Testing roles (non-London mid-range). London adds 15–25%. Failed hire and re-recruitment doubles the year-one cost.
Three tiers. One senior practitioner.
Each tier is a rolling monthly contract with 30 days' notice. All prices ex-VAT.
- Test strategy ownership
- Monthly quality report
- 1× team review session
- Async advisory (Slack / email)
- Tooling selection & governance
Right for teams with no QA function who need strategic direction before building anything. Often the entry point.
- Everything in Essentials
- 2× planning sessions / month
- QA representation in sprints
- Test automation oversight
- Team mentoring & upskilling
- Release confidence sign-off
Right for teams shipping regularly. This is the most direct replacement for a full-time hire at a fraction of the cost.
- Everything in Growth
- Full PI / sprint planning QA
- Hiring & onboarding support
- Stakeholder & exec reporting
- On-site days (UK)
- AI tooling integration
Right for teams scaling rapidly or running a major programme. Comparable annual cost to a full-time hire, with zero employment obligations.
The comparison that matters.
| Factor | Full-Time Hire | Fractional (Growth) |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 cost (all-in) | £98,000–£121,000 | £54,000/yr + VAT |
| Days of QA leadership / month | ~20 days | ~7 days |
| Notice period / exit risk | 3 months minimum | 30 days |
| Failed hire risk | High (doubles year-1 cost) | None |
| Time to first value | 3–6 months (hire + ramp) | Week 1 |
| Employment obligations | Full (NI, pension, holiday, sick) | None |
| Seniority level | Depends on hire | Senior (20+ yrs) |
When each model makes sense.
- ✓ You have 5–40 engineers and don't need full-time QA capacity
- ✓ You need strategic ownership, not just test execution
- ✓ You want to avoid a 3–6 month hire-and-ramp timeline
- ✓ You're pre-Series A or runway-conscious
- ✓ Quality decisions are happening implicitly and need an owner
- ✓ You want senior expertise without the senior salary
- ✓ You're planning to build an internal QA function and want a bridge
- → You have 50+ engineers and QA is a daily full-capacity role
- → Your product is in a regulated domain requiring on-site presence
- → You need to build and manage a QA team internally
- → You have Series B+ runway and the hire is clearly justified by volume
- → The QA function needs to be a permanent internal capability at scale