Hiring a security guard is often the go-to solution when property owners and managers want to establish a visible security presence. It feels straightforward: someone on-site, in uniform, watching over the premises. But while the concept might be simple, the financial reality isn’t. If you’re only factoring in hourly wages when budgeting for security guards, you’re missing the full picture, and likely overpaying in the process.
Live security coverage has traditionally been treated as a fixed cost, but that assumption is increasingly flawed. In 2025, the economics of physical security have changed. Between rising wages, labor shortages, and the limits of human performance, it’s time to take a harder look at what hiring a guard is really costing you.
The Base Costs are More Than Just an Hourly Wage
Most property owners begin their security planning with a simple calculation: how much does it cost to have a guard on-site 24/7? While base hourly rates typically fall between $18 and $30 depending on region and risk level, that only scratches the surface.
For one, those hourly rates increase with night shifts, weekends, holidays, and high-crime zones. On top of wages, you often need to budget for employer-side taxes, uniforms, radios or communication gear, and sometimes even a company vehicle if patrols are required. If you go through a third-party security firm, markups are layered on top of base compensation. And if you want multiple guards or round-the-clock coverage, multiply those costs accordingly.
A single guard working 24/7 (split across three shifts) could run you $13,000 to $18,000 a month, and that doesn’t include back-end costs like administration, scheduling, or liability insurance.
Hidden Costs You Probably Didn’t Budget For
Turnover and Training
Security guard turnover is notoriously high. Many guards treat it as a stop-gap job, not a long-term career. That means you’re often footing the bill for frequent onboarding and training.
Sick Days and No-Shows
Like any employee, guards get sick, take vacation, or simply fail to show up. Unless you have a backup ready (and are paying extra for that availability), your site goes uncovered.
Oversight and Management
Unless you hire a supervisor or contract a firm, the burden of scheduling, time tracking, and performance monitoring falls on your team. That means more admin hours, more friction, and more hidden labor costs.
Risk Exposure
If a guard makes a bad call or fails to notice a threat, you’re liable. There’s no video record to verify claims or disputes, and response is reactive by nature. In the worst-case scenario, a guard’s mistake becomes your legal liability.
All of this eats into your bottom line, and none of it shows up on the initial quote.
Physical Limitations of Human Coverage
Limited Field of Vision
Guards can only see what’s directly in front of them. A single person patrolling a large property leaves multiple areas unwatched at any given time.
Fatigue and Distraction
Overnight shifts, monotony, and distraction reduce alertness. Even the best guard can zone out after hours on duty.
Lack of Real-Time Documentation
A guard might witness an incident, but without video or audio evidence, you’re relying on handwritten logs and human recall, which are fallible and often incomplete.
Slow or Incomplete Response
Unless the guard is at the scene of the incident when it happens, response is delayed. In many cases, they’re calling law enforcement after the fact.
When property owners evaluate their options, these human limits are often ignored, until something goes wrong.
The Gap Between Presence and Performance
It’s common to assume that having a visible guard deters crime. That’s not always the case. Visibility helps, but only if the guard is in the right place at the right time. Criminals notice patterns. If your guard circles the same areas at the same intervals, it doesn’t take long for bad actors to exploit gaps.
Beyond deterrence, the performance of a guard hinges on their training, experience, and motivation. You can hire someone to wear a uniform, but that doesn’t mean they’re a high-functioning operator. Real-time judgment under stress, communication with emergency services, and detailed incident reporting all vary widely based on the individual’s capabilities.
The question becomes: are you paying for true protection, or just the appearance of it?
Why More Properties Are Moving Away From Guards
Rising costs and performance concerns are only part of the equation. Insurance providers are now incentivizing properties to install video surveillance systems due to their reliability, documentation, and deterrent effect. This shift has accelerated as insurers realize that cameras with verification capabilities reduce false alarms and support faster law enforcement response.
At the same time, hiring has become harder. Security firms are struggling to find and retain qualified candidates, and property managers are seeing increased gaps in coverage. Labor costs continue to rise while ROI drops.
AI and remote monitoring solutions offer a response. With live agents watching high-definition feeds, backed by analytics and proactive deterrents like audio intervention, the model shifts from passive observation to active prevention. And unlike guards, these systems don’t take breaks, call in sick, or fall asleep on the job.
Rethinking the True Cost of “Security”
What you’re really buying with a security service isn’t just a person on-site. You’re buying coverage, reliability, deterrence, documentation, and fast response. Once you break that down, it becomes clear that a guard alone rarely delivers on all fronts.
Human guards can still have value in certain high-touch or concierge scenarios, but as a general-purpose deterrent or investigative tool, they’re often underpowered and overpriced. For any property with repeat coverage needs, wide camera visibility, or liability risk exposure, it’s worth reevaluating what you’re paying for and what you’re actually getting in return.
Ready to Reevaluate? There’s a Smarter Option
If you’re looking for a more scalable, cost-efficient, and high-coverage solution, live video monitoring is built to address all the gaps traditional guard services leave behind. From faster incident detection to better documentation and 24/7 reliability, this isn’t just a substitute, it’s an upgrade.
Want to see how much you could save or how a hybrid model might work for your property?
