Starbend Commercial Capital, a small-business funding service in Las Vegas, NV, walks Clark County, NV coffee shop owners through commercial espresso machine financing: the parts of a quote, which soft costs partners may or may not finance, lease versus loan, timing around health-district plan review, and a worked payment example.
Start with the quote, not the machine
A commercial espresso machine quote may show more than one number. A quote for a two- or three-group machine may list the machine, grinders, a water filtration system, a knock box and tamping station, installation, a plumbing and electrical hookup, and sometimes training and a service plan. Coffee machine financing decisions depend on which of those lines a partner will fund.
- Machine and grinders: hard equipment, financeable
- Water filtration: ask whether it can be financed with the machine
- Installation and hookups: soft costs; some partners include part
- Training and service plans: may be paid separately
- Delivery and taxes: check how each partner treats them
Lease or loan for an espresso machine
An espresso machine loan makes you the owner from day one, with the partner holding a lien until the last payment. A lease gives you use of the machine for a term, with options at the end to buy, return or upgrade. A shop that expects to upgrade within a few years may prefer a lease; a shop that expects to run the same machine for a decade may prefer to own it. Your accountant can explain how each is treated on your books.
Plan review before the order
If the machine is part of a new shop or a remodel, plumbing and electrical work may be part of a plan that the Southern Nevada Health District reviews. Ordering a financed machine before the plan is approved risks paying for equipment you cannot yet install. The SNHD food permit guide explains the sequence; a like-for-like swap in an operating shop may need less review, but confirm with the district.
A worked example (illustrative, not an offer)
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Three-group machine | $24,500 |
| Two grinders | $6,800 |
| Filtration system | $1,100 |
| Installation and hookups | $2,400 |
| Total quote | $34,800 |
| Financed (machine, grinders, filtration) | $32,400 |
| Monthly payment, 60 months at an annual rate of 11% (chosen for arithmetic) | About $704 |
If the shop pays the $2,400 installation from cash, the financed amount is $32,400. At 600 drinks a day over a 30-day month, the payment works out to about 4 cents a drink. A partner's written offer sets the real rate, term and what it covers.
What partners look at for a cafe
For an operating cafe, partners read bank and card statements, tax returns and the lease, and they compare the payment with daily sales. For a second shop, the first shop's record is the main evidence. The coffee shop page covers the wider cash cycle, and the equipment financing page explains soft costs and used equipment.
Counting Clark County, NV cafes
Census County Business Patterns places coffee shops in snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars: 615 employer locations in Clark County, NV in 2023, with 8,390 employees, and 24.4% with fewer than five employees (CBP 2023). Nonemployer Statistics, a separate program, counted 138 coffee-shop businesses without payroll in 2024. More local figures are on the Las Vegas, NV page, and other posts are on the blog.
By Starbend Commercial Capital · Updated