ComplianceArmor ROI Calculator: DIY vs Done-For-You Compliance
See exactly what compliance costs your team — in hours and dollars — before you spend a single billable hour writing policies. Compare your in-house build against the locked, flat-fee ComplianceArmor package from Petronella Technology Group, Inc.
If you are scoping a CMMC, HIPAA, SOC 2, PCI-DSS, or CCPA program, the question is rarely "should we do it?" — the question is whether the cheapest path is your own engineers, a generalist consultant, or a documentation-led done-for-you provider. This calculator answers that question with calibrated industry numbers, not vendor marketing math. Pick your framework, enter your headcount and blended labor rate, and the page recalculates the do-it-yourself hour bill, your time-to-assessment-ready window, and the side-by-side delta against the ComplianceArmor flat fee.
The do-it-yourself estimates draw from public benchmarks: NIST SP 800-66 Rev. 2 for HIPAA effort, DoD CMMC Accreditation Body cost models plus Coalfire and Cybersheath field data for CMMC Level 1 and Level 2, PCI Security Standards Council references for PCI-DSS v4 SAQ-D, and Vanta and Drata published readiness studies for SOC 2 Type I. Hours scale sub-linearly with headcount because most policy authoring is fixed cost — only evidence collection, training distribution, and access reviews grow with employee count. If you already have a System Security Plan, an Incident Response Plan, or a Risk Analysis on file, check the boxes and watch the do-it-yourself bill drop accordingly.
- Locked SKUs. CMMC L1 $6,997. CMMC L2 Tier 1 $24,997. HIPAA $7,997. PCI-DSS $9,997. SOC 2 Type I $14,997. No surprise change orders.
- Documents you own. SSP, POA&M, policies, procedures, training, evidence — all delivered, all yours, all editable.
- Independent assessments separate. C3PAO for CMMC L2, CPA for SOC 2, QSA for a PCI ROC are charged by their own firms. ComplianceArmor builds the package they assess.
Compare the in-house cost of a do-it-yourself compliance build versus the flat-fee ComplianceArmor package from Petronella Technology Group, Inc. All numbers update live as you type.
How we calculated this
The do-it-yourself hour estimates are calibrated from publicly-cited industry benchmarks and Petronella Technology Group field data:
- CMMC Level 1 baseline ~180 hours: 17 FAR 52.204-21 controls + SSP + SPRS attestation (Cybersheath / CMMC Information Institute SMB studies, 2024-2025).
- CMMC Level 2 Tier 1 baseline ~1,400 hours for a 50-employee company: 110 NIST SP 800-171 controls + SSP + POA&M + procedures (DoD CMMC AB cost estimates 2022 and Cybersheath / Coalfire field data).
- HIPAA baseline ~320 hours: Security Rule + Privacy Rule + Breach Notification + Risk Analysis under 45 C.F.R. § 164.308(a)(1)(ii)(A) (NIST SP 800-66 Rev. 2 implementation effort guidance).
- PCI-DSS v4 baseline ~360 hours: SAQ-D scope, 12 requirement areas, scope reduction (Coalfire / PCI SSC implementation effort references).
- SOC 2 Type I baseline ~420 hours: Trust Services Criteria mapping, policy build, evidence collection (Vanta / Drata published readiness studies).
Hours scale with employee count along a sub-linear curve (evidence collection, training distribution, and access reviews grow with headcount but most policy authoring is fixed). Each artifact you already have in place (SSP, IR Plan, Risk Analysis) reduces the do-it-yourself estimate by a calibrated percentage, because the effort to update existing documentation is materially lower than authoring it from scratch.
Cost = adjusted hours x your blended labor rate. ComplianceArmor flat fees are the published Petronella Technology Group package prices. Savings is the simple delta. Time-to-ready uses a conservative one-FTE-quarter-time pace for do-it-yourself versus the published Petronella Technology Group delivery windows.
This is an estimating tool, not a quote. Independent third-party assessment fees (C3PAO for CMMC Level 2, CPA for SOC 2, QSA for a PCI Report on Compliance) are charged separately and are not included in either side of the comparison.
We will send a tailored cost-comparison PDF to your inbox plus a quick framework readiness check, no obligation.
Petronella Technology Group, Inc. provides documentation and readiness services. Independent assessments are performed by a Cyber AB Authorized C3PAO, a licensed CPA firm, or a PCI SSC-listed QSA under separate engagement, depending on framework. Petronella Technology Group does not issue certifications.
How accurate is this estimate?
The do-it-yourself numbers above are calibrated from public industry benchmarks (NIST SP 800-66 Rev. 2, DoD CMMC AB cost models, Coalfire and Cybersheath field studies, PCI SSC implementation references, Vanta and Drata SOC 2 readiness data) plus Petronella Technology Group field data. They are illustrative — real-world effort varies with how mature your policies, evidence, and access reviews already are, the size and complexity of your in-scope environment, and your chosen assessment path. For a precise, framework-specific quote, request the free ComplianceArmor Readiness Score: a Petronella Technology Group consultant reviews your environment against your target framework and returns a fixed-fee proposal with an exact delivery window. There is no obligation and no upsell pressure.
Disclaimer: This calculator is an estimating tool, not a binding quote or legal advice. Independent third-party assessments (C3PAO for CMMC Level 2, licensed CPA for SOC 2, PCI SSC-listed QSA for PCI-DSS Reports on Compliance) are charged separately by their own firms and are not included on either side of the comparison. Petronella Technology Group, Inc. delivers documentation and readiness services; we do not issue certifications.