NIS2 compliance cost 2026
How much does NIS2 compliance cost?
Published 2026 planning ranges put NIS2 compliance at €25,000 to €120,000 in the first year for an important entity with 50 to 250 staff, then €10,000 to €45,000 a year. An essential entity with 250+ staff plans €150,000 to €500,000 or more in year one.[1]
The German government's own estimate is about €86,000 a year for an average important entity and about €215,000 a year for a particularly important one, plus a one-off amount of the same size.[2] There is no NIS2 certificate to buy and no registration fee.[1]
· 8 sources
By company size
NIS2 cost by company size
Two independent 2026 sources give ranges by headcount. They are planning ranges, not quotes. The biggest driver in both is how much security work is already in place.
| Entity and size | First year | Ongoing per year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Important entity, 50-100 staff, basics in place | €25,000-€60,000 | €10,000-€25,000 | [1] |
| Important entity, 100-250 staff, moderate gaps | €50,000-€120,000 | €20,000-€45,000 | [1] |
| Essential entity, 250+ staff or high-criticality sector | €150,000-€500,000+ | €60,000-€200,000+ | [1] |
| Digital infrastructure or managed service provider | Add 20-40% to the matching row | Same uplift | [1] |
| Small SME, 50 staff, good baseline (Germany) | €28,000-€45,000 | €18,000-€30,000 | [3] |
| Mid SME, 100 staff, manufacturing (Germany) | €51,000-€92,000 | €25,000-€45,000 | [3] |
| Larger SME, 200 staff, weak baseline (Germany) | €75,000-€150,000 | €40,000-€70,000 | [3] |
Below 50 staff, most companies are outside NIS2 unless they run a special service. In Germany the line is at least 50 employees, or more than €10 million turnover and more than €10 million balance sheet total, in a covered sector.[4] Check your own case with the NIS2 scope checker.
Official estimate
What the German government expects companies to spend
The draft NIS2 implementation act (Drucksache 21/1501) puts the extra cost for German business at about €2.3 billion a year, plus about €2.2 billion once.[2] It assumes about 8,250 particularly important and 21,600 important entities.[2] The per-entity effort below comes from the same document. The euro totals are our arithmetic at the €56.08 hourly rate the document uses.
| Entity type | Staff hours per year | Material cost per year | Total per year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Particularly important (besonders wichtig) | 2,752 h | €60,700 | about €215,000 | [2] |
| Important (wichtig), average | 1,100 h | €24,300 | about €86,000 | [2] |
| Important, large company (70% of the effort above) | about €150,000 | [2] | ||
| Important, medium-sized company (35%) | about €75,000 | [2] |
The BSI says it now supervises around 29,500 entities under NIS2, up from about 4,500 before.[7]
Cost components
What the money is spent on
Every NIS2 budget has the same lines. The ranges below are from the sources named in each row.
| Component | Typical range | Source |
|---|---|---|
| External consultant day rate | €1,000-€2,000 per day; 10-80 days, so €10,000-€150,000 | [1] |
| Consultant day rate, German average (BDU fee study 2025) | €1,300 per day; a full project is 40-80 days | [3] |
| Gap assessment against Article 21 | €5,000-€25,000 once | [1] |
| Policies, procedures and registers | €3,000-€40,000 once | [1] |
| Internal effort | 1,100 h a year (important) to 2,752 h a year (particularly important) | [2] |
| Security officer, in-house (Germany) | €80,000-€120,000 a year incl. employer costs | [3] |
| Security officer, external (Germany) | €1,400-€2,500 a month | [3] |
| Technical controls (MFA, backup, logging, vulnerability management) | €10,000-€150,000+ a year | [1] |
| Detection and response (SIEM or MDR) | €12,000-€120,000 a year | [1] |
| Penetration testing | €5,000-€40,000 a year | [1] |
| Management body training | €1,000-€10,000 a year | [1] |
| Compliance software (Matproof, published price) | €290 or €690 a month | [8] |
| Registration with the authority | No fee; in Germany within three months in the BSI portal | [1][5] |
| Supervisory audit, essential entities, only when ordered | €10,000-€50,000 | [1] |
Ongoing cost for important entities is about 30-40% of the first-year spend, according to Governance Docs.[1] An existing ISO 27001 ISMS removes roughly a third to a half of the first-year spend, which the same source describes as typical experience, not measured data.[1]
The other side
What non-compliance costs
In Germany, fines reach up to €10 million or 2% of worldwide turnover for particularly important entities, and up to €7 million or 1.4% for important entities. The percentage cap applies to companies with more than €500 million turnover.[6]
Where Matproof fits
Matproof is compliance software, not a consultancy or an audit firm. It covers the software line in the table: NIS2 measures, policies, risk register, supplier checks and evidence in one place, with persistent customer data stored in the EU.
Starter costs €290 a month (up to 50 employees, 1 framework), Professional €690 a month (up to 250 employees, up to 3 frameworks, for example NIS2, ISO 27001 and DORA). Yearly billing is 10 times the monthly price.[8] The goal is audit-ready in about 4 weeks.
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FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How much does NIS2 compliance cost?
Published 2026 planning ranges are €25,000 to €120,000 in the first year for an important entity with 50 to 250 staff, and €150,000 to €500,000 or more for an essential entity with 250+ staff (Governance Docs, 12 September 2026). The German government estimates about €86,000 a year for an average important entity and about €215,000 a year for a particularly important one, plus a one-off amount of the same size (Bundestag Drucksache 21/1501).
How much does NIS2 cost a company with 50 employees?
For a company with about 50 staff and a good baseline, NIS2Compass gives €28,000 to €45,000 in the first year and €18,000 to €30,000 a year after that (11 October 2026). Governance Docs gives €25,000 to €60,000 for 50 to 100 staff with basics in place. Companies under 50 staff are usually outside NIS2 unless they run a special service such as a DNS service or a trust service.
Is there a NIS2 certification or registration fee?
No. NIS2 has no certificate, and registration with the national authority has no fee. In Germany, covered entities must register in the BSI portal within three months after they first fall under the law (§ 33 BSIG). An ISO 27001 certificate is optional and has its own audit cost.
What do NIS2 consultants cost?
Implementation consultants charge about €1,000 to €2,000 a day, and a project runs 10 to 80 days (Governance Docs). The German BDU fee study 2025 gives an average of €1,300 a day, and a full project of 40 to 80 days, as cited by NIS2Compass.
What are the ongoing NIS2 costs after the first year?
For important entities the ongoing cost is about 30 to 40 percent of the first-year spend (Governance Docs). The German government expects about €86,000 a year for an average important entity and about €215,000 a year for a particularly important one, because the measures, training and supplier checks repeat every year.
What are the NIS2 fines in Germany?
Up to €10 million or 2 percent of worldwide turnover for particularly important entities, and up to €7 million or 1.4 percent for important entities. The percentage caps apply when the company's turnover is above €500 million (§ 65 BSIG).
What does Matproof cost for NIS2?
Matproof Starter costs €290 a month for up to 50 employees and 1 framework. Professional costs €690 a month for up to 250 employees and up to 3 frameworks. Yearly billing is 10 times the monthly price. There is a 14-day trial; a card is required and nothing is charged today. Matproof is software; it does not audit or certify.
Sources
Every source was read on 28 October 2026.
- Governance Docs, NIS2 Compliance Cost in 2026: The Complete Breakdown, 12 Sept 2026https://governancedocs.com/nis2-compliance-cost/
- Deutscher Bundestag, Drucksache 21/1501, Gesetzentwurf der Bundesregierung zur Umsetzung der NIS-2-Richtlinie, 8 Sept 2025, section E and pp. 109-111https://dserver.bundestag.de/btd/21/015/2101501.pdf
- NIS2Compass, NIS2-Compliance: Was kostet die Umsetzung wirklich?, Stand 11 Oct 2026https://nis2compass.de/de/blog/nis2-compliance-kosten
- BSI-Gesetz (BSIG) § 28, gesetze-im-internet.dehttps://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/bsig_2025/__28.html
- BSI-Gesetz (BSIG) § 33, registration dutyhttps://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/bsig_2025/__33.html
- BSI-Gesetz (BSIG) § 65, fineshttps://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/bsig_2025/__65.html
- BSI press release, NIS-2-Umsetzungsgesetz ab morgen in Kraft, 5 Dec 2025https://www.bsi.bund.de/DE/Service-Navi/Presse/Pressemitteilungen/Presse2025/251205_NIS-2-Umsetzungsgesetz_in_Kraft.html
- Matproof pricinghttps://matproof.com/pricing
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