IT Budget for a New 10-Person Office: WiFi, PCs, Email, and Backup Costs

Setting up IT for a new office without a clear budget is how businesses overspend on the wrong things and underspend on the right ones. Here's a realistic breakdown.

You're opening a new office for 10 people. IT is on the setup checklist. But what does it actually cost — and what should you prioritize?

This guide covers the realistic cost of properly setting up IT for a new 10-person office in Vietnam, with current prices and honest notes on where to save and where not to cut corners.

Category 1: Computers (10 Workstations)

The biggest line item in any office IT setup is computers.

Budget option (adequate for most office work):

• Business-grade laptop or desktop: 12-18 million VND each
• Target: i5/Ryzen 5, 8-16 GB RAM, 256-512 GB SSD
• Suitable for email, Office, accounting, video calls

Mid-range (for demanding users):

• 18-30 million VND each
• i7/Ryzen 7, 16-32 GB RAM, 512 GB NVMe SSD

Good brands for business use in Vietnam: Dell OptiPlex/Latitude, HP ProBook/EliteBook, Lenovo ThinkPad — available through authorized distributors with warranty.

Don't buy: Consumer laptops for business use. No warranty support, thinner build quality, often no VGA/ethernet port when needed.

Budget for 10 computers:

• Budget: 120-180 million VND
• Mid-range: 180-300 million VND

Note: Ensure each computer comes with genuine Windows (OEM). Verify before purchase.

Category 2: Network Infrastructure

A functional office network requires more than the ISP's router.

Internet connection:

• Business plan (Viettel/VNPT/FPT): 500,000-2,000,000 VND/month
• Business plans include: faster support, better SLA, often a static IP
• For 10 people with video calls: 100-200 Mbps is comfortable

Router (business-grade):

• TP-Link ER7206 (good SMB choice): 2,000,000-3,500,000 VND
• Avoid: ISP-provided modems as primary router

Switch (for wired connections):

• TP-Link TL-SG1016 (16-port unmanaged): 800,000-1,200,000 VND
• TP-Link TL-SG3210 (managed switch for VLAN support): 2,000,000-3,500,000 VND

WiFi access points (2 for a typical office):

• TP-Link EAP225 (2 units): 1,500,000-2,500,000 VND each
• Or ASUS ExpertWiFi: 2,500,000-4,000,000 VND each

Cat6 cabling and installation:

• Depends on office layout
• Estimate 500,000-1,000,000 VND per computer for cabling
• For 10 computers: 5,000,000-10,000,000 VND

Estimated network setup cost: 12-25 million VND

Category 3: Email and Productivity Software

For a business, professional email ([email protected]) is non-negotiable.

Microsoft 365 Business Basic (10 users):

• ~150,000-180,000 VND/user/month
• 1,500,000-1,800,000 VND/month total
• Includes: Business email, Teams, OneDrive (1TB/user), web Office

Microsoft 365 Business Standard (10 users):

• ~300,000-350,000 VND/user/month
• 3,000,000-3,500,000 VND/month total
• Adds full desktop Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook installed on PC)

Recommendation: Business Standard if staff do significant document work. Basic if they primarily use web/mobile.

First year cost for Microsoft 365: 18-42 million VND (annual billing is slightly cheaper than monthly)

Category 4: Security Software

Antivirus/endpoint protection:

• Kaspersky Business: ~500,000-700,000 VND/user/year
• ESET Business: ~600,000-900,000 VND/user/year
• Included in Microsoft 365 Business Premium (premium tier): upgrade cost worth considering

For 10 users: 5,000,000-9,000,000 VND/year for standalone antivirus.

Note: Windows Defender (built into Windows 11) has improved significantly and may be adequate for low-risk environments with other protections in place.

Category 5: Data Backup

Business backup is often skipped to save money. This is a mistake.

Minimum viable backup for 10-person office:

Option A: External drive (each person) + cloud sync

• 10 external drives (1-2 TB each): 500,000-800,000 VND each
• Cloud storage (OneDrive included in M365)
• Setup cost: 5,000,000-8,000,000 VND

Option B: NAS + cloud

• Synology DS223 + 2× 4TB drives: 12,000,000-16,000,000 VND
• Backblaze or S3 sync: 200,000-500,000 VND/month
• Best protection for the cost

Category 6: IT Support

Unless you have IT expertise in-house, budget for ongoing support:

• Monthly managed IT services: 5,000,000-10,000,000 VND/month for 10 users
• Or: Use an hourly technician for occasional help: 2,000,000-5,000,000 VND/month average

Complete Budget Summary

Category	One-Time Cost	Monthly Cost
10 computers (mid-range)	180,000,000	—
Network infrastructure	15,000,000-25,000,000	1,000,000-2,000,000 (internet)
Microsoft 365 (10 users)	—	1,500,000-3,500,000
Antivirus	5,000,000-9,000,000 (annual)	—
NAS + backup	12,000,000-16,000,000	200,000-500,000 (cloud)
IT support	—	5,000,000-10,000,000
Total Year 1	~220-250M VND	~8-16M VND/month

Year 1 total: 320-450 million VND (including hardware + monthly costs)

Years 2 onwards: 100-200 million VND/year (monthly subscriptions + maintenance; hardware already purchased)

Where to Save (Wisely) and Where Not to Cut

Safe to save:

• Start with Business Basic M365, upgrade to Standard only if desktop Office is needed
• Buy mid-range computers rather than high-end
• Use consumer-grade UPS (battery backup) rather than enterprise UPS

Do not cut:

• Network infrastructure — cheap consumer routers cause daily problems
• Data backup — this is insurance; the cost of not having it is catastrophic
• Genuine software licenses — piracy creates legal and security risk
• Professional email — a personal Gmail looks unprofessional and lacks business features

Getting Help With Your Office IT Setup

Setting up IT for a new office is a project with many interdependent parts. Getting the sequence right (network before computers, backup before go-live) matters.

Contact Vietify → for office IT setup services in Da Nang, or get a free IT assessment and a customized budget for your specific requirements.

Vietify IT Services — Office setup and IT infrastructure for businesses in Vietnam.