Commercial floor cleaning machine pricing

A quality commercial floor cleaning machine can be expensive, but you may not realize how it could help you save money. See what other BuyerZone users have paid for floor cleaning machines.

Looking at your total cost of ownership (TCO) can determine if a commercial floor cleaning machine will pay for itself over time with labor savings. Here's an example of TCO calculations for a 20,000 sq. ft. auditorium floor that gets scrubbed once a week:

If you pay cleaning staff $12 per hour and the job takes seven hours to complete, you'll pay $84 each time. That's $4,368 annually for labor costs (before benefits and perks).

If you buy a $4,000 walk-behind scrubber with a 20,000 sq. ft. coverage rating, you'll pay $12 each time for the one-hour job. Your labor costs drop to $624 annually, saving you $3,744 – almost the entire cost of the scrubber in just the first year.

Extrapolate this amount over several years, or factor in multiple cleanings each week, and you'll get an even clearer idea of the money you can save over the life of the machine.

Commercial floor cleaning machine price ranges
Commercial floor cleaning machine prices can vary greatly depending on the application, power, and coverage area. As a rule of thumb, you can find most machines grouped by the three types of operation we covered in floor cleaning machine basics:

1. Hand-operated machines — $500 to $2,000
2. Walk-behind machines — $3,000 to $10,000
3. Ride-on machines — $8,000 to $100,000

The features you choose will push you towards one end of the pricing spectrum or the other. For example, typical battery-powered machines can cost twice as much as plug-in equipment, and even more if the machine features a low-maintenance gel battery. Internal combustion (IC) engines for outdoor use cost 100% to 200% more than battery-powered indoor riders.

To protect your equipment from repair costs, you can add a preventative maintenance agreement for $500 to $1,000 per year. With a maintenance agreement in place, vendors will inspect and service the equipment a few times each year. This helps protect your investment and ensures you don't lose access to your equipment at critical times.

Also, make sure your purchase includes delivery and installation. A commercial floor cleaning machine can weigh hundreds or thousands of pounds, so if delivery is priced separately, your costs could jump.

Specific commercial floor cleaning machine prices
With dozens of different floor cleaning machines available, it's difficult to pinpoint exact pricing data for each. The segments described above will give you a general idea, but here are some price ranges for the most common floor cleaning machines:

• Scrubbers — $400 to $50,000 — The low end includes "motor on a stick" scrubbers, while the high end consists of the most powerful ride-on scrubbers.
• Polishers — $1,000 to $5,000
• Sweepers — $300 to $13,000
• Vacuums — $250 to $25,000. The low end includes backpack vacuums, wet/dry vacs, and standard uprights; wide-area and ride-on vacuums tend toward the high end.
• Carpet extractors — $2,000 to $4,000
• Carpet dryers — $800 to $3,000 — Heated models fall closer to the high end.
• Floor restoration machines — $800 to $4,000 — Standard floor strippers and sanders fall in the lower range, with critical filter vacuums and touchless cleaning systems making up the higher end.

Regardless what you pay for your commercial floor cleaning machine, make sure it's an "out of the box solution," that is, that it includes all the supplies you need to get started the day it arrives. You may think you got a good deal on a scrubber or carpet extractor, but lose out on the savings if you have to shop separately for batteries, chargers, brushes, and other accessories.

Is it worth buying used machines?
Most dealers only offer new equipment. If you're looking for a pre-owned machine to save money, you'll have to search online or check classified ads. While you'll pay less, you won't get the same level of service that a dealer provides. Before you buy used, research the item carefully and ask the seller a lot of questions about its performance.

Rather than deal with the uncertainty of a used machine, dealers can offer brand new equipment through a lease. Leasing allows you to spread your payments out so you get the best technology without breaking your budget or worrying about the equipment's quality.