How to Calculate Your Commercial Coffee Machine Requirements

Getting your commercial coffee machine capacity right is one of the most important decisions you’ll make when purchasing or upgrading your office coffee machine. Choose a machine that is too small and you’ll lose productivity and gain a bunch of frustrated employees queueing for the commercial coffee machine. The machine is also more likely to break down more frequently due to overuse and you’ll have to refill the premium coffee beans more often during the working day. Invest in equipment that is too large for your workplace and you’ll be paying for unnecessary capacity, lose workspace and pay extra for energy.

According to research from the British Coffee Association, UK workers consume approximately 98 million cups of coffee daily, with 44% of all out of home coffee consumption happening in the workplace. This data confirms why calculating your workplaces exact coffee requirement isn’t just about trying to avoid a build up of employees waiting for their morning coffee but about providing a workplace amenity that is shown to directly impact productivity, retention and employee satisfaction.

This blog will walk you through the process of calculating your commercial coffee machine requirements, from basic employee numbers through to complex considerations like peak demand patterns and growth projections.

Before we dive into the calculations, you need to understand how UK employees actually consume their coffee at work. The data is often surprising to business owners who often assume people only consume one or two cups of coffee daily.

The HR Director states that 41% of the UK workforce drink three or more cups of coffee (or other caffeinated drinks) a day. A separate study by Nescafe shows that over three quarters of employees regularly drink coffee throughout their working day. These studies show that coffee has become an essential part of how UK employees structure their day and manage their energy levels throughout their shifts.

If you’ve been planning your business coffee machine purchase around employees having one cup a day your calculations are drastically underestimating the actual demand and usage of the coffee machine. The reality is that on average your employees will drink 2.5 to 3 cups a day in an average office environment, with other industries consuming more.

Why does this matter for your calculations? The difference in planning for 50 cups daily versus the realistic 150 cups needed by the same 50 people determines whether you install one or two small office coffee machines or take the plunge and install a medium or large capacity coffee machine. It also helps you decide whether you settle for a basic instant floor standing coffee machine or a higher quality bean to cup coffee machine and ultimately to help you decide if your investment delivers employee satisfaction or whether it creates problems.

The timing of consumption matters just as much as the total volume. According to research conducted by Nespresso 67% of UK employees feel more productive after a coffee break and 53% of employees report that they have most of their fresh, creative ideas during these breaks. This data reveals that coffee breaks cluster around specific times during the day rather than being evenly spread out. For the most part, workplaces experience an influx of coffee breaks during the mid-morning (10-11am) and mid-afternoon (around 2-3pm) when energy levels naturally dip and employees need a moment to refresh.

Peak demand calculations are critical for situations like these. Your machine doesn’t need to handle three cups of coffee per person spread out evenly throughout the day, it needs to handle 20-30 people wanting a coffee within a 15-minute window two or three times a day. The equipment must be able to deliver drinks fast enough to prevent queues of frustrated employees which eats into time that could be spent being productive. Fresh Ground states that employees spend an average of 16 minutes per visit each time they leave site to visit an external café, so if your office coffee machine is creating similar queues it defeats the object of having the coffee machine onsite in the first place.

Now that you understand consumption patterns, let’s establish your baseline requirement using a proven formula which has been developed through decades of industry experience across thousands of UK installations.

The calculation is straightforward, just calculate the number of employees at your site by their average daily consumption to figure out your sites minimum daily cup requirements. This basically means you’re taking your employee count and multiplying by 2.5 or 3 drinks a day. For example, an office with 50 employees needs a coffee machine that is capable of producing at least 125 to 150 cups a day.

However, this baseline figure requires some adjustments before deciding which commercial coffee machine to buy or lease. Coffee consumption doesn’t happen evenly throughout the day so the first adjustment to this calculation is based around your sites peak demand rather than average consumption. A floor standing coffee machine capable of 150 cups daily might seem sufficient for 50 employees, but if 25 of those employees all take their coffee break at 10:30 am the coffee machine will face a high concentration of demand within 30 minutes.

Industry best practices recommend selecting equipment rated for at least three times your calculated baseline requirement. This might seem excessive, but it’s rooted in operational reality rather than overselling. Commercial coffee machines that operate at a third of their maximum capacity tend to have a longer lifespan, maintain consistent drink quality even when under pressure, and require less frequent servicing and maintenance.

Using our 50-employee example, your baseline calculation suggests 150 cups daily. Applying the three-times multiplier means selecting a machine rated for 450+ cups per day. This ensures that during your busiest periods, when 20-30 people want coffee within 15 minutes, the equipment handles the load without queues forming or performance degrading.

The second adjustment needed for this calculation is to do with your sites specific operational patterns. Not all workplaces are identical, which is why there is no one size fits all when buying a commercial coffee machine. Manufacturing facilities with two scheduled 15-minute breaks experience more concentrated demand than offices where employees take breaks individually throughout the day. If your entire shift takes break simultaneously, you need equipment with faster vend times and higher consecutive cup capacity, even if the daily total is identical to a more flexible workplace.

If your workplace has a stream of meetings and visitors throughout the day another layer is added to the calculations. Workplaces that host clients regularly, recruitment agencies that have a line of candidates to interview daily, or training facilities that have a flow of visitors daily all experience a higher coffee demand than that from their regular employees count. A realistic assessment involves calculating visitor volume and adding 30-50% to your baseline employee calculation to account for this additional demand. For our 50-employee office that regularly hosts 10-15 visitors daily, you’re calculating for 60-65 people, which changes equipment specifications significantly.

Industry sector also influences consumption patterns in ways that generic formulas don’t capture. Research shows that certain professions are heavier coffee consumers than others. Technology companies and creative agencies typically see higher consumption than light industrial or distribution environments. Office vending machines in professional services settings need different capacity than industrial vending machines in manufacturing plants, even with similar employee numbers. Data from CoffeeBI research confirms that office coffee consumption has grown by more than 6% annually in recent years, with workplace coffee now representing 44% of all out-of-home consumption in the UK.

The type of commercial coffee machine that you choose matters tremendously. Bean to cup coffee machines, which grind fresh coffee beans for each drink, typically take 30 to 60 seconds to serve a cappuccino or latte. This includes the time it takes the machine to grind, extract, steam the milk and dispense the drink into the cup. Premium bean to cup coffee machines like the Rex Royal S2 optimise this process, but physics limits how fast you can grind beans, extract espresso, and steam milk to proper temperature and texture. During a busy 15-minute morning break, a bean to cup machine producing drinks at 45 seconds each can serve approximately 20 people. If 30 employees want coffee, the last person waits 10-15 minutes in the queue.

Instant coffee machines work in an entirely different way to bean to cup coffee machines. Using pre ground coffee and instant milk mixed with hot water they can produce a drink within 15 to 30 seconds, making them considerably quicker than bean to cup coffee means. The same 15-minute break allows you to serve the same number of employees with a lower risk of queues building up. The trade-off, of course, is quality. Bean to cup machines deliver superior taste and aroma that employees increasingly expect based on high street coffee culture. Instant machines prioritise speed and reliability over sophistication.

This creates a genuine decision point in your calculations. If your workplace has staggered breaks with no more than 10-15 people wanting coffee simultaneously, a single bean to cup machine handles demand beautifully while providing the quality experience that supports recruitment and retention. If you operate a manufacturing facility where 40 employees take a scheduled 15-minute break together, choose a instant coffee floor standing machine for speed.

Your calculations need to account for consecutive cup capacity beyond just daily ratings. Many commercial coffee machines require brief pauses after producing multiple consecutive drinks. The machine needs time to refill internal water tanks, heat fresh water to operating temperature, empty grounds containers, or complete automated cleaning cycles. A machine rated for 300 cups daily might need a 2 minute pause after every 15 consecutive drinks. If you’ve calculated demand at 200 cups daily, that seems fine until you realise 100 of those cups are requested for two 30-minute periods, which exceeds the machine’s consecutive capacity.

Fresh milk systems add another timing consideration. Fresh milk coffee machines need daily cleaning cycles to maintain hygiene and prevent bacterial growth. These automated cleaning programs typically run for 10-20 minutes and render the machine unavailable during that period. Connect Vending’s team of operators can schedule these cleans for early mornings, before staff arrive, or at a time that suits your site as part of your fully managed vending service.

Basic Formula: Number of Employees × 2.5-3.0 cups per day = Baseline Daily Requirement

Peak Demand Multiplier: Baseline Daily Requirement × 3 = Recommended Machine Capacity Rating

Example Calculation:

• 50 employees × 2.5 cups = 125 cups baseline
• Add 20% for visitors = 150 cups adjusted baseline
• Apply growth projection for 65 employees = 195 cups future baseline
• Apply 3× multiplier = 585 cups minimum machine capacity rating
• Result: Machine rated for 600+ cups daily

Calculating your coffee machine requirements accurately is the foundation of successful commercial coffee provision. Unlike many business decisions where you can adjust course easily if circumstances change, coffee machine investments involve multi-year commitments whether through purchase, lease, or managed service contracts. Getting capacity wrong means living with frustration for years or absorbing the cost of early replacement.

The calculation process we’ve outlined provides a systematic approach grounded in industry best practice and real-world data about UK workplace coffee consumption. By starting with realistic consumption figures, accounting for peak demand through the three-times multiplier, considering your specific operational patterns and environment, and projecting forward to your near-future state, you’ll arrive at specifications that serve your business effectively for the full equipment lifespan.

At Connect Vending, we’ve helped hundreds of UK businesses calculate their exact coffee machine requirements across every industry sector from manufacturing and logistics to professional services and education. Our team brings industry-leading service standards with 89% of service calls attended within 4 hours and a 90% first-time fix rate, ensuring your equipment performs reliably for years. Not sure where to start with your calculations? Our experts can review your numbers and recommend the perfect capacity for your workplace.