Medium-duty truck pricing

Medium-duty truck pricing is enormously varied, since the segment ranges from very basic 14' box trucks to 26' refrigerated trucks loaded with extras.

Keep in mind that the price ranges in this section are very general guidelines: prices vary according to the size of the truck, the options you select, dealer inventories, and your location, so all pricing examples are only approximate. Take a look at detailed box truck prices reported by other BuyerZone users.

Light-duty class 2 trucks can go for $25,000 to $35,000, but most commercial dealers start with class 3 trucks. You'll find it hard to get a new class 3 truck for under $30,000, although it's possible; more typical are prices of $32,000 to $45,000. Pricing for new class 4 trucks runs from $34,000 to $50,000 and higher if you really load them up with extras. Class 5 trucks range from $40,000 to $70,000 and class 6 from $50,000 to $85,000.

Refrigerated trucks carry a steep premium – $10,000 or more above the base cost. Other bed options may add $1,000 to $5,000, and highly customized configurations can cost much more.

Used box truck pricing

If your truck is going to be an essential part of your daily activities, it makes sense to buy new. However, if the truck is going to be less central to your business, buying used is often a smart way to save money.

This brings up the element of "buyer beware" when buying any used vehicle. Only buy from a dealer who offers at least some warranty to make sure you don't waste money on a lemon. Because of the longevity benefits, diesel trucks are often a better choice if you're buying an older vehicle, but if they haven't been properly maintained, they can be a disaster waiting to happen.

Used medium-duty truck pricing spans a huge range, just like used car pricing. A year-old 16' truck with only a few thousand miles on it may go for $35,000 instead of its $40,000 new price. But if you buy that same truck when it's four to five years old, with 50,000 or 100,000 miles on it, you could get it for $12,000 to $20,000.

Older trucks go for even less – you could find a 10-year-old truck that still runs for as little as $5,000, but you probably wouldn't want to count on it. In general, you won't find these types of prices at dealerships – you'll find them in classified ads and online sales.

Financing

Know how you'll be paying for your truck before your start shopping: if you're like most small businesses, you'll want to finance your vehicle over several years. Be sure to ask each dealership what financing options they can provide, but consider other options as well. At a minimum, check with your business bank to see what terms it can offer on a new vehicle loan.

In addition to reducing the up-front cost of a new truck, financing your truck over three or five years can help you think more about the longer-term benefits of different models and options, and less about the bottom-line cost. For example, $1,500 may seem like a lot for a cabin upgrade, but when you look at it as $25 per month over five years, it's a small price to pay for the comfort and safety of your employees.