Fractional CFO or an interim CFO?
The short answer: a fractional CFO brings the judgement for part of a week; an interim CFO brings something different that is often confused with it. Here is what each one actually owns, what they cost on the same basis, and when to pick the other one.
What an interim CFO actually is
A chief financial officer holding the seat full-time for a fixed stretch, usually 3 to 9 months, to cover a departure, a transaction or a crisis. Also sold as a temporary CFO. The seat is the same; the shape is 5 days a week with an end date.
What each one owns
| A fractional CFO | An interim CFO |
|---|---|
| The seat for part of a week, with no end date assumed | Every working day, which is what a crisis or a transaction actually consumes |
| Judgement on cash, pricing and the raise, at the pace the company runs | A finance team that needs a manager present, not a visitor |
| A relationship that lasts years and ends when the function needs a full-time hire | A defined exit: the handover to the permanent hire is part of the job |
| Two or three companies at once, which keeps the perspective current | Speed to start, measured in days, because the whole model is built for the gap |
What neither of them does
Neither is a permanent CFO, and both should be telling you when to hire one. An interim who extends quarter after quarter, or a fractional engagement that has quietly become four days a week, is a permanent hire you have not made yet.
How each one fails
The fractional CFO: Being asked to cover a departure. Two days a week cannot run a finance team whose boss just left, close the audit and hold a sale process together; the fractional model assumes the function is stable enough to be led part-time.
An interim CFO: Being bought for a problem that was never five days wide. An interim on a full-time rate for a company with two days of finance leadership in it is the most expensive way to get a board pack, and the agency margin on top makes it worse.
What they cost, on the same basis
A fractional CFO charges £800 to £1,500 a day, and most engagements run one to three days a week. A day rate for 5 days a week, often through an interim agency that adds a margin, so a month of interim cover costs several times a month of two fractional days. The monthly and annual arithmetic for the fractional side, against a full-time equivalent, is on the cost page for this seat.
Pick an interim CFO when
- Your CFO has left and there is a team, an audit or a transaction that cannot wait for a search
- A sale, a restructuring or a refinancing will consume somebody full-time for a defined period
- You need the finance function managed daily until the permanent hire starts, with a handover built in
We would rather say that plainly than win an engagement that was the wrong shape. Nobody pays us to list on the bench, so there is nothing in it for us either way.
When you want both
In sequence, often. An interim covers the gap full-time; once the dust settles and the permanent seat is filled, or the workload falls back to two days, a fractional CFO takes it on. Running both at once is rare and usually means the interim should have been a fractional engagement from the start.
Common questions
Is a fractional CFO cheaper than an interim CFO?
On a like-for-like basis it usually is, because you buy the days you need rather than all of them. A fractional CFO runs £800 to £1,500 a day, most often one to three days a week. A day rate for 5 days a week, often through an interim agency that adds a margin, so a month of interim cover costs several times a month of two fractional days. But cheaper is the wrong question if the work genuinely needs the other one.
When should I pick an interim CFO instead?
Your CFO has left and there is a team, an audit or a transaction that cannot wait for a search A sale, a restructuring or a refinancing will consume somebody full-time for a defined period You need the finance function managed daily until the permanent hire starts, with a handover built in
Can I have both?
In sequence, often. An interim covers the gap full-time; once the dust settles and the permanent seat is filled, or the workload falls back to two days, a fractional CFO takes it on. Running both at once is rare and usually means the interim should have been a fractional engagement from the start.
Should a startup hire an interim CFO or a fractional one?
Almost always fractional. A startup rarely has five days a week of finance leadership in it, and an interim is priced for five. The exception is a live transaction, a sale, a down round or a restructuring, where somebody has to be in the building every day for a defined stretch. Outside that, two days a week of a fractional CFO covers a raise, a board and a runway problem at a fraction of the monthly cost.
Where do companies find an interim CFO?
Interim agencies and interim CFO firms supply most of them, at a day rate plus the agency margin, with a start measured in days. Fractional CFOs are found on a bench like this one, with the day rate on the profile and no margin on top. The interim management page sets out when the full-time shape is worth paying for.