Vending, explained for the people who own the space.

Getting a Machine · Start here

How to get a vending machine for my business: the 3 ways compared

A free machine still costs you floor space, an outlet and a signature, so here is how to make sure that trade pays.

Owners Desk 14 min read

Inside this guide

Quick answers

The questions owners ask first, answered in a sentence. Each links to the full guide.

  1. Is a vending machine free for my business?

    Most businesses get a vending machine free: a vending company, called the operator, installs, stocks and repairs it and pays you a share of sales.

  2. What commission should I get?

    Vending machine commission, the share of sales a vending company pays the business hosting its machine, runs 0–20% of gross sales on snack and drink machines in one program’s published tiers.

  3. What should I ask a vending company?

    Choose a vending company on five things you can check before you sign: how often it restocks, how it reports and pays your commission, how fast it fixes a dead machine, what insurance it carries, and how easily you can end the agreement.

  4. How much space does it need?

    A 4-inch gap behind refrigerated models and a 30-by-48-inch clear space in front bring each to about 20 square feet, twice its cabinet.

  5. How do I get rid of a machine?

    To remove a vending machine from your business, find the agreement’s notice and removal clauses, log the missed service, and send dated written notice the way the agreement requires, ideally by certified mail.

Getting a Machine

What a machine is worth to your business, what commission to expect, which machines suit your floor and when owning beats hosting.

From the Owners Desk12 guides

All Getting a Machine guides

Also in Getting a Machine

Rules & Contracts

What a machine asks of your building and your paperwork: the vending company, the agreement, power, ADA, space, liability and tax.

From the Facilities Desk10 guides

All Rules & Contracts guides

Also in Rules & Contracts

Locators by State

Who places machines in your state, what venues there are paid, and what the agreement commits you to before you sign it.

From the Owners Desk51 guides

All Locators by State guides

Also in Locators by State

Owner’s toolkit

Checklists to print or screenshot before you call a vending company. Each link opens the guide at its list.

  1. 14 checks

    Vet a vending company

    From: How to choose a vending company for your business: a host’s scorecard

  2. 12 checks

    Mark up the agreement

    In the agreement before you sign it

    From: Vending service agreement: the 9 clauses to check before you sign

  3. 10 checks

    Measure the spot

    Before you agree to a spot

    From: Vending machine dimensions: cabinet sizes and the floor space you give up

  4. 9 checks

    Check the outlet and circuit

    Before the electrician arrives

    From: Vending machine electrical requirements: outlet, circuit and GFCI rules

  5. 7 checks

    Run the ADA tape-measure check

    Before a vending machine goes in

    From: Vending machine ADA requirements: reach, floor space and who is responsible

  6. 10 checks

    Collect the insurance paperwork

    Before a vending machine is installed

    From: Vending machine liability: who pays when a machine injures someone?

  7. 8 checks

    Document a service problem

    This week

    From: Vending company not restocking? Service standards to demand and enforce

  8. 10 checks

    Plan a machine’s removal

    Before the machine leaves

    From: How to remove a vending machine from your business, step by step

About Spare Corner

Founded 2026 · 2 desks · Edited by Don Harrison

Spare Corner explains vending for the people who own the space: what a machine is worth to a business, what the contract should say and which rules apply to the host.

Every figure and rule in a guide is linked to its source, a primary one such as a code, statute or agency rule where it exists, and the editor checks each guide against those sources before it is published.