How to Choose the Right Vending Machine for Your Office Size

Choosing a tea and coffee vending machine for your office isn’t about picking the biggest or most expensive model. The right machine depends on how many cups your office drinks, what your team likes to drink, and where you’ll put it. Get it right and tea is always ready. However, get it wrong and you’ll either have queues and constant refilling, or pay for drink options nobody uses.

As the Tea & Coffee Vending Service provider in Nepal since 2017, we’ve installed more than 1,000 machines across the country. Here’s the simple five-step guide we use to match each office with the right machine.

Step 1: Count cups, not people

Most Nepali offices drink tea at least twice a day, plus cups for visitors and meetings. A simple rule of thumb:

Cups per day ≈ number of staff × 2.5

• 10 people: about 25 cups a day
• 30 people: about 75 cups a day
• 100 people: about 250 cups a day

Also, add 20 to 30% if you have a lot of client visits or meetings. Speed is rarely the problem, because our machines serve about 5 cups a minute. Instead, what changes with office size is how many drink options you need, how you supply water, and how much premix you’ll use.

To plan monthly supplies, multiply your daily cups by your working days. For example, a 30-person office working 26 days a month needs premix and paper cups for roughly 1,950 servings.

Step 2: Decide how many drink options you need

• 2 options (tea and coffee): enough for small teams with simple tastes.
• 3 to 4 canisters (6 to 8 options): masala tea, cardamom tea, lemon tea, coffee and hot chocolate. Good for mid-size offices where people like different drinks.
• 10 options or bean-to-cup: for large offices, reception areas and management floors that want a wider menu or fresh espresso for guests.

Not sure? First, ask your team what they actually drink for a week. If almost everyone has milk tea, a simple 2-option machine will serve them well. However, if your office is split between tea drinkers, coffee drinkers and people who prefer hot chocolate, more options keep everyone at the machine instead of heading out to the tea shop.

Step 3: Choose your water connection

• Bubble-top jar: the machine draws from a 20-litre water jar. No plumbing needed, so it’s ideal for small offices. One jar makes roughly 150 to 200 cups, depending on cup size.
• Pump: the machine connects to your water via a pump. Best for busy offices, since nobody has to change jars every day.

As a guide, an office drinking more than 100 cups a day would be changing jars every day or two, so a pump connection makes more sense. Whichever you choose, use clean, filtered drinking water. As a result, you get better-tasting tea and a machine that runs smoothly.

Step 4: Check your space and power

• Space: most models are about 25 to 30 cm wide and 63 cm tall, so they fit on a small table or stand.
• Power: you need a 15-amp socket nearby. Most of our machines work across a wide voltage range, so normal voltage fluctuation isn’t a problem.
• Electricity use: about 1 unit a day.
• Location: place it where people already gather, such as the pantry or near a meeting room. In large offices, one machine per floor saves a lot of walking and waiting.

Step 5: Decide whether to rent or buy

Renting means no big upfront cost. Our monthly rental plans are based on how many drinks you want:

• Basic (2 drinks + hot water): NPR 1,300 a month
• Standard (4 drinks): NPR 1,500 a month
• Premium (6 drinks): NPR 1,700 a month
• Platinum (10 drinks): NPR 1,900 a month

Every plan includes free delivery, installation and on-site training for your staff, plus maintenance by our technicians. On the other hand, buying makes sense if you plan to use the machine for many years. Either way, the biggest running cost is premix, not the machine. See our cost comparison of vending machines vs office tea staff for the full numbers.

Example: a vending machine for a 40-person office

Here’s how the five steps work for a typical 40-person office with regular client meetings:

1. Cups: 40 × 2.5 = 100 cups, plus about 20% for visitors, so roughly 120 cups a day.
2. Options: the team is split between milk tea, masala tea and coffee, so 4 to 6 drinks is the right range.
3. Water: at 120 cups a day, a pipeline or pump connection saves daily jar changes.
4. Space: one machine in the pantry near the meeting room is enough for a single floor.
5. Best fit: a Minifresh 3300 or Minifresh 3200 GD on the Standard or Premium plan.

Quick guide: which vending machine for your office size?

Common mistakes when choosing an office vending machine

• Buying too many options: 10 drinks sounds great, but if your team only drinks milk tea, you’re paying for canisters you’ll never fill.
• Plan your water supply: a pump connection keeps tea flowing all day in a busy office, with no jars to change.
• One machine for a multi-floor office: people won’t walk two floors for tea, and they’ll go out to a tea shop instead.
• Forgetting visitors: reception and meeting rooms can add 20 to 30% to your daily cups.

FAQs: choosing a vending machine for your office

Not sure which vending machine is right for your office?

Tell us your office size and what your team likes to drink, and we’ll recommend the right machine. Call 9862218700 or request a free quote.