Independent research
How trades finance their equipment
We explain how the deals are actually structured and what they cost, so you can compare offers on the same terms instead of on the monthly payment somebody quoted you.
Free calculators
The comparisons the guides tell you to make, done for you. Nothing gated.
- CalculatorFactor rate to APR
A 1.25 factor over 12 months costs about 43% a year, not 25%. See the gap on your numbers.
- CalculatorLease vs loan total cost
The lease is usually cheaper monthly and often more expensive overall. Compare on total paid.
Financing
The money pages: how each structure works and what it costs.
- eligibility guideEquipment Financing With Bad Credit: What Actually Changes
What weak credit actually changes about an equipment finance application, which levers move a decline to an approval, and what a bad offer looks like.
- financing guideFood Truck Financing: The Build, The Truck, and the Gap Between
How food truck financing splits between the vehicle and the kitchen build, why that split decides who will lend, and what a first-time operator should expect.
- financing guideRestaurant Equipment Financing: How It Works and What It Costs
How restaurant equipment financing works, what lenders look for, and how leasing compares to a loan. Written for operators buying their first or fifth kitchen.
- comparisonRestaurant Equipment Leasing: When It Beats Buying
How restaurant equipment leases are structured, what a dollar buyout and a fair market value lease actually cost, and which equipment is worth leasing.
- eligibility guideRestaurant Equipment Loans: Qualifying and Comparing Offers
What restaurant equipment lenders require, how to compare a factor rate against an annual rate, and what to do when your first application is declined.
What it costs
What drives the number before you finance it.
- cost guideCommercial Kitchen Cost: The Build, the Equipment, and the Utilities Nobody Budgets
What a commercial kitchen costs to build and equip, why the same equipment list produces wildly different totals, and the utility work that blows budgets.
- cost guideRestaurant Startup Costs: What the Survey Data Actually Says
Median restaurant startup cost is $275,000 without land, but the average is $494,888. Why that gap matters more than either number, from survey data.
- cost guideWalk-In Cooler Cost: What Drives the Number
What a walk-in cooler actually costs to buy and install, which specification choices move the price most, and the installation costs operators forget to budget.