How Much Should Your Company Budget for AI?

AI is becoming a normal business expense, but how much should a company actually budget? Looking across major business AI tools, around $20 per active user per month is a useful starting point for standard AI access. However, not everybody uses AI in the same way. Some employees may use it occasionally for writing, research or meetings, while others use AI throughout the day or work with more expensive models, agents and APIs.

Imagine a company with 20 employees using AI in different ways. Twelve standard users have a budget of around $20 each per month ($240), five frequent users have around $50 each ($250), and three power users have around $150 each ($450) for heavier AI and API usage. Together, the company would spend approximately $940 per month, or $11,280 per year. That equals around $47 per active AI user per month. This is an illustrative example rather than an industry benchmark, but it shows why companies should look beyond the price of one AI subscription when planning their AI budget.