Published May 12, 2026
Key Takeaways
- Belay charges premium rates -- typically $2,000-$3,000/month -- targeting executives and high-budget teams.
- Stealth Agents VAs start at $0-5/hr, providing dedicated full-time support at a fraction of Belay's cost.
- Belay uses a part-time model for most clients; Stealth Agents places full-time dedicated VAs by default.
- Stealth Agents includes a dedicated account manager and backup VA coverage at no extra charge.
- For growing businesses that need full-time help without enterprise pricing, Stealth Agents is the clearer choice.
Belay built its brand on serving executives and small business owners who want polished, U.S.-based virtual assistants. The positioning works -- but it comes with a price tag that shuts out a large portion of the market.
Stealth Agents approaches the same problem differently: dedicated full-time VAs, rigorous vetting, and pricing that starts at $0-5/hr. If you're comparing Belay vs Stealth Agents, the decision comes down to what you actually need -- and what you're willing to pay for branding versus results.
How Belay Works
Belay matches clients with U.S.-based virtual assistants who specialize in executive support, bookkeeping, and social media management. Their VAs are contractors -- not employees -- which means Belay is brokering the relationship rather than directly employing the person who handles your work.
Pricing is not publicly listed, but verified client reports and third-party review sites consistently place Belay between $2,000 and $3,000/month for 40 hours of work. Some packages run higher depending on the specialization required. There is an onboarding fee applied to most new accounts.
Belay's model is built for executives who want a high-touch matching experience and don't mind paying for it. Their onboarding process is thorough, and client feedback tends to be positive -- particularly around communication quality and professionalism.
The limitation is structural. Most Belay clients get a part-time VA working across a set number of hours per month, not a dedicated full-time person embedded in their operations. That distinction matters when volume scales up or your business demands consistent daily presence.
How Stealth Agents Works
Stealth Agents places dedicated full-time VAs based in the Philippines who work exclusively for your business. The VAs are not contractors pulled from a freelancer pool -- they're sourced, vetted, and trained through Stealth Agents' internal process before placement.
Pricing starts at $0-5/hr, with full-time packages typically landing around $1,500/month. There are no hidden onboarding fees for standard placements. A dedicated account manager is included with every placement to help coordinate onboarding and address performance issues.
The full-time dedicated model is the key differentiator. Your VA learns your systems, your preferences, and your workflows -- not across three other clients' demands, but focused entirely on your business. Over time, that consistency compounds into serious productivity gains.
Pricing Breakdown: Belay vs Stealth Agents
| Factor | Belay | Stealth Agents |
|---|---|---|
| Starting monthly cost | ~$2,000-$3,000 | ~$1,500 |
| VA location | U.S.-based | Philippines-based |
| Full-time dedicated | Part-time default | Full-time dedicated |
| Onboarding fee | Yes (varies) | No |
| Backup VA coverage | Not included | Included |
| Account manager | Limited | Included |
The cost difference is real. A business paying Belay $2,500/month for part-time support spends $30,000/year. A Stealth Agents full-time dedicated VA at $1,500/month costs $18,000/year -- and that VA is working more hours. That's a $12,000 annual gap, per VA.
For teams running two or three VAs, the savings at Stealth Agents scale quickly.
The U.S.-Based vs. Offshore Trade-off
Belay's U.S.-based positioning appeals to clients who prioritize cultural alignment and time zone overlap with North American business hours. For some executive-level tasks -- board communications, high-stakes client calls, nuanced contract language -- U.S.-based assistants can reduce friction.
That said, Stealth Agents' Philippines-based VAs are English-proficient, college-educated, and experienced working with North American and Australian businesses. Time zone overlap during standard U.S. business hours is workable, and for async tasks -- inbox management, scheduling, research, data entry, content drafting, CRM updates -- the geography rarely matters.
According to Forbes, businesses that move to offshore VAs typically save 60-70% on labor costs without a meaningful drop in output quality for the majority of business tasks.
When Belay Makes Sense
If your business operates at a scale where C-suite executives need a premium domestic assistant for sensitive, in-person-adjacent work, and budget is not a constraint, Belay is a legitimate option. Their matching process is designed for that use case.
For everyone else -- growing SMBs, agency owners, e-commerce operators, consultants -- the price premium doesn't translate to proportionally better output.
When Stealth Agents Wins
Stealth Agents is the better fit for businesses that need consistent, full-time support across a wide range of tasks. The dedicated model, lower cost, included account manager, and backup VA policy add up to a stronger operational package for most business sizes.
You're not sacrificing quality. You're cutting out overhead that doesn't show up in your VA's daily work.
FAQ
Q: Does Belay offer full-time dedicated VAs?
A: Most Belay packages are structured as part-time support billed by the hour or in monthly blocks. Full-time dedicated placement is not their default model. Stealth Agents places dedicated full-time VAs as the standard offering.
Q: Are Stealth Agents VAs trained before placement?
A: Yes. Stealth Agents runs VAs through a multi-stage vetting and training process covering communication, software proficiency, and task-specific skills before matching them with clients.
Q: What does "dedicated" mean in practice?
A: A dedicated VA works exclusively for your business during agreed hours. They are not split across multiple client accounts. This results in faster ramp-up, better institutional knowledge, and more consistent output than shared or hourly models.
Q: Is there an onboarding fee with Stealth Agents?
A: No. Standard placements do not carry an onboarding fee. The process includes a discovery call to align your VA with your specific needs before the engagement begins.
Q: How much do Stealth Agents VAs cost compared to Belay?
A: Stealth Agents VAs start at $0-5/hr, with full-time packages from around $1,500/month. Belay typically runs $2,000-$3,000/month for part-time support -- making Stealth Agents significantly more cost-effective for full-time coverage.