How much does ISO certification cost for my company?

This is one of the most common questions we receive from potential clients, and we completely understand why. If you're considering ISO certification, whether it's ISO 9001, ISO/IEC 27001, or another standard, it's natural to want to know how much it will cost. You need to plan your budget and assess whether certification is feasible for your organization.

However, providing a price right away isn't as straightforward as it might seem—and there’s a good reason for that. In this article, I’ll explain why estimating the cost of ISO certification involves more than just picking a number off a shelf, and why you should be cautious of anyone who gives you a flat price without asking for any details.

Why there’s no one-size-fits-all ISO certification price

The cost of ISO certification depends on several factors, and a fair, accurate estimate requires understanding your company’s specific situation. Certification is based on an audit process, and that audit must be tailored to your organization to be effective and compliant with accreditation rules.

Here are some of the key factors that influence the cost of ISO certification:

1. Size of your organization

Larger companies typically require more audit time because there are more processes, people, and records to assess. For example, a company with 10 employees and one location will be much quicker to audit than a company with 500 employees spread across multiple sites.

2. Business sector and complexity

An IT services company operating in a digital environment is very different from a manufacturing firm with complex production lines. The complexity of your operations directly impacts how much time auditors need to spend understanding and assessing your system.

3. Number of locations

If your business operates across multiple sites, these may need to be sampled or audited individually. Travel time, accommodation and logistics come into play, and all these must be considered in the offer.

4. Relevant standards

Each ISO standard comes with its own requirements. For instance, an ISO 9001 (Quality Management) audit is generally more straightforward than an ISO/IEC 27001 (Information Security Management) audit, which involves deeper technical and risk-based assessments.

What goes into the price of ISO certification?

To give a fair quote, a certification body needs to calculate how many auditor-days (man-days) are necessary. This is the core unit of time used in planning and pricing certification audits.

• Auditor-day = one auditor working for one full day
• If three auditors conduct a 3-day audit, that equals 9 man-days

The total auditor-days are calculated using official guidelines based on your industry, employee count, and the ISO standards involved.

But that’s not all. Beyond the audit, the certification process includes:

• Planning and preparation
• Review of the management system documentation
• Review and approval of the audit report (done by someone independent from the audit team)
• Issuance of the certificate

Each of these steps requires time and expertise, which are factored into the final cost.

Beware of flat fees and instant quotes

If you’re offered a flat-rate ISO certification—say €1,000 for any company, regardless of size or activity—it should raise a red flag. Certification done properly follows a process aligned with international accreditation rules, and these rules require a risk-based, tailored approach.

A legitimate certification body will ask for key information such as:

• Number of employees
• Locations
• Scope of your management system
• Business sector and activities
• Desired ISO standard(s)

Only with this information can a certification body prepare a realistic and transparent offer.

Conclusion: transparency and tailoring matter

A certification body should take the time to understand a business before giving a quote. 

That would mean asking a few questions to ensure you get a serious offer for a certification that’s credible, compliant and that adds real value to your business.

So, the next time you're wondering, “How much does this ISO certification cost?”—remember that the right answer depends on you. And if someone doesn’t ask any questions and just gives you an answer right away, it’s probably best to look elsewhere.