Short answer: PCI compliance cost depends on your merchant level. A small merchant filing a Self-Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ) may spend a few thousand dollars, while a Level 1 merchant needing a Qualified Security Assessor (QSA) audit can spend $15,000 to $50,000 or more with ASV scans, a penetration test, and tooling. Strac Comply automates PCI DSS v4.0 evidence and cardholder data discovery from $4,995 per year. This post breaks down every line item so you can compare apples to apples.
Worth clarifying, as this sits on Strac.io. These figures price Strac Comply: $4,995 for the platform, $8,995 with the SOC 2 audit included, and $12,995 with a penetration test plus Strac DLP for Slack, Google Workspace, and AI tools. Strac’s wider data-security platform, endpoint DLP, cloud DSPM, and MCP DLP, is licensed on its own, so $4,995 is not what Strac’s DLP or DSPM costs.
"PCI compliance cost" and "PCI DSS cost" scale with your merchant level and how much cardholder data you touch. Here is the full stack with typical market ranges and what each costs inside Strac Comply.
| Cost component | Typical market range | With Strac Comply |
| Self-Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ) or QSA audit | $0 (SAQ) to $50,000+ (QSA, Level 1) | Evidence and controls automated; QSA fee separate |
| Compliance automation platform | $7,500 to $25,000 / year | $4,995 / year (all 5 frameworks) |
| Approved Scanning Vendor (ASV) scans | $1,000 to $6,000 / year | Integrates with your scan results |
| Cardholder data discovery (PCI 12.5.2) | $5,000 to $20,000 (manual) | Included via Strac’s data layer |
| Penetration test | $4,000 to $15,000 | Included on $12,995 Security-First (or $3,995 add-on) |
| Typical first-year total | $10,000 to $80,000+ by level | $4,995 for automation + any required QSA/ASV fees |
For the control-by-control detail, see our PCI DSS compliance software guide.
PCI DSS does not have one price because it scales with your merchant level and how much cardholder data you touch. The line item that balloons on its own is finding and inventorying cardholder data for requirement 12.5.2. Because Strac is a data-security platform, Strac Comply discovers that data automatically instead of a consultant doing it by hand. See our PCI DSS compliance software guide.
From $4,995 a year, Strac Comply automates PCI DSS v4.0 from cardholder data discovery to evidence.
Strac Comply maps 100-plus automated checks to PCI DSS v4.0 requirements and, when one fails, tells you precisely what to change, so you are not interpreting the standard by hand.
Using the MCP server, you can ask an AI agent whether requirement 12.5.2 is passing and fix it in place, which is something Vanta, Drata, and Sprinto do not support.
Strac Comply reveals unmanaged apps and AI tools that could quietly expand your cardholder data environment, available on the $12,995 Security-First plan.
Partners and acquirers verify your status through the trust portal with one-click access, instead of waiting on emailed attestations.
vendor risk scoring is rule-based and reproducible, and it sits alongside your PCI evidence while the AI drafts questionnaire answers.
Because Strac is a data-security platform, Strac Comply automatically finds and inventories cardholder data for PCI DSS 12.5.2, the task that balloons when a consultant does it by hand.
Strac Comply publishes its full price ladder, no sales call required to see a number:
Every plan covers up to 10 employees (11 to 200 adds $1,995 a year) and has no per-framework fees. Platform is self-serve; Certified and Security-First are set up on a short call. Backed by Y Combinator.
Start free in minutes. Sign up at comply.strac.io and begin your 14-day free trial of the Platform plan. Self-serve, no credit card, no sales call.
Worth clarifying, as this sits on Strac.io. These figures price Strac Comply: $4,995 for the platform, $8,995 with the SOC 2 audit included, and $12,995 with a penetration test plus Strac DLP for Slack, Google Workspace, and AI tools. Strac’s wider data-security platform, endpoint DLP, cloud DSPM, and MCP DLP, is licensed on its own, so $4,995 is not what Strac’s DLP or DSPM costs.
Strac Comply: transparent pricing, no sales call.
Ready to start? Sign up at comply.strac.io and begin a 14-day free trial of the Platform plan, self-serve, no credit card, no sales call.
Want your real PCI number? Start a free Strac Comply trial, no credit card.
It depends on your merchant level. A small merchant on a SAQ might spend a few thousand dollars, while a Level 1 merchant needing a QSA audit can spend $15,000 to $50,000 or more with ASV scans, a penetration test, and tooling. Strac Comply automates PCI DSS v4.0 evidence and cardholder data discovery from $4,995 per year, with any required QSA or ASV fees separate.
Most smaller merchants can file a Self-Assessment Questionnaire. Level 1 merchants (roughly 6 million-plus transactions a year) need an onsite audit by a Qualified Security Assessor. Strac Comply produces the evidence either path needs.
Finding and inventorying cardholder data for requirement 12.5.2. Done by hand it runs $5,000 to $20,000. Strac Comply discovers it automatically through Strac's data layer, included from $4,995.
No. Strac Comply automates the evidence, control monitoring, and cardholder data discovery. If your level requires a QSA audit, that assessor fee is separate, but you walk in audit-ready.
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