Virtual executive assistant: cost and hiring
What a virtual executive assistant does, what one costs through a US service ($1,500 to $6,500 a month) or hired direct, and how to test one before you hire.
By Anyro, founder of StaffPickPublished 6 min read
Contents
- What does a virtual executive assistant do?
- Virtual or remote executive assistant: is there a difference?
- How much is a virtual executive assistant?
- How much does a virtual executive assistant make?
- Service, agency or direct hire
- What to look for in a remote executive assistant
- How to test a virtual executive assistant before you hire
- Give access without sharing your passwords
- The first 30 days
- Questions people ask
- Sources
A virtual executive assistant runs one busy person's inbox, calendar, travel and follow-ups from another location, and in October 2026 one cost $1,500 to $6,500 a month through a US service, or about $1,200 to $2,000 a month for an experienced full-time assistant hired direct in the Philippines. The right choice depends on how many hours you need, how much you want the service to manage, and how much time you'll spend on hiring. This guide covers the work, the prices with sources, a fair way to test candidates, and how to give access without handing over your passwords.
What does a virtual executive assistant do?
An executive assistant protects one person's time. A general virtual assistant does tasks; an executive assistant decides which tasks reach you at all. In practice that's:
| Area | Typical work | What good looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Inbox | Sort, draft replies, chase answers, unsubscribe | You only see what needs you, with a draft ready |
| Calendar | Book, move and protect time across time zones | No double bookings, buffer before big meetings |
| Meetings | Agendas, briefing notes, minutes, action lists | Follow-ups sent the same day |
| Travel | Flights, hotels, visas, itineraries | One page with everything, rebooked fast when plans change |
| Projects | Research, vendor quotes, event planning, CRM updates | Finished to a deadline without reminders |
| Personal admin | Renewals, bills, gifts, appointments | Nothing lapses |
The same person often becomes the link between you and your team or clients, which is why judgement and written English matter more here than in most remote roles.
Virtual or remote executive assistant: is there a difference?
No. "Virtual executive assistant", "executive virtual assistant" and "remote executive assistant" all describe the same job. Service pages and job posts use all three. What changes the price is not the name but the model: a managed service, an agency that places someone with you, or a person you hire yourself.
How much is a virtual executive assistant?
These are the published prices from executive assistant services in the US, checked on each company's own pricing page in October 2026. The plans include the assistant's pay.
| Service and plan | Price a month | Terms |
|---|---|---|
| Prialto, shared, about 55 hours | $1,500 to $1,600 | 90-day minimum, $250 setup fee |
| Prialto, full-time dedicated, 165+ hours | From $3,600 | 90-day minimum, $250 setup fee |
| Athena, one full-time assistant | $3,000 | 90-day commitment |
| Boldly, 40 hours | $2,600 | 100 hours $6,500 |
| Time Etc, 60 hours | $2,160 | 10 hours from $390 |
| MyOutDesk, placed assistant | From $1,988 | Agency placement |
Prialto waives its setup fee on a one-year agreement, and Boldly's 60 and 80-hour plans cost $3,900 and $5,200. Per hour, that's roughly $27 at Prialto's fractional plan, $36 at Time Etc and $65 at Boldly. Athena works out under $19 an hour over a full 160-hour month, but only if you need someone full time.
Rates for the work itself, without a service on top, are on our remote staff rates page, and the general virtual assistant cost guide breaks the same question down by country.
How much does a virtual executive assistant make?
What the assistant earns sets the floor for what you'll pay if you hire direct.
- In the US: the median pay for executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants was $76,590 a year in May 2025, against $48,310 for secretaries and administrative assistants overall (BLS). That is an employee salary, before payroll taxes and benefits.
- In the Philippines: OnlineJobs.ph's April 2026 salary guide puts experienced virtual assistants at about $1,200 to $2,000 a month full time, the closest band for executive-level support (OnlineJobs.ph). Entry-level assistants ask $480 to $900, but executive work needs the experience.
The gap between those two numbers is why so many founders hire a remote executive assistant abroad. The gap between the Philippine salary and the service prices above is what a service charges for recruiting, replacing and managing the assistant for you.
Service, agency or direct hire
| Model | Typical cost a month | Best when |
|---|---|---|
| Managed service | $1,500 to $6,500 | You want no hiring work at all |
| Agency placement | From about $2,000 | You want help hiring one person for the long term |
| Direct hire | About $1,200 to $2,000 (Philippines) | You can spend a few hours on interviews and want the lowest cost |
- Who picks the assistant: the service picks; an agency shortlists and you choose; for a direct hire you pick.
- If they leave: a service replaces them, an agency usually does, and a direct hire means hiring again.
- Minimum term: services often ask for 90 days; a direct hire has none unless you set one.
If you hire direct, you are the client of an independent contractor, so you'll need a written agreement and a way to pay them abroad. Our guide to paying overseas contractors covers the payment side, and the Philippines hiring guide covers hours and holidays.
What to look for in a remote executive assistant
- Written English at C1 or close to it. They'll write as you, to clients. Our guide to CEFR levels for jobs explains what each level can handle.
- Time zone overlap. At least three to four hours of your working day, more if they'll take calls. Check it with the time zone overlap tool.
- Calendar judgement. Ask how they'd fit a new meeting into a full week. Listen for questions about priority, not just a free slot.
- Discretion. They'll see contracts, salaries and personal email. Ask how they handled confidential information before.
- Tools you already use. Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, plus your CRM and project tool. Typing speed matters less than accuracy, but a slow typist will be slow at inbox work.
How to test a virtual executive assistant before you hire
A paid trial task tells you more than any interview. Three that take an hour or less:
- Inbox triage. Send 15 sample emails (a client complaint, a vendor invoice, a meeting request, newsletters, one that needs you personally). Ask them to sort them, draft three replies and list what they'd escalate.
- Scheduling puzzle. Give them a messy week and three meetings to fit across two time zones, with one that has to move. Look for clear notes on what they moved and why.
- Travel brief. A two-day trip with a meeting at each end. Look for a one-page itinerary, a backup option and the questions they asked first.
Follow with our virtual assistant interview questions, and use the job description template if you're posting the role. On StaffPick, every candidate's English level, typing score and role quiz are already on their profile, so the trial can be the first thing you pay for.
Give access without sharing your passwords
Use the delegation features your email and calendar already have, rather than a shared password:
- Gmail: add your assistant as a delegate. A delegate "can read, send, and delete emails" for you, their own address shows when they send, and they can't change your password or chat as you (Gmail Help).
- Outlook: add them as a delegate with only the folders they need, for example calendar editor and inbox reviewer (Microsoft Support).
- Google Calendar: share your calendar with "Make changes to events" so they can book for you (Google Calendar Help).
- Everything else: a shared vault in a password manager, so you can revoke access in one place if they leave.
The first 30 days
- Week 1: calendar only, plus a written list of your rules (meeting-free hours, who always gets through, how you like replies to sound).
- Week 2: inbox triage with drafts you approve before they're sent.
- Week 3: they send routine replies on their own; you review a sample at the end of each day.
- Week 4: add travel and one small project. Agree a weekly 20-minute check-in and keep it.
Questions people ask
What is a virtual executive assistant?
A virtual executive assistant supports one senior person, usually a founder or executive, from another location: inbox, calendar, travel, meeting prep and follow-ups, and the small projects that would otherwise eat that person's week.
How much is a virtual executive assistant?
US services charged $1,500 to $6,500 a month in October 2026 depending on hours: Prialto from $1,500 for about 55 hours, Athena $3,000 for a full-time assistant, Boldly $2,600 for 40 hours. Hired direct from the Philippines, an experienced assistant asks about $1,200 to $2,000 a month full time.
What is the difference between a virtual assistant and an executive assistant?
A virtual assistant often handles tasks for several people or a whole team. An executive assistant works for one senior person, manages their time and inbox, speaks for them with care, and is trusted with private information.
Is a remote executive assistant the same as a virtual executive assistant?
Yes. Both terms mean an executive assistant who works from somewhere else. Services tend to say virtual, and job posts for a dedicated hire tend to say remote, but the work is the same.
How many hours a week does a virtual executive assistant need?
Most founders start at 10 to 20 hours a week for inbox and calendar, then move to full time once travel, meeting notes and projects are handed over too. Services sell blocks from about 40 hours a month for that reason.
Sources
Each figure in this guide comes from one of these pages, checked on 29 Oct 2026. Prices and rules change, so open the source before you rely on a number.
- 1Boldly: pricing for dedicated remote executive assistants (checked 29 Oct 2026)boldly.com
- 2Prialto: pricing (checked 29 Oct 2026)prialto.com
- 3Athena: pricing (checked 29 Oct 2026)athena.com
- 4Time Etc: plans and pricing (US, checked Oct 2026)timeetc.com
- 5MyOutDesk: pricing (checked Oct 2026)myoutdesk.com
- 6US Bureau of Labor Statistics: secretaries and administrative assistants, including executive assistants (pay, May 2025)bls.gov
- 7OnlineJobs.ph: virtual assistant salaries in the Philippines (salary guide, last updated April 2026)blog.onlinejobs.ph
- 8Gmail Help: delegate and collaborate on emailsupport.google.com
- 9Microsoft Support: allow someone to manage your mail and calendar in Outlooksupport.microsoft.com
- 10Google Calendar Help: share your calendarsupport.google.com