Commercial Kitchen Equipment List: Everything You Need to Open a Restaurant

You signed the lease. The contractor is booked. Now comes the part that actually breaks most first-time operators: figuring out what to buy, in what order, and what can wait until month three.

A commercial kitchen setup costs anywhere from $75,000 to $300,000. That gap exists because your menu, your footprint, and your concept drive every single purchase decision. A QSR running six items needs a completely different equipment list than a casual dining kitchen turning 200 covers a night.

This guide breaks it all down by category with real price ranges so you know where to spend, where to save, and what you actually need on day one.

7 categories of commercial kitchen equipment

Every restaurant kitchen needs equipment across these seven categories:

1. Cooking equipment
2. Refrigeration
3. Food preparation
4. Storage and shelving
5. Smallwares
6. Dishwashing and sanitation
7. Safety and compliance

Here is what each category includes, what it costs, and what to buy first.

Category 1: Cooking equipment

This is where most of your money goes. Get this right and everything else in the kitchen supports it.

**

Equipment, Price Range (2025), Notes

Commercial gas range (6-burner), $2000 to $10000, Most operators prefer gas for better heat control

Convection oven, $1200 to $12000, Needed for most concepts

Deep fryer, $500 to $8000, Price depends on size and capacity

Charbroiler / grill, $1000 to $8000, Gas or electric depending on your menu

Salamander / cheese melter, $1000 to $3500, Not always needed on day one

Steam kettle / tilting skillet, $5000 to $15000, High-volume kitchens only

**

Always buy cooking equipment new. A fryer or range that breaks mid-service with no warranty is far more expensive than the money you saved buying used.

Once you are open, keeping this equipment running is its own job. The restaurant equipment maintenance guide covers what to track and how often.

Category 2: Refrigeration

No refrigeration means no food safety. It affects your health inspection score and your food cost every single day.

**

Equipment, Price Range (2025), Notes

Walk-in cooler (8x10 to 10x12), $6000 to $15000, Essential for most full-service kitchens

Walk-in freezer, $8000 to $25000, Size and insulation drive the price

Reach-in cooler (single door), $1500 to $5000, Line access and storage

Refrigerated prep tables, $1000 to $9000, Speeds up line work

Bar / undercounter units, $1000 to $4000, For bar programs or front-of-house stations

**

Temperature monitoring does not stop at buying the equipment. Probes fail. Doors get left open. Compressors go down. If you want automated alerts instead of manual logs, the best freezer temperature monitoring systems guide covers your options. 

Xenia's food safety tools connect directly to Bluetooth thermometers so temperatures log automatically without anyone writing anything down.

Category 3: Food prep equipment

How fast your team preps before service depends on what tools they have. Skipping here means paying for it in labor.

**

Equipment, Price Range (2025), Notes

Commercial mixer (20-60 qt), $2500 to $8000, Must-have for bakery and pizza concepts

Food processor, $300 to $2000, Buy by capacity for high-volume kitchens

Commercial slicer, $1500 to $5000, Needed for deli-charcuterie or sandwich menus

Stainless steel prep tables, $400 to $1200 each, Buy at least 2 to 4 depending on your volume

Color-coded cutting boards, $80 to $200 each, Required for HACCP compliance

**

Color-coded cutting boards seem like a small purchase until a health inspector shows up. The HACCP chopping board color coding guide explains exactly what you need.

Category 4: Storage and shelving

Shelving is the most underbudgeted item in almost every new restaurant buildout. Operators spend big on cooking equipment and then have nowhere to put anything.

**

Equipment, Price Range (2025), Notes

NSF-approved dry storage shelving, $250 to $700 per unit, Health departments check for NSF certification

Walk-in shelving, $500 to $1500, Match dimensions to your walk-in

Dunnage racks, $80 to $200 each, Keeps product off the floor-required by code

**

Budget at least $2,000 to $5,000 for shelving across the whole kitchen. It adds up faster than most people expect. The restaurant food storage guidelines article covers how to organize what goes where.

Category 5: Smallwares

Pots, pans, knives, and hand tools. Not exciting, but your team uses them every single shift.

**

Category, Price Range (2025)

Full pot and pan set, $2500 to $6000

Knife set (chef-paring-bread-boning), $400 to $1200

Hand tools (spatulas-tongs-whisks-ladles), $300 to $800

Serving ware-plates and bowls, Varies by concept

**

Do not cheap out on knives. Cheap knives slow down prep, cause more injuries, and get replaced constantly. Spending more here costs less over time.

Category 6: Dishwashing and sanitation

Health departments check this area closely. And a slow dish area slows down your whole service.

**

Equipment, Price Range (2025), Notes

3-compartment sink, $800 to $2500, Required by code in almost every US jurisdiction

Commercial dishwasher (undercounter), $4000 to $8000, Good for lower volume kitchens

Commercial dishwasher (door-type), $8000 to $12000, Better for higher volume operations

Drying racks, $200 to $500, Often forgotten until opening day

Sani-buckets and chemicals, Low cost-ongoing, Required front and back of house

**

The 3-compartment sink is not optional. It is a code requirement in nearly every US state and the first thing a health inspector checks. 

The 3-sink dishwashing method guide walks you through the compliance basics. For everything else you need to keep the kitchen clean, the restaurant cleaning equipment guide has the full list.

Category 7: Safety and compliance equipment

Most first-time operators underestimate this category. Both the cost and how important it is.

**

Equipment, Price Range (2025), Notes

Hood + fire suppression system, $5000 to $20000+, Required above all cooking equipment

OSHA-compliant first aid kit, $50 to $200, Required and cheap to get right

Eyewash station, $100 to $400, Required near chemicals

Dedicated handwashing sink, $400 to $800, Must be separate from prep sinks

Probe and surface thermometers, $50 to $300 each, You need more than one

**

The hood and fire suppression system is your biggest single cost outside of the main equipment. Do not cut corners. Most landlords need engineering approval before installation, and most jurisdictions require a professional inspection before you can open.

Once you are open, food temperature tracking becomes a daily job. A food temperature log keeps the documentation in one place. If you want to go digital, Xenia's equipment management tools let you build temperature checks directly into your daily opening routine.

Buying strategy: new vs used, lease vs own

Not everything needs to be new. Here is a practical breakdown.

**

Category, Buy New, Buy Used, Consider Leasing

Cooking equipment, Yes, Risky without inspection, Possible for high-cost items

Refrigeration, Yes, Only from certified dealers, Ice machines and dishwashers

Prep tables, No, Yes-if NSF-certified, No

Shelving, No, Yes, No

Smallwares, No, Yes, No

Dishwasher, Yes, Only with warranty, Yes

**

Buy new on anything with a compressor or heating element. A used fryer or reach-in with hidden wear is a liability, not a saving. Used restaurant equipment typically sells for considerably less than new equipment, often between 10 and 30% of original value, which tells you how fast commercial equipment depreciates. 

That is a good deal when buying used shelving. It is a warning sign when something seems suspiciously cheap.

Always buy NSF and UL-certified equipment. Health departments verify this on inspection, and some jurisdictions will fail you if equipment does not carry the right certifications.

Budget ranges by restaurant type

**

Concept Type, Equipment Budget Range

QSR (small footprint-limited menu), $75000 to $120000

Fast casual, $100000 to $180000

Casual dining, $150000 to $280000

Fine dining, $200000 to $400000+

**

These are equipment-only numbers. They do not include furniture, signage, or your POS system.

Always build in a 10 to 15% contingency on top of whatever you budget. Permitting delays, electrical upgrades, and grease interceptor requirements show up late and cost real money. Most operators only find out about them after they are already committed.

If you are working through your full pre-opening plan alongside this equipment list, the opening a restaurant checklist guide covers what else needs to happen before day one.

Conclusion

The list tells you what to buy. The order tells you what to prioritize. Cooking equipment and refrigeration first. Prep, storage, and sanitation built around them. Safety and compliance items are not optional and they are expensive to fix after the fact.

Once the kitchen is equipped, keeping it running is the next job. Most operators start losing money quietly here. Missed temperature logs. Delayed maintenance. Equipment that fails mid-service because nobody was tracking it.

Xenia's equipment management and food safety tools take care of all of it. Temperature checks, maintenance logs, corrective actions, and health inspection records, all in one place, on any phone or tablet, across every location.

Book a demo and see how it works.