Managed IT Services Statistics in Eastern Europe 2026: Market Growth, Trends & SMB Adoption

The managed IT services market continues to grow at a pace that’s hard to ignore. Globally, the market reached approximately $390 billion in 2025 (Mordor Intelligence) and is projected to exceed $510 billion by 2029, with a CAGR of 6.9% (MarketsandMarkets). In Central and Eastern Europe, IT and business services spending is forecast to grow at a 5.8% CAGR through 2027 (IDC). At IT-Premium, we’ve watched this market evolve from the inside for over 17 years.

The Global Managed Services Landscape

Market Size & Growth

  • Global managed services market: ~$390 billion in 2025, projected to reach $511 billion by 2029 (MarketsandMarkets)
  • Cloud managed services segment alone: $102 billion in 2025 (Gartner forecast)
  • Managed security services: $38–39 billion in 2025, expected to reach $67–77 billion by 2030–2031 (Mordor Intelligence)
  • Over 90% of companies globally employ some form of IT outsourcing (Teamstage)
  • 57% of companies cite cost reduction as the primary reason to outsource IT

What’s Driving Growth

Three forces are converging: cybersecurity complexity that exceeds in-house capabilities, chronic IT talent shortages, and the shift to hybrid/remote work models that require 24/7 infrastructure management. For Eastern Europe specifically, there’s a fourth driver — wartime resilience planning.

Eastern Europe: A Market in Transformation

Regional Market Overview

The Europe-wide managed services market is estimated at $59–96 billion in 2025, depending on the research firm and scope definition. Central and Eastern Europe represents a growing share, with IT and business services spending forecast at a 5.8% CAGR for 2023–2027 according to IDC — demonstrating steady resilience despite geopolitical turbulence.

Poland, the Czech Republic, and Romania lead the region’s IT services sector. Software and IT services spending across Eastern Europe is projected to grow by roughly 50% by 2025–2026, with market demand expected to nearly double in size by 2030.

Ukraine: Growth Through Adversity

Ukraine’s IT sector tells a counterintuitive story. While the war has created enormous challenges — IT service exports declined approximately 4–6% in 2024 to an estimated $6.3–6.5 billion (IT Research Ukraine 2024) — it has also accelerated digital transformation at an unprecedented pace:

  • 63% of Ukrainian companies have accelerated digitalization since the start of the full-scale war (Kyiv GovTech Centre)
  • 94% of Ukrainian companies now invest in cloud storage
  • Consumption of IaaS and PaaS cloud services in Ukraine grew more than fivefold between 2021 and 2025 (IT Ukraine Association)
  • 99% of surveyed businesses have incorporated digital transformation into their long-term strategies
  • The number of active IT companies in Ukraine increased by 5.9% in 2024, reaching over 2,100

At IT-Premium, we’ve seen this firsthand. Demand for managed backup, disaster recovery, and infrastructure management has grown significantly since 2022, driven by companies that previously handled IT in-house but realized they needed professional support during crisis conditions.

Poland & Czech Republic: Mature but Evolving

  • Poland’s IT sector continues to grow, with many firms expanding internationally — 51% of Ukrainian tech CEOs are also opening offices in Poland
  • The region is a key destination for nearshore managed services, particularly for Western European companies
  • Compliance-driven outsourcing (GDPR, NIS2) is becoming a major factor in new MSP contracts across EU-member Eastern European states

SMB Adoption: The Numbers That Matter

Why SMBs Choose Managed Services

Based on global industry surveys:

  • Cost reduction — 57% of companies (various industry surveys)
  • Access to expertise they can’t hire — a top driver for SMBs with under 100 employees
  • Cybersecurity concerns — managed security services hold a 24.5% share of the broader managed services market
  • Business continuity / disaster recovery — demand surged across Eastern Europe since 2022
  • Compliance requirements — NIS2 alone is reshaping the services landscape (see below)
  • Focus on core business — freeing internal staff from IT operations

The Cost Equation

For SMBs, managed IT services typically cost significantly less than maintaining equivalent in-house capabilities when you factor in salaries, training, tools, and turnover costs. The median salary for an IT specialist in Ukraine is approximately $2,590/month (IT Research Ukraine 2024), while equivalent managed services coverage can start considerably lower — especially for companies with fewer than 80 endpoints, where the cost advantage of MSPs is most pronounced.

What SMBs Are Outsourcing Most

Based on industry trends and our experience, the most commonly outsourced IT functions are:

  1. Email and collaboration (Microsoft 365 / Google Workspace management)
  2. Cybersecurity (endpoint protection, monitoring, incident response)
  3. Backup and disaster recovery
  4. Network infrastructure (firewalls, VPN, Wi-Fi)
  5. Help desk / end-user support
  6. Cloud infrastructure (AWS, Azure, GCP management)
  7. Compliance and audit support

1. AI-Augmented IT Management

AI is transforming how MSPs operate. Managed Detection and Response (MDR) services already capture 27% of the managed security services market and are growing at a 12.7% CAGR (Mordor Intelligence). AI-powered monitoring and anomaly detection are becoming standard tools for proactive IT management — not replacing human expertise, but amplifying it.

2. The NIS2 Effect

The EU’s NIS2 directive is creating a compliance wave across Eastern Europe. The directive’s scope now covers a broader range of sectors, and non-compliance can lead to fines of up to €10 million or 2% of global annual turnover. Countries like Romania, Hungary, and Slovakia have already transposed NIS2 into national law, while Poland and the Czech Republic are expected to follow in 2025–2026 (White & Case). Companies that previously managed IT casually now need documented security policies, incident response plans, and regular audits — driving significant new demand for managed services.

3. Cyber Insurance Requirements

Insurers are demanding professional IT management as a prerequisite for coverage. In 2025, approximately 62% of businesses carry cyber insurance, up from 49% in 2024 (JumpCloud). Policies increasingly require MFA, endpoint detection and response (EDR), encrypted backups, and documented incident response plans — all services that MSPs provide as standard.

4. Remote Work Normalization

The pandemic started it; the war in Ukraine accelerated it. With 63% of Ukrainian businesses accelerating digitalization and cloud adoption growing fivefold, the shift toward cloud-first managed services and zero-trust network architectures is now permanent across the region.

What This Means for Your Business

If you’re an SMB owner in Eastern Europe evaluating managed IT services, here’s what the data tells you:

You’re not alone. The vast majority of businesses are already outsourcing at least part of their IT. The question isn’t whether to use managed services — it’s which ones to prioritize.

Start with security and backup. These are the two areas where the gap between in-house and professional management is widest — and where the cost of getting it wrong is highest.

Look for regional expertise. Global MSPs offer scale, but regional providers understand local regulations, business culture, and — in Ukraine’s case — how to keep your business running during a power outage or infrastructure attack.

IT-Premium: 17 Years on the Ground

We’ve been providing managed IT services in Ukraine since 2007 — through economic crises, a revolution, and a full-scale war. Our experience comes from managing real infrastructure for real businesses every single day.

If these statistics have you thinking about your own IT strategy, get in touch. We’ll start with a free assessment of your current setup and show you exactly where managed services can make a difference.

Sources: MarketsandMarkets, Mordor Intelligence, IDC IT & Business Services Forecast, IT Research Ukraine 2024, IT Ukraine Association, Kyiv GovTech Centre, JumpCloud, White & Case NIS2 Analysis. All figures represent best available estimates as of Q1 2026.

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