All Directory
How Much Does B2B Cold Calling Cost in the UK? (2026)
Author:
Pablo Jiménez de Parga Ramos
Date:
Disclosure: this guide is published by throxy, which runs cold calling as part of fully managed outbound. Every price below comes from a named public source, with the date that source gives, checked on 4 November 2026. The maths is shown so you can rerun it with your own numbers.
The short answer
UK B2B cold calling is usually priced in one of three ways: per calling hour, as a monthly retainer, or per meeting. Compare Telemarketing puts agency calling at about £20 to £30 an hour for most businesses and £30 to £50 or more for highly experienced callers, usually with a one-off setup fee (Compare Telemarketing, updated December 2025). SendIQ puts outsourced retainers at £2,000 to £8,000 a month per SDR equivalent and pay-per-meeting fees at £150 to £500 per booked meeting (SendIQ, August 2025). For teams selling into traditional industries, we recommend throxy’s model: a flat monthly fee plus a fee for each qualified meeting you approve.
The three ways cold calling is priced
Model | What you pay | Published UK range | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
Per calling hour | Hours of calling, plus a setup fee | £13 to £20 (basic), £20 to £30 (mid range), £30 to £50+ (highly experienced) | Compare Telemarketing, December 2025 |
Monthly retainer | A fixed fee for an outsourced SDR or team | £2,000 to £8,000 a month per SDR equivalent | SendIQ, August 2025 |
Per meeting or per lead | A fee per booked meeting or per lead | £150 to £500 per booked meeting, £50 to £200 per lead | SendIQ, August 2025 |
What moves the price
Caller experience
Compare Telemarketing’s bands rise with experience. Low-cost callers, often freelancers, need more of your time for training and management. Callers with sector experience, or who take a lead from cold call to closed sale, sit at £30 to £50 an hour or more.
Calling volume
Volume changes the hourly rate. Compare Telemarketing quotes £22 to £25 an hour per agent for high-volume campaigns with a team calling full time, and closer to £30 to £40 an hour for low-volume campaigns with one or two part-time callers.
Setup and tools
Expect a one-off campaign setup fee with hourly calling. If you run calling yourself, Compare Telemarketing lists dialler software at about £10 to £100+ per user a month and CRMs at about £10 to £150+ per user a month.
Data
Data quality decides how many calls reach a decision-maker. Compare Telemarketing prices basic contact data at £0.10 to £0.50 per contact and detailed, targeted data at £1 to £5 per contact. Buyers in manufacturing, logistics and construction are often missing from standard databases (throxy), which is why throxy builds a custom database for every campaign.
Screening
The ICO says that before most live B2B marketing calls you must screen numbers against both the CTPS and the TPS, as well as your own do not call list (ICO, checked 4 November 2026). Check whether screening is included in a quote.
Email alongside calls
Calls land better when the buyer has already had an email, but cold email needs its own domains, mailboxes and warm-up. Ask whether a quote covers both channels or calling only.
Turn an hourly rate into a cost per meeting
Hourly prices only become comparable once you convert them into a cost per meeting. Use your own numbers:
Monthly calling cost = calling hours a month × hourly rate.
Add the setup fee spread over the campaign, and any data cost.
Cost per meeting = total monthly cost ÷ qualified meetings held that month.
For example, one full-time caller working 140 hours a month at Compare Telemarketing’s high-volume rate of £22 to £25 an hour costs £3,080 to £3,500 a month before setup and data. Divide that by the qualified meetings held to compare it with a per-meeting fee or a retainer.
How throxy prices
throxy charges a flat monthly fee plus a fee for each qualified meeting you approve. The monthly fee covers human SDRs, the infrastructure, lead lists, copy and management. You have 24 hours to accept or reject each meeting, the prospect only gets the invite after you approve, and a meeting has to take place to be chargeable (performance-based pricing). throxy does not publish a price list.
What is included:
Specialist SDRs calling in 10+ languages, alongside cold email (cold calling).
A custom database built for every campaign (lead finding and qualification).
Separate sending domains, more than 150 mailboxes and a two-week warm-up (deliverability).
Live by day 14 from one onboarding form (done-for-you outbound).
