Commercial kitchen equipment is expensive. A full refit of a pub kitchen runs £25,000 easily, and a combi oven on its own can be £8,000–£15,000 before you’ve fitted it. Very few new operators have that cash sitting in the current account, which is why roughly half the kit we ship goes out on some form of finance — and why this question comes up on almost every quote.

Here’s the straight version of how finance works on kitchen equipment, what it costs, and when it actually makes sense.

The three ways to pay

There are basically three options, and everything else is a variant:

  1. Pay outright. Cheapest overall. You own it immediately. The money’s gone from the current account, and if you need it back, you’re selling kit on the second-hand market for 30% of what you paid.
  2. Hire purchase (HP). Fixed monthly payments over two to five years, at the end of which you own the equipment outright. The interest rate is fixed at the start, so you always know what you’ll pay. Tax treatment: you can claim capital allowances on the full value up front, which for most businesses is a meaningful cashflow benefit.
  3. Equipment lease (sometimes called “lease rental”). Fixed monthly payments over two to five years, at the end of which you either hand the kit back or pay a small buyout to keep it. Payments are treated as a tax-deductible operating cost rather than a capital purchase, which makes your P&L look cleaner. Usually slightly more expensive over the full term than HP, but the cashflow shape is softer.

Most operators we deal with go HP if they plan to keep the kit long-term, or lease if they’re hedging against closure or moving site within a few years.

What it actually costs

The calculator on the finance page uses 17.12% APR, which sounds eye-watering until you compare it to other business borrowing. Unsecured business loans from high-street banks run 11–15% APR at the moment, and come with arrangement fees and personal guarantees. Credit cards sit at 25–35%. Business overdrafts are 18–22%. Asset finance at 17% with no arrangement fees, and the equipment itself as security, is honestly reasonable.

For a £10,000 combi oven on a 5-year HP at 17.12% APR, you’ll pay roughly £250 a month. Total repayment is around £15,000. That means you’re paying £5,000 for the privilege of having the oven now rather than in five years. Whether that’s worth it depends entirely on how much revenue the oven generates.

Rule of thumb: if the piece of kit opens up a menu you couldn’t otherwise run, or lets you serve twice as many covers, it’s a no-brainer. If it’s a like-for-like replacement of something that still works, you can probably wait and pay outright.

What lenders look at

Asset finance underwriting is friendlier than most business borrowing. The equipment itself is security, so lenders are mainly checking that:

  • Your business is trading (usually 6+ months, 12+ is better)
  • You’ve filed at least one set of accounts, or have management accounts if you’re newer
  • There are no county court judgements against the company
  • The directors have clean personal credit

For a business trading under twelve months, expect the lender to ask for a personal guarantee from one or more directors. That means if the business fails, you’re personally liable for the remaining payments. Worth knowing before you sign.

When finance makes sense

Buy outright if you’ve got the cash, the kit is a like-for-like replacement, and the money isn’t needed for stock, staff or marketing.

Finance it if it’s new equipment opening up capacity you don’t currently have, cashflow is tight, or the tax treatment works in your favour.

Don’t finance it if you’re already carrying heavy borrowing, the kit is a luxury rather than a revenue-driver, or you’re not confident the business will be trading in three years’ time.

Everything on the site can go on finance, and the team can usually turn around an indicative quote within a working day. Ask for one when you ask for a product quote — it costs nothing and tells you the real monthly figure before you commit.