The 2026 Fractional Executive Rate Card
Visual hourly, monthly, and full-time benchmarks for six fractional leadership functions. Print it, save it, or use it before quoting your next engagement.
7,011unique listings ingested and reviewed
1,049deduplicated qualified historical listings
652companies represented
531listings with posted compensation
What these numbers mean: broad ingestion establishes market coverage, then the current qualification gate removes generic contract and part-time noise and canonical URLs remove weekly duplicates. Solid bands are Fractional Pulse’s published 2026 guide ranges. Outlined bands show the middle 80% of valid employer-posted ranges in their original hourly, monthly, or annual unit.
Role-by-role benchmark charts
Each track uses a consistent scale within its compensation type: $0–$500 hourly, $0–$50,000 monthly, and $0–$500,000 annual. Solid bands show the published guide; outlined bands show the historical employer-posted middle 80%.
Fractional CFO
Chief Financial Officer
Guide · hourly engagement$175 to $450
Observed · hourly posts (n=64)$53 to $134
Guide · monthly retainer$5,000 to $15,000
Observed · monthly posts (n=11)$1,750 to $8,000
Guide · full-time loaded cost$300,000 to $500,000
Observed · annual posts (n=64)$78,583 to $214,500
Historical evidence: 311 all-time qualified listings · 139 valid pay ranges (64 hourly, 11 monthly, 64 annual)
See the full CFO benchmark →
Fractional CMO
Chief Marketing Officer
Guide · hourly engagement$200 to $400
Observed · hourly posts (n=6)$44 to $100
Guide · monthly retainer$5,000 to $18,000
Observed · monthly posts (n=6)$3,000 to $10,000
Guide · full-time loaded cost$230,000 to $400,000
Observed · annual posts (n=5)$30,094 to $152,500
Historical evidence: 36 all-time qualified listings · 17 valid pay ranges (6 hourly, 6 monthly, 5 annual)
See the full CMO benchmark →
Fractional CTO
Chief Technology Officer
Guide · hourly engagement$175 to $400
Observed · hourly posts (n=5)$69 to $124
Guide · monthly retainer$7,000 to $18,000
Observed · monthly posts (n=3)$1,400 to $4,000
Guide · full-time loaded cost$250,000 to $400,000
Observed · annual posts (n=9)$66,500 to $158,000
Historical evidence: 31 all-time qualified listings · 17 valid pay ranges (5 hourly, 3 monthly, 9 annual)
See the full CTO benchmark →
Fractional COO
Chief Operating Officer
Guide · hourly engagement$150 to $300
Observed · hourly posts (n=12)$57 to $175
Guide · monthly retainer$6,000 to $15,000
Observed · monthly posts (n=3)$6,800 to $14,000
Guide · full-time loaded cost$200,000 to $350,000
Observed · annual posts (n=3)$95,458 to $161,110
Historical evidence: 31 all-time qualified listings · 18 valid pay ranges (12 hourly, 3 monthly, 3 annual)
See the full COO benchmark →
Fractional CRO
Chief Revenue Officer
Guide · hourly engagement$175 to $350
Guide · monthly retainer$7,000 to $15,000
Observed · monthly posts (n=2)$3,250 to $3,250
Guide · full-time loaded cost$300,000 to $500,000
Observed · annual posts (n=1)$300,000 to $300,000
Historical evidence: 16 all-time qualified listings · 3 valid pay ranges (0 hourly, 2 monthly, 1 annual)
See the full CRO benchmark →
Fractional CHRO
Chief Human Resources Officer
Guide · hourly engagement$125 to $275
Observed · hourly posts (n=1)$90 to $90
Guide · monthly retainer$4,000 to $12,000
Guide · full-time loaded cost$200,000 to $300,000
Historical evidence: 2 all-time qualified listings · 1 valid pay range (1 hourly, 0 monthly, 0 annual)
See the full CHRO benchmark →
How to use the card: hourly pricing fits advisory work or a tightly bounded first month. Monthly retainers fit ongoing operating ownership. Full-time loaded cost includes salary, benefits, and payroll taxes, so it is a comparison point rather than a fractional quote.
Stage, scope, specialization, urgency, and track record move an engagement within or beyond these bands. See the full salary benchmarks for company-stage detail and the factors that move each role’s rate.
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