Canning Machine Finance

Spread the cost of a canning line from £10,000 to £300,000+ with flexible finance options. HP, lease, or refinance

Can you finance a canning machine?

Yes, canning machines are financed as a standard asset purchase, usually on hire purchase or a lease, with the machine itself acting as the security. UK prices typically run £10,000 to £300,000, and most deals are written over 12–72 months with a deposit of around 10–20%. Decisions typically take 24–48 hours. Used machines are financeable too, usually with a shorter term.

What would a canning machine cost per month?

Canning Machine price (ex VAT) £55,000

Deposit 10%

Agreement term 60 months

Annual interest rate 9%

Balloon payment £0

Your estimate

Indicative only. Not a quote and not an offer of finance.

Pre-filled with a typical canning machine price. Indicative only, not a quote.

Finance options

Hire Purchase (HP)

Rate: From 5.3% APR
Term: 12–72 months
Deposit: 10–20%
Ownership: Yours at the end
Best for: Breweries wanting to own the line outright

Finance Lease

Rate: From 4.9% APR
Term: 12–72 months
Deposit: None required
Ownership: Return or buy (balloon payment)
Best for: Tax-efficient, claim the lease payments against profit

Operating Lease

Rate: From 5.6% APR
Term: 24–60 months
Deposit: None required
Ownership: Return at end
Best for: Move canning in-house without a large upfront outlay

Representative example

On a purchase price of £55,000: a 10% deposit of £5,500, then 48 monthly payments of £1,160 at 5.9% APR representative (fixed). Total amount payable £61,180, including the deposit. The rate you are offered depends on your business and the asset.

What buyers actually specify

Guide prices for sizing a finance agreement, not quotes. Manufacturers in this market mostly price on application, so where a current UK list price could not be confirmed the row describes a specification class rather than naming a model. Your supplier quote is what the agreement is written against.

Machine or specification	Guide price	Type
Mobile Canning Unit	£10,000 – £25,000	Mobile / Contract Canning
Small In-House Canning Line	£30,000 – £70,000	Semi-Automatic
Mid-Scale Canning Line	£75,000 – £160,000	Automatic
High-Speed Canning Line	£170,000 – £280,000	Automatic

Tax benefits

A canning machine qualifies for capital allowances, so most of the purchase cost can be set against taxable profits well within the Annual Investment Allowance most brewing and distilling businesses have available in a given year. Hire purchase lets you claim allowances as the owner from day one. Finance lease and operating lease payments are typically deductible in full as a trading expense, which suits businesses that would rather smooth the deduction over the term than take it all upfront. Speak to your accountant about which structure suits your current tax position.

Market context

Many breweries first package in cans using a mobile canning service that brings a unit on site for a day, then move to an owned in-house line once volume and frequency make outsourcing more expensive or restrictive than owning the equipment outright. Because more craft breweries now package in cans alongside or instead of bottles, an in-house canning line is one of the more common single equipment purchases a growing brewery makes, and replacement is usually driven by wanting faster fill speeds or a smaller format to add slim or sleek cans, rather than the existing line failing. Established canning line manufacturers, particularly the Italian builders who supply much of the small and mid-scale UK market, produce equipment with a reasonable used market once a brewery upgrades to a faster line.

Frequently asked questions

Should I use mobile canning before buying my own line?

Many breweries do exactly this: using a mobile canning service to test can formats and build sales before committing to an owned line, since it avoids upfront capital while volume is still uncertain. Once canning frequency and volume reach the point where mobile canning costs and lead times start limiting how often you can package, an owned line usually becomes the more practical option, and that transition point is when most breweries look at financing one.

What deposit do I need for a canning line?

Hire purchase typically asks for a 10 to 20% deposit, scaling with the size of the line. Finance lease and operating lease usually require none. A high-speed automatic line represents a much larger facility than a small in-house line, so lenders will want to see trading history and projected can volume before approving the larger end of the range.

Can I finance a used canning line?

Yes, used canning lines from established manufacturers are financeable, typically up to around 10 years old, subject to an independent inspection of the filler and seamer. A used line is a common way for a brewery moving off mobile canning to control upfront cost while getting proven equipment rather than committing to a brand-new high-speed line before volume justifies it.

Can I switch between can sizes on the same line?

Most in-house canning lines are set up for a specific can diameter and are changed over between heights, such as standard and slim cans of the same diameter, using adjustable seamer and filler settings rather than swapping to an entirely different diameter, which usually needs different tooling. If you plan to run multiple can formats, it is worth specifying this with your supplier before buying, since it affects both the machine spec and the price.

Does the finance include the depalletiser and conveyor?

It can, if quoted as part of the same line by your supplier, which is common for a complete canning line including can infeed, filler, seamer and outfeed conveyor. If you are adding automation to an existing manual line later, such as a depalletiser, it is usually financed as its own item, though most lenders will combine it into one facility if you apply at the same time as your main canning equipment.