How Much to Lease a Copier? (2021 Update)
The most delicate and frequent question our consultants get, when they are discussing office copiers and multifunction devices is: “How much does it cost to lease a copier?”
A lot has changed, during 2020, so some of the rules that guided the decision of leasing a copier a year ago might not apply in 2021.
Let’s answer that question, then, of how much is a copier lease in 2021.
While the answer is not as straightforward as we’d like, there is a way to gauge whether your new copier lease will cost you $100 or $1000 a month; in 2021 there are also ways to save money, through programs that, last year, were not offered.
Many copiers have a monthly lease cost between $95 and $185, but there are so many factors that play a role in your monthly lease payment, that it’s best to check all the boxes, before you start budgeting.
After you’ve decided whether you should buy or lease a copier for your organization, consider the following elements, which can influence how much you will spend for you copier lease.
Type of Copier – Black and White or Color?
The first thing to establish, when you want to find out how much a copier lease will cost you, is whether you will need color copies and prints, or only black and white.
If you only copy or print in black and white, a color copier might add hundreds of dollars (thousands of dollars, depending on the size of your photocopy machine) that you could spend elsewhere. Conversely, if your team uses tabletop printers for color prints, investing in a color copier might save you thousands of dollars a year, since the cost of a color copy from a photocopy machine is a fraction of that of a tabletop inkjet copier.
Tabletop Copier or Free-Standing Copier?
Size matters, and this is especially true of instances where your staff may need to work from home.
Free-standing copiers can hold more paper and often have more features, but those extras come at a price. If you are planning to have a single copier for your entire organization, a free standing copier is the way to go.
Having a smaller, tabletop copier, however, provides more flexibility, as tabletop copiers and multifunction devices like the Canon imageRUNNER DX C257 can be easily transported and installed in a home office; this provides you with the greatest spectrum of options, and with the knowledge that your staff will have access to the same technology they enjoy at the office, whether the shift to telecommuting is temporary or permanent.
How much you’ll spend for your copier lease, in the end, needs to be balanced with what use you’ll make of your copier.
Type of Lease: Fair Market Value (FMV) or Dollar Buyout
At the end of your copier lease term, you may want to trade your photocopier for a newer model or keep it. Especially if you decide to keep it, the lease program you choose (fair market value, or FMV, or “dollar buyout”) will determine how much you need pay to keep the unit. Of course, with the dollar buyout option, you’ll only owe (you guessed it) one dollar; however, this option will cost you a few more dollars each month, on your lease payment.
Of course, your lease term will also determine your monthly lease payment: a 36 month lease may cost you $150 a month, while the same copier on a 60 month lease may cost you $99. You’ll spend less money each month, but you’ll finish paying your lease 2 years earlier. The choice is yours.
Features In Your Copier
Today’s copiers offer a spectrum of features that would make a professional printer blush. However, each features will add anywhere between $25 or $30 and as much as $2,500 to the cost of your copier, bringing your monthly copier lease payment to hundreds, or even thousands of dollars.
From paper trays with larger capacity to fax and email capabilities, or booklet making features, and all the way to complex graphics control capabilities (don’t worry: chances are you don’t need that one!), your selection can take your lease payment past your comfort zone…
Our consultants are trained to ask the questions you would not think to ask, to make sure you’re not stuck with a copy machine and a lease payment you don’t need. If you want more information, make sure you check out our ultimate Copier Buyer’s Guide: in this free e-book, we’ll show you the step-by-step process to make sure you are asking all the right questions!
Maintenance Plan
There are a lot of options, when it comes to maintenance plans: you can choose to pay “time and material”, which means that you will call technical service whenever you need something, and the bill will depend on what needs to be addressed. Or, you can choose a monthly maintenance plan, which includes time, any repair material, and even consumables like toner!
Depending on your print volume, a monthly maintenance service can cost as little as $20 a month (for very low-volume needs) and up. Depending on where you purchase your copier, your local copier dealer may tie your maintenance plan to your lease (which means that you won’t be able to change repair service for the duration of your lease) or offer a separate, yearly plan that can be adjusted and renewed every 12 months.
Special Leasing Programs and Offers
It’s no mystery that thousands of businesses and organizations across the United States have had to adapt to a new reality: employees working from home, peaks and valleys in demand, and some uncertainties lurking in the future. Fortunately, in 2021, leasing companies like Canon Financial Services have developed programs to make leasing more convenient and affordable. Promotions include offers like no lease payments until October 2021 on a new Canon copier or all-in-one printer.
So, stop wondering how much it costs to lease a copier: give Offix a call today and let us help you navigate the process and get a free, no-obligation copier lease quote.