Start with the work
List the jobs people will actually use: drafting, document retrieval, transcription, research, data work or a connected workflow. Note how many regular users there are, how often they use it and which jobs need the more expensive model or plan.
A cheap subscription that cannot do the required work is not a saving. A large local machine bought for occasional drafting is not one either.
A worked three-year example
Take a five-person office comparing a $75 per-person monthly service with an Office-tier local system. This is an example input, not a claim about every cloud product or every LocallyAI quote.
- Subscription
- 5 people × $75 × 36 months = $13,500
- Local starting point
- The Office from $7,900
- Three optional yearly visits
- $600 × 3
- Local starting total with those visits
- $9,700
The local figure is a starting comparison. The written quote may be higher if the job needs more memory, storage, integrations, custom work or travel. Prices exclude GST. LocallyAI is registered for GST; the pricing page explains how quotes show it.
Costs the neat chart can hide
Subscription side
Count every required seat, higher plan, usage charge, transcription allowance, connected product and expected price change. Check what happens when headcount grows and what can be exported if you leave.
Local side
Count the quoted system, electricity, backup storage, ordinary IT support, replacement planning and any paid online service. Add separately quoted integrations or custom work rather than pretending they are free.
The two options buy different things
A subscription lowers the first invoice, then continues for every person and every month. It does not create a business-owned processing path, installed hardware or a handed-over system. Compare the full ownership period, expected headcount and work volume rather than the first month alone.
An on-premise system moves more cost to the start and gives the organisation a machine it controls. Local models do not create a new seat fee or per-message model bill, but capacity is finite and the office still needs sensible backup, access and support arrangements.
Privacy can be the deciding factor, but it still needs precise wording. In the base offline configuration, your prompts, your documents, your recordings and the model work itself all stay on the appliance. Web research, updates, external integrations, remote support and off-site fine-tuning are separate exceptions.
Run three scenarios
- Today
- Current headcount, ordinary monthly use and the work already approved.
- Busy year
- More people, long recordings, larger documents and the highest realistic workload.
- Change
- Cancellation, export, hardware replacement, a new model or a larger local tier.
Use the same period and include only benefits you can defend. Time saved belongs in the calculation after a real trial, not as an invented percentage before anybody has used the system.
What to ask for in writing
- Scope
- Exact machine, memory, storage, models, workflows and connected services.
- Price
- Starting price, final quoted price, optional work and vendor fees separated.
- Support
- What routine support covers and what the optional yearly visit adds.
- Updates
- Who applies them, what they cost and when a temporary connection is needed.
- Exit
- How conversations, files, reports and configuration records are exported.
Current LocallyAI starting prices are on the pricing page. A current written quote governs the actual configuration, availability, price and terms.