Analysis and reporting on license cost per ticket --- microsoft vs support load for managed service providers.
Analysis and reporting on license cost per ticket --- microsoft vs support load for managed service providers.
The data covers the full scope of Autotask PSA records relevant to this analysis, broken down by the key dimensions your team needs for day-to-day decisions and client reporting.
Who should use this: Service desk managers, dispatch leads, and operations teams
How often: Daily for queue management, weekly for trend analysis, monthly for capacity planning
Analysis and reporting on license cost per ticket --- microsoft vs support load for managed service providers.
Across the portfolio, each Microsoft 365 license generates an average of $8.40 in monthly support cost. The spread between best and worst is significant: Apex IT Solutions runs at just $2.10 per license while Horizon MSP sits at $24.80. That 12x difference points to structural issues in how certain clients consume support resources relative to their license footprint.
All clients ranked by effective support cost per Microsoft 365 license, lowest to highest
EVALUATE
ADDCOLUMNS(
SUMMARIZECOLUMNS(
BI_Microsoft_365_Licenses[company_name],
"Total Licenses", COUNTROWS(BI_Microsoft_365_Licenses),
"Active Licenses", CALCULATE(COUNTROWS(BI_Microsoft_365_Licenses), BI_Microsoft_365_Licenses[status] = "Active"),
"Tickets", CALCULATE(COUNTROWS(BI_Autotask_Tickets), BI_Autotask_Tickets[queue_name] = "Microsoft 365")
),
"Cost Per License", DIVIDE([Tickets], [Total Licenses]),
"Utilization", DIVIDE([Active Licenses], [Total Licenses])
)
ORDER BY [Cost Per License] DESCSide-by-side comparison of licenses held and M365 tickets generated per client. Watch for clients with few licenses but many tickets.
Horizon MSP stands out immediately. With only 85 licenses but 170 tickets, they generate 2 tickets per license per month. That is 6x the portfolio average. Compare that to Apex IT, which holds 280 licenses and generates just 48 tickets. The problem at Horizon is not about license volume; it is about support consumption that is completely out of proportion.
EVALUATE
SUMMARIZECOLUMNS(
BI_Microsoft_365_Licenses[company_name],
"License Count", COUNTROWS(BI_Microsoft_365_Licenses),
"Ticket Count", CALCULATE(
COUNTROWS(BI_Autotask_Tickets),
BI_Autotask_Tickets[queue_name] = "Microsoft 365"
),
"Cost Per License", DIVIDE(
CALCULATE(COUNTROWS(BI_Autotask_Tickets), BI_Autotask_Tickets[queue_name] = "Microsoft 365"),
COUNTROWS(BI_Microsoft_365_Licenses)
)
)
ORDER BY [Cost Per License] DESCPortfolio-wide average cost per license over time, showing the direction of support efficiency
The portfolio average has dropped steadily from $11.20 in Q4 2024 to $8.40 in Q1 2026, a 25% improvement over six quarters. This trend reflects a combination of better onboarding practices, improved documentation, and the offboarding of two high-cost clients in mid-2025. The current trajectory suggests the portfolio could reach $7.50 by Q3 2026 if the improvement rate holds.
Which license types generate disproportionate support load compared to their share of the license base
Business Standard is the outlier. It represents 28% of the license base but generates 38% of all M365-related tickets. E3 licenses show a similar pattern: 14% of licenses, 24% of tickets. Business Basic and Business Premium both pull below their weight in ticket generation, and E5 is roughly proportional. The implication is that Business Standard and E3 users are either less technically proficient or rely on more complex features that generate more support requests.
EVALUATE
ADDCOLUMNS(
SUMMARIZECOLUMNS(
BI_Microsoft_365_Licenses[license_name],
"Total", COUNTROWS(BI_Microsoft_365_Licenses),
"Tickets", CALCULATE(
COUNTROWS(BI_Autotask_Tickets),
BI_Autotask_Tickets[queue_name] = "Microsoft 365"
)
),
"Ticket Share", DIVIDE([Tickets], CALCULATE(COUNTROWS(BI_Autotask_Tickets), BI_Autotask_Tickets[queue_name] = "Microsoft 365")),
"License Share", DIVIDE([Total], COUNTROWS(BI_Microsoft_365_Licenses))
)
ORDER BY [Ticket Share] DESCThe 4 clients where combined license and support costs exceed the value returned, based on estimated support cost of $45/ticket
| Client | Licenses | License Cost/Mo | Tickets/Mo | Cost/Ticket | Support Cost/Mo | Net Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Horizon MSP | 85 | $1,445 | 170 | $24.80 | $7,650 | -$6,205/mo |
| TechVista Inc | 92 | $1,564 | 138 | $22.40 | $6,210 | -$4,646/mo |
| Ironclad Services | 110 | $1,870 | 132 | $19.60 | $5,940 | -$4,070/mo |
| DataShield Pro | 125 | $2,125 | 118 | $17.20 | $5,310 | -$3,185/mo |
These four clients collectively lose the business an estimated $18,106 per month in support cost overruns. Horizon MSP is the most extreme case: 85 licenses generating 170 tickets means every single license produces 2 support tickets per month. At $45 per ticket, that is $7,650 in monthly support costs against $1,445 in license revenue. The contract needs to be restructured or the root cause of those tickets needs to be found and fixed.
The portfolio-wide cost per license has improved 25% over six quarters, dropping from $11.20 to $8.40. That is meaningful progress, but the averages mask a polarized client base. Three clients sit below $5.00 and essentially run themselves. Four clients sit above $17.00 and are actively losing the business money every month.
Horizon MSP is the most expensive client by a wide margin. At $24.80 per license, they cost nearly 12x more than Apex IT Solutions ($2.10). The root cause is clear in the data: Horizon has just 85 licenses but generates 170 tickets per month. That ratio suggests either a poorly configured M365 environment, undertrained users, or recurring issues that the help desk resolves without fixing the underlying problem. A single root-cause investigation at Horizon could save more than $6,000 per month.
Business Standard licenses are a portfolio-wide concern. They make up 28% of the license base but account for 38% of all M365-related tickets. E3 shows a similar disproportion (14% of licenses, 24% of tickets). This pattern suggests that users on these license tiers are either working with more complex tooling or receiving less onboarding support. A targeted training program for Business Standard and E3 users could reduce ticket volume across the board.
Four clients are cash-negative when you factor in both license revenue and support costs. Together, they represent a combined monthly loss of over $18,000. In a contract renewal cycle, this data gives you a concrete basis for adjusting pricing, adding a support surcharge, or restructuring the scope of included support hours.
5 priorities based on the findings above
Horizon generates 170 tickets from 85 licenses. Pull the last 90 days of tickets for this client and categorize by issue type. Look for recurring problems (password resets, Outlook connectivity, Teams permissions) that point to a configuration or training gap. Fixing the top 3 recurring issues could cut their ticket volume in half and save over $3,000 per month.
Horizon MSP, TechVista Inc, Ironclad Services, and DataShield Pro collectively cost $18,106 per month more than they bring in. Prepare a data-backed pricing proposal for each client that either increases the per-license rate, adds a support tier surcharge, or caps included support hours. Present this data to the account managers at least 60 days before each renewal date.
Business Standard generates 38% of tickets from 28% of licenses. E3 generates 24% from 14%. Build a short onboarding module covering the top 5 ticket categories for these license types. Deliver it as a 30-minute webinar or a self-service knowledge base. Even a 15% reduction in tickets from these tiers would save meaningful support hours across the portfolio.
Four clients currently sit above $15.00 per license. Configure a Power BI alert that flags any client crossing this threshold so the service delivery team can intervene before the numbers get worse. Early detection at $15 is much cheaper than discovering a $25 problem at contract renewal.
These three clients run at under $5.00 per license. Study what makes them different: their M365 configuration, their user training baseline, their ticket patterns. Document those patterns and apply them as a standard onboarding checklist for new clients. If you can get every new client to start at the $5.00 level instead of the portfolio average, the cost savings compound quickly.
The cost per license divides the total estimated support cost (tickets multiplied by the average cost per ticket) by the number of active Microsoft 365 licenses for each client. This report uses $45 per ticket as the estimated support cost, based on typical MSP blended hourly rates and average ticket resolution time. You can adjust this figure in the DAX queries to match your actual cost structure.
This is a cross-source report that pulls Microsoft 365 license data (license counts, types, status per company) and Autotask PSA ticket data (ticket volumes filtered to the Microsoft 365 queue). Proxuma Power BI links these two data sets by company name, allowing the AI to calculate the relationship between license footprint and support consumption.
Business Standard and E3 licenses include more complex features (desktop Office apps, advanced compliance, Exchange Online Plan 2) that generate more support requests. Users on these tiers tend to interact with more M365 services, which increases the surface area for issues. Business Basic users primarily work in the browser and have fewer configuration-related problems.
Monthly is ideal for operational tracking. It gives you enough data to spot trends without being overwhelmed by noise. Run it quarterly when preparing for contract renewals or pricing reviews. If you have just onboarded a large client, run it weekly for the first month to catch any support cost spikes early.
Yes. Connect Proxuma Power BI to your Microsoft 365 tenant and Autotask PSA instance, add an AI tool (Claude, ChatGPT, or Copilot) via MCP, and ask the same question. The AI writes the DAX queries, runs them against your real data, and produces a report like this in under fifteen minutes.
Connect Proxuma Power BI to your PSA, RMM, and M365 environment, use an MCP-compatible AI to ask questions, and generate custom reports - in minutes, not days.
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