One of the biggest questions government contractors have when it comes to CMMC compliance is simple: How much is this going to cost us? The Department of Defense has tried to provide an answer by publishing projected assessment fees, but if you stop at those numbers, you’re missing the bigger story.

The real costs of CMMC aren’t just in the assessment invoice. They show up in the preparation it takes to meet requirements, the ongoing effort required to stay compliant, and the hidden expenses that organizations often overlook. And the longer you wait, the more expensive compliance becomes. Spreading costs out now, phasing in tools, and building sustainable practices is far less painful than scrambling under the pressure of enforcement.

Instead of focusing only on the official assessment price tag, contractors need to understand what drives the real costs of CMMC.

Why assessment fees only tell part of the story

According to the DoD’s cost projections, here’s what you can expect to pay for a CMMC assessment:

• Level 1 self-assessment: $4,000–$6,000
• Level 2 triennial self-assessment: $37,000–$49,000
• Level 2 third-party certification: $105,000–$118,000 (including the triennial assessment and two annual affirmations)
• Level 3 certification: Level 2 costs plus about $41,000 for implementing additional requirements

Those numbers may look neat and tidy, but in practice, they’re only the last step in a much longer and more expensive process. Most organizations spend significantly more preparing for their assessment than they do paying for it.

Think about what’s required to close gaps against NIST 800-171 or NIST 800-172, implement missing controls, stand up a CUI enclave, update policies and procedures, train staff, and document everything in an SSP and POA&M. Those steps drive costs into the tens or even hundreds of thousands before an assessor ever shows up.

The costs that contractors often overlook

The C3PAO assessment may be the final milestone, but it’s rarely the biggest expense. Here are the costs that catch contractors off guard:

• Gap remediation: Very few companies are fully aligned with NIST 800-171 out of the gate. Closing findings may require rolling out multi-factor authentication, upgrading endpoint protection, or even re-architecting your IT environment. These investments can quickly climb into the tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars.
• Consultants and vCISOs. Most businesses don’t have in-house CMMC experts, and outside help typically runs $250–$400 per hour.
• CUI enclaves: Many organizations simplify compliance by isolating sensitive data in its own secure environment. It’s effective, but costs can run from hundreds per user each month to several thousand depending on complexity.
• Additional tools: Encryption, endpoint protection, SIEM, and vulnerability scanning are non-negotiable for higher compliance levels. Buying them all at once during CMMC prep is far more expensive than phasing them in over time.
• Staff time and lost productivity: Even if you don’t hire outside consultants, compliance doesn’t come free. Every hour your team spends decoding compliance requirements, gathering evidence, updating policies, or drafting an SSP is an hour they’re not working on core business priorities.

Compliance costs don’t just depend on what you buy, they depend on when and how you prepare. Certain decisions (or indecisions) can dramatically increase what you’ll pay to get CMMC certified.

• Delay. Waiting until the last minute might feel like saving money now, but it leads to rushed remediation later at premium consulting rates. The closer we get to enforcement, the harder it will be to find assessors and experts with capacity, driving rates even higher.
• Scope misunderstanding. Misjudging your FCI and CUI footprint is one of the most expensive mistakes you can make. Overestimate and you overspend on unnecessary controls. Underestimate and you’ll have to redo entire sections of your environment to pass.
• False savings. A spreadsheet-driven compliance program looks cheap on paper, but the hidden costs are enormous. The costs of insufficient evidence, outdated policies, repeated manual work, and difficulty proving compliance during an assessment quickly add up. Automation may require an upfront investment, but it reduces rework, errors, and long-term labor costs.

The DoD’s cost analysis: What contractors need to budget for

The DoD has been clear in its regulatory impact analysis: the majority of costs contractors will bear are not the assessment fees themselves, but the preparation and maintenance required to meet and sustain the standards.

In fact, the cost-benefit analysis highlights hidden expenses such as staff training, technology upgrades, and internal productivity losses. These are harder to predict and budget for, but they’re very real — and often the difference between a smooth certification process and one that spirals into six-figure overruns.

So what does these costs add up to in practice? While every organization’s path looks different, most contractors should plan for the following CMMC compliance costs:

• Gap assessments: $3,500–$20,000 depending on scope and assessor
• Remediation and implementation: $35,000–$250,000+ depending on gaps and maturity
• Consultants and vCISO support: $250–$400 per hour; often $50,000–$300,000 total for larger projects
• CUI enclave setup: $300–$400 per user/month or $3,000–$4,000+ per month for managed environments
• Required tools (encryption, SIEM, endpoint, vulnerability scanning): $10,000–$50,000+ annually
• Staff time and productivity losses: Dozens to hundreds of hours depending on how manual the process is
• Assessment fees (per DoD estimates):
  – Level 1: $4,000–$6,000
  – Level 2 self-assessment: $37,000–$49,000
  – Level 2 C3PAO assessment: $105,000–$118,000
  – Level 3: Level 2 costs + ~$41,000

For many businesses, this means budgeting at least $100,000–$200,000 to reach Level 2 compliance. For larger organizations or those with complex CUI footprints, costs can rise much higher.

Why delaying certification will likely cost you more

On paper, waiting to invest in compliance might look like saving money. In reality, it almost always costs more.

CMMC 2.0 enforcement begins on November 10, and contractors that aren’t already preparing will soon be competing for scarce assessment slots and paying a premium for rushed remediation.

Starting now gives you time to phase in tools, spread out consulting hours, and build sustainable compliance processes. Waiting means higher consulting bills, rushed projects, limited availability of assessors, and more stress on your internal teams.

For a small business, spending $100,000–$200,000 to get to Level 2 compliance may seem steep. But compare that to the billions of dollars in DoD contracts that will soon be out of reach without CMMC certification. A single subcontract can more than offset compliance spend.

When framed this way, the question isn’t Can we afford to get CMMC certified? but rather Can we afford not to?

Compliance costs vs. contract value  

The costs of CMMC certification are not insignificant. But the biggest mistake organizations make is fixating on the assessment fee and ignoring the broader financial picture.

By understanding the full scope of compliance — from remediation and consulting to tools, enclaves, and staff time — contractors can budget more realistically and avoid being blindsided later. And the sooner you begin, the more control you’ll have over those costs.

CMMC isn’t optional. It’s the new threshold for doing business with the Department of Defense. The organizations that wait will face steeper consulting bills, fewer assessor options, and lost eligibility for contracts. The organizations that start preparing now will spread costs out, minimize surprises, and keep themselves in play for billions of dollars in federal contracts.