Commercial
Retainer
A recurring fee that reserves capacity rather than buying a deliverable.
Definition
A monthly agreement holding an agreed amount of a team's time for you, whether or not you use all of it. What you buy is availability and continuity; what you give up is paying only for output.
Why it matters
It suits work where priorities change faster than a scope can be written, and it is poor value when your needs are genuinely occasional. Check what happens to unused time: rolling it over for a limited period is normal, and quietly losing it every month is worth negotiating.
Related
Read next
Fixed price vs time and materials
Two ways to price work, suited to different certainty.
Read the definition ›Dedicated team
A team held exclusively for you, month to month.
Read the definition ›Rate card
The provider's published prices by role and seniority.
Read the definition ›Ramp-down
Ending or shrinking an engagement in a planned way.
Read the definition ›Next step
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