When considering renting a kitchen, you will want to make sure you get the best deal. You will need to understand all the costs that go into renting a kitchen, including the set up expenses as well as the ongoing running costs.
To help you make an informed decision, we look at the factors that affect commercial kitchen rental costs and how prices differ across major UK cities.
How Much Does It Cost To Rent A Commercial Kitchen In The UK?
In the UK you should expect to pay, on average, between £1500-3000 a month for a commercial kitchen rental. Commercial kitchen costs vary widely depending on a number of factors, including the location, the kitchen size, the available amenities and the utilities you’ll need to set up.
What Factors Affect Commercial Kitchen Rental Prices?
There are many factors that affect a commercial kitchen rental’s price. Size is often the most significant factor, along with the location. If this is your first kitchen rental, you’ll also have to pay for equipment and other set up costs.
When thinking about which commercial kitchen to rent, consider the following factors and how they affect the cost of your kitchen:
Kitchen Size
The size of your commercial kitchen space will have a significant impact on price. You will need a large space if you are serving in a restaurant and a smaller space if you are preparing cold foods that don’t require cooking.
200 square ft is a reasonable size for a standard commercial kitchen. Standard commercial kitchens will be a good size for a small food business or an established brand expanding into a new location, offering enough room for prep, cooking and storage.
If your food business requires large amounts of storage, of either raw ingredients or cooked meals in fridges/freezers, you’ll need to bear this in mind. Storage can take up a lot of space in a kitchen. Some rental kitchen providers offer cold storage outside your kitchen unit on the same premises, which can help free up space for prep and cooking.
Area Popularity & Accessibility
How popular a location is with consumers will impact the cost of renting a kitchen in that location. High traffic areas like high streets and city centres will be more expensive than suburbs and residential areas as real estate in urban centres is limited and highly sought after.
For food businesses serving customers in-store, such as cafes and restaurants, being near foot traffic is important. Kitchen spaces in these locations will come at a higher price as the market for these kitchens is competitive.
Kitchens located away from high foot traffic areas will be cheaper. For food businesses that don’t need to serve customers at their location, such as caterers or those selling produce at food markets, kitchens can be rented at a lower cost. Yes, you will spend more time on travel and the transportation of goods but on balance it will still be a saving for your business.
Depending on your food business, being away from central areas may even be an advantage. For example, residential parts of towns and cities tend to be high food order areas so it is beneficial for rental delivery kitchens to be located nearby.
Delivery Software
Food delivery can be a complicated business as there are many delivery apps and numerous order streams to keep on top of. This diversity of order streams is key for many small and local food delivery businesses but it does present issues as the apps all work independently. If you choose to use custom software to integrate orders from various delivery apps, this will be an additional cost for your food business.
Foodstars kitchens come with technology that can help make delivery logistics easier. Our delivery software allows you to connect all delivery apps, manage orders, track deliveries and view data in one easy-to-use programme. As a free extra for renting a kitchen, this kind of built-in software can make all the difference to the profit margins of a fledgling food business or a small business looking to grow.
Kitchen Equipment
Having to purchase all the necessary equipment to set up your kitchen will be a significant cost. For food businesses renting their first commercial kitchen, this is an unavoidable necessity. Some kitchen providers include equipment in their rental kitchens, which can help you get started. However, these are often shared kitchen spaces and equipment may not be ideal for your food business needs.
For established food businesses moving into a new or larger commercial kitchen, bringing your own equipment will help you get set up faster. If you are scaling up your business you may need to purchase additional equipment, such as stand mixers or bigger freezers, to meet the increased demand.
Utilities: Water, Gas & Electric
Utilities will be an ongoing cost for your food business and depending on your commercial kitchen rental, you may need to pay to get connections to these utilities set up. We’re talking about cables and pipes run within your commercial kitchen, not just setting up an account with your utilities provider.
If you are renting an existing commercial kitchen, one that has been used by a food business before, there will be power sockets, sinks, taps and vents etc available to use. But if you are using your kitchen differently to the previous occupants, you may need to move them to align with your desired kitchen layout.
When thinking about the cost of a rental kitchen, you’ll need to consider both the cost of the space and the work you’ll need to do to get it ready. A cheap space that has no water, ventilation or gas lines may turn out to be more costly than a reasonably priced kitchen with these utilities already set up.
Commercial kitchen providers like Foodstars offer commercial kitchen units that have utilities already set up and ready to use. These are up to code and will make it cheaper and easier to get your kitchen started.
Cleaning & Refuse Removal
Cleaning and refuse removal is a small part of the overall cost of a commercial kitchen but it is worth keeping in mind when deciding between a private rental and a licensed kitchen from a provider.
For your private commercial kitchen rental, you’ll need to pay staff or cleaners to maintain health and safety standards. With a Foodstars commercial kitchen, common areas will be cleaned and maintained by our premises staff – though you’ll be responsible for the cleaning of your own unit.
With a private commercial kitchen, you will need to arrange for waste removal, including recycling and food waste, as well as manage proper waste removal within your kitchen. Commercial kitchen providers will have waste removal and management built in, which can save you time and money on setting up. Foodstars has allocated disposal areas, including for food waste, recycling and oils, in all our facilities.
Insurance
There are several types of insurance your food business will need to have, although not all will be tied to your commercial kitchen rental specifically. If you are a new food business or moving into a new space, make sure to find what insurance you need.
You will typically need at least three types of insurance as a food business:
- Public liability insurance
- Product liability insurance
- Business interruption insurance
No matter whether you are renting a private commercial kitchen or a unit from a provider, you will need to arrange your own insurance.
Commercial Kitchen Costs By Location
Location will impact your commercial kitchen rental costs. Below, we indicate what you can expect to pay for a kitchen across the UK.
How Much Does It Cost To Rent A Commercial Kitchen In London?
Renting a commercial kitchen in London will cost between £1500 and £3000 a month for a small (150 sq ft) to medium-sized (400 sq ft) space.
The UK’s capital is a competitive market, particularly in central London areas. Costs for commercial kitchens increase greatly depending on where in the city your kitchen is, but there are still good deals to be found in well located areas adjacent to key food sales areas.
Foodstars has a number of London locations, which makes it easy to choose a commercial kitchen to suit your requirements. Foodstars locations provide quick transportation of goods to central London so you can offer food delivery to residential and business areas and catering services across the breadth of Greater London.
How Much Does It Cost To Rent A Commercial Kitchen In Manchester?
Renting a commercial kitchen in Manchester will cost between £1000 and £2800 a month for a small (150 sq ft) to medium-sized (400 sq ft) space.
Manchester has a bustling and growing food scene. It is a much smaller city than London but the thriving food and drink industry makes it a popular location for brands. This means commercial kitchen rental costs are only marginally cheaper than in the capital.
How Much Does It Cost To Rent A Commercial Kitchen In Birmingham?
Renting a commercial kitchen in Birmingham will cost between £900 and £2400 a month for a small (150 sq ft) to medium-sized (400 sq ft) space.
The Good Food Guide named Birmingham the ‘most exciting food destination’ in 2022, ahead of London. Though it has a similar population to Manchester, Birmingham is actually a larger city, meaning it is primed for growth. For now, Birmingham commercial kitchens are cheaper to rent than those in Manchester or London but if its food scene continues to develop this could change.
How Much Does It Cost To Rent A Commercial Kitchen In Leeds?
Renting a commercial kitchen in Leeds will cost between £750 and £2000 a month for a small (150 sq ft) to medium-sized (400 sq ft) space.
Leeds is a city that prides itself on supporting local produce. Some consider it a food hub of the north, though it hasn’t quite attained the foodie reputation of other cities. As such, costs for commercial kitchen rentals are lower than in other cities.