IT Support Response Times: What SLAs Should Australian Businesses Expect?
When you call your MSP’s help desk because your email is down, you want to know when someone’s going to pick up the phone. You don’t want to hear “we’ll get back to you when we can”. You want an SLA — a Service Level Agreement that commits to a specific response time.
But here’s the problem: MSPs use SLAs differently, and the language is inconsistent. When an MSP says “1-hour response time”, do they mean someone will start working on your issue in 1 hour, or that they’ll actually have it fixed in 1 hour? The difference matters.
We’re going to walk through what reasonable SLAs actually look like in Australia right now, what the priority levels mean, why response time and resolution time are not the same thing, and what to look for when an MSP promises you an SLA.
Priority Levels: P1, P2, P3, P4
Most MSPs use a four-tier priority system. Understanding what each means will help you figure out if the SLA you’re looking at is actually useful.
P1: Critical / Down
Your business can’t operate. Email is down. All servers are offline. Core application is unavailable. Multiple users can’t work.
Typical response time: 30 minutes to 1 hour for Australian MSPs. 24/7 support.
Typical resolution time: 4 hours. This is a target, not a guarantee. Some issues take longer.
Who works on it: Senior technician immediately. Escalated within 15 minutes if not resolved.
What you should expect: Phone call or text within 30 minutes. Someone working on the issue actively. Regular updates. If they can’t fix it, they escalate or engage a vendor.
Red flag: If your MSP doesn’t have 24/7 support or if they charge extra for P1 support, that’s a problem. P1 is not negotiable.
P2: High / Severely Degraded
Multiple users are affected, but not everyone. A shared drive is slow. A team’s printer is down. A subset of users can’t access a service.
Typical response time: 1–2 hours during business hours. 2–4 hours outside business hours.
Typical resolution time: 4–8 hours.
Who works on it: Mid-level technician. Escalated within 1 hour if not resolved.
What you should expect: Email confirmation within 30 minutes. Assigned technician within 1 hour. Regular updates every 1–2 hours.
P3: Medium / Minor Impact
A single user is affected, or there’s a workaround. One person can’t print. A non-critical service is running slow. Something’s not working as expected but the business can operate.
Typical response time: 4–8 hours during business hours. 12–24 hours outside business hours.
Typical resolution time: 24–48 hours.
Who works on it: Junior technician or support queue.
P4: Low / Cosmetic / Enhancement Request
Nice-to-have fixes. Software request. User preference issue. Doesn’t affect operations.
Typical response time: No committed SLA. Best effort. Could be handled within a week or month.
Typical resolution time: No committed timeline. Addressed when capacity allows.
Response Time vs Resolution Time
This is critical. Most people don’t understand the difference, and MSPs count on that confusion.
Response time: How long until someone from your MSP acknowledges the issue. Usually this means a phone call, email, or ticket assignment. The technician has your ticket and knows about it.
Resolution time: How long until the issue is actually fixed.
A good SLA commits to both. A bad one commits only to response. Example: “1-hour response, 4-hour resolution” for P1 issues means: someone will contact you within 1 hour, and the issue will be fixed within 4 hours.
Red flag example: “1-hour response for P1” with no resolution time mentioned. Technically they could respond, say “we’re looking into it”, then leave you hanging for 12 hours.
On-Site vs Remote Support
MSPs handle most issues remotely now (remote access tools, VPN, phone support). On-site visits happen for hardware failures, network problems, or when remote troubleshooting fails.
What you should know: Remote support is faster. On-site is not guaranteed same-day in Australia. If you’re in a major city (Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane), expect same-day or next-day on-site. Regional areas might be 2–3 days. Get this in writing.
On-site calls typically get their own SLA. Example: “P1 on-site response: 4 hours in metro areas, 24 hours in regional areas.”
On-site hours are usually business hours only. Unless you pay extra for after-hours, don’t expect an on-site technician at 10 PM.
What Reasonable SLAs Actually Look Like
Here’s an example of a solid, realistic MSP SLA for Australian small businesses.
| Priority | Response Time | Resolution Target | Support Hours |
| P1 | 30 min | 4 hours | 24/7 |
| P2 | 1 hour | 8 hours | 24/7 (response), business hours (resolution) |
| P3 | 4 hours | 24 hours | Business hours (9am–5pm AEST) |
| P4 | Best effort | Best effort | Business hours |
This is reasonable. It commits to real response and resolution times for critical issues, realistic times for medium issues, and best-effort for non-urgent work.
Red Flags in MSP SLAs
Response time only, no resolution target. If they only commit to “we’ll call you”, that’s not good enough. Push for resolution times too.
P1 response time over 2 hours. That’s too slow. By the time they call, you’ve already lost two hours of productivity.
No 24/7 support for P1 issues. If your business operates 9–5 and you never have downtime outside those hours, that’s fine. But if there’s any risk of after-hours issues, you need 24/7 P1 support.
Different SLA tiers depending on contract level. Some MSPs have “Tier 1” customers with 1-hour response and “Tier 2” with 4-hour response. That’s okay, but know which tier you’re on.
No SLA for P2 outside business hours. If you operate outside 9–5, your P2 issues don’t disappear at 5 PM.
SLA has lots of exclusions. Some MSPs say the SLA doesn’t apply if it’s a vendor issue, or your internet is down, or the issue is due to user error. Reasonable exclusions are fine. Overly broad exclusions are a red flag.
How to Choose an SLA That Matches Your Needs
Not every business needs the same SLA. A consultancy where everyone works from home needs different support than a manufacturing plant with machines on the floor.
Small office, 9–5 operation: You don’t need 24/7 support. A reasonable SLA is 2-hour response for P1 during business hours, next-business-day for after-hours P1. P2 can be 4 hours. P3 can be next business day.
Always-on operation (retail, hospitality, customer service): You need 24/7 support and aggressive SLAs. P1 should be 30-minute response, 1–2 hour resolution target. P2 should be 1-hour response, 4-hour resolution target.
Professional services (accounting, legal, consulting): You probably need business-hours plus some after-hours coverage. A good compromise is 24/7 P1 response (they call you after hours but may not resolve until business hours), and 1-hour response for P2 during business hours.
Response times are only meaningful if they’re backed by SLAs with teeth. TechAssist’s IT support services include guaranteed response times with financial penalties if we miss them.
Related reading: support levels | SLA comparison | proactive services
Regional business: Adjust for on-site travel time. A 4-hour response target might mean “4 hours to start remote troubleshooting” and “same-day on-site response in metro, next-business-day in regional.”
Next Steps
Before you sign any MSP contract, get the SLA in writing. Make sure you understand what response and resolution times actually mean. And make sure the SLA matches your actual needs — not the MSP’s standard offering.
