The coffee vending machine payback calculator turns a location into numbers you can defend in a business plan. Instead of guessing whether a machine will earn its keep, you enter the variables that drive revenue and cost, and the tool returns monthly turnover, gross profit, payback period and the share owed to the location. It works for both routes CoffeeVar offers: buying a Jetinno JL300 outright, or placing it as a rental partnership where the location invests nothing and takes a cut of sales.
Six inputs do most of the work. Daily cups is the number of paid drinks you expect to sell on an average working day. Sale price is your average revenue per cup, which sits in the range of 80–120 depending on menu and location. Cup cost covers coffee, milk, sugar, cocoa, the cup itself and stirrers, and normally lands in the range of 12–20. Working days sets how many days per month the location is open and busy. Machine price in USD is the purchase figure, 7,200, converted at the exchange rate you enter so the result matches your local currency. Location share is the percentage of turnover paid to the site owner, typically 20% under a rental partnership and zero when you buy and keep the machine on your own premises. Change any one value and the payback moves, which is exactly why the calculator exists.
Result
- Monthly turnover
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- Monthly gross profit when buying
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- Payback period
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- Monthly location share under rental
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- Yearly income under rental
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This is an estimate: electricity, water and refilling costs depend on the location. Under the rental model the machine, ingredients and service are covered by CoffeeVar and the location only receives its share.
Get an offer for my locationHow to read the result
- Monthly turnover is daily cups multiplied by sale price and working days. It is the top line the location will care about, because their share is calculated from it.
- Gross profit subtracts cup cost from turnover. This is the money available to cover the machine, service, ingredients logistics and, in a rental partnership, the location share.
- Payback divides the machine price by monthly gross profit after the location share. It tells you how many months of operation return the investment.
- Rental share shows what the site earns every month without spending anything. In a rental partnership this is the number that convinces a cafe, hotel or office manager to sign.
Read the payback together with the share, not on its own. A longer payback can still be the better deal if the location keeps the machine full and the site owner is motivated by a healthy monthly cheque.
Typical figures from CoffeeVar practice
Across the locations we serve, a Jetinno JL300 sells between 30–60 cups per day. At a sale price within 80–120 and a cup cost within 12–20, that produces monthly turnover of around 90,000. The purchase price of the machine is 7,200, and the location share in a rental partnership is 20%. On that basis the payback period usually falls within 6–12. Offices with predictable staff traffic cluster at the lower end of the cup range but payback quickly because working days are high and the location share is often zero. Transport hubs and hospitals sit at the higher end of the cup range, with a share to the site but a shorter payback in months.
What affects the payback
- Traffic is the single biggest lever. Footfall that passes the machine at the right moment matters more than total visitors to the building.
- Price has a ceiling set by nearby cafes and the alternatives your customers already accept. Raising price lifts turnover but can reduce cups.
- Menu drives average spend. Adding milk drinks, hot chocolate and a second coffee option raises the average sale price without raising cup cost proportionally.
- Location type decides the rhythm of demand. Offices peak in the morning and after lunch, hospitals run all day, factories depend on shift changes.
Buying vs rental partnership
- Buying the machine: you pay 7,200, keep all turnover, pay no location share, and own the asset. Best when you control the site or have capital to deploy.
- Rental partnership: zero investment from the location, CoffeeVar supplies the machine and service, the site receives 20% of sales. Best for cafes, hotels and offices that want income without risk.