For a typical small or mid-size defense contractor, total CMMC Level 2 cost lands between $40,000 and $150,000+: roughly $30,000-$60,000 for the C3PAO assessment itself, with the rest in remediation, tooling and documentation — heavily dependent on scoping.
The single biggest cost lever is the enclave: assessing a 15-user CUI enclave instead of a 300-user enterprise can cut total cost by half or more.
Where the money goes
- Gap assessment and SSP/POA&M documentation
- Technical remediation: MFA, FIPS encryption, logging, backups
- Platform costs: GCC High or FedRAMP Moderate tools (PreVeil, Exostar)
- C3PAO assessment fees and annual affirmations
Full breakdown with real numbers: CMMC Certification Cost in 2026, or build your own estimate in the interactive cost planner.
The other side of the cost question: non-compliance is priced too. DOJ settlements for misrepresented cybersecurity now run from $507,144 (LOGZONE, 2026) to $11.3M (Guidehouse, 2024), plus treble damages and per-invoice penalties. See the full settlement list and our False Claims Act briefing.