Short answer: you can buy your own vending machine and keep every dollar it takes in, but in British Columbia that also makes your business the operator. You take on the city licence, a PST account once the machine sells any soda, GST once taxable sales pass $30,000, stock buying, restocking, card processing, refunds and repairs. Hosting a machine that an operator owns moves all of that off your desk, and your cost is the spot, the outlet and roughly $16–17 a month in power.
This comparison is for BC business owners, office managers and property managers deciding between the two. It uses the actual rules, not sales projections: nobody can tell you what a machine will sell before it's in.
The two models in one table
| Job | Host a machine (operator-owned) | Own the machine yourself |
|---|---|---|
| Buy the machine | Operator | You |
| Space and outlet | You | You |
| Power | You (about $16–17 a month for a drink machine) | You |
| City vending licence | Usually the operator; confirm in writing | You |
| PST registration and returns | Operator, if it sells soda | You, if it sells soda |
| GST registration | Operator | You, once you pass the small-supplier threshold |
| Buy and restock products | Operator | You or your staff |
| Card reader, fees and refunds | Operator | You |
| Repairs and jams | Operator | You |
| Removal if it doesn't work out | Operator, on notice | You sell or store it |
| Sales | Operator (commission only if agreed in writing) | You |
What owning a machine adds, rule by rule
1. A city licence per machine. Metro Vancouver cities licence vending machines individually. From each city's own bylaws: Surrey charges $41 a year per machine (Business License By-law 13680, Schedule A), Richmond $37.50 (Fees Bylaw 8636), and Burnaby $39 for a coin machine or $112 for a card machine (Fees and Charges Bylaw 14485, Schedule A2). Surrey also puts a duty on the premises owner: the number of machines on a premises must not increase without first notifying the licence inspector in writing (s.65(3)). The details are in our licence fees guide.
2. PST, the moment you sell a soda. BC's rule is that you must register to collect PST if you sell taxable goods in the ordinary course of business in BC. For drink machines, Ministry of Finance Notice 2021-002 says sellers must collect PST "on all beverages dispensed by a vending machine" unless the machine dispenses no soda at all. One can of pop makes the water and juice taxable too. That means a PST account, returns and records.
3. GST, once sales grow. Groceries are normally zero-rated, but the Excise Tax Act excludes "food or beverages sold through a vending machine" (Schedule VI, Part III, s.1(p)), so vending sales are taxable. A business with $30,000 or less in taxable sales over four quarters is a small supplier and generally doesn't have to register (s.148(1)). If your business is already registered, the machine's sales go on your returns from day one. Our PST and GST guide has the detail, including the 25-cent coin exception.
4. Food rules if you go beyond packaged snacks. BC's Food Premises Regulation doesn't apply to premises that sell only whole fresh fruit and vegetables or prepackaged, non-potentially hazardous food (s.2). Sandwiches, salads and anything that needs a fridge to stay safe are a health-authority permit question, whoever owns the machine.
5. The work. Buying stock, tracking what sells, restocking before it runs out, handling a jammed coil, refunding a customer whose card was charged twice, and moving a machine that weighs 490–690 lb (about 220–315 kg, per the manufacturer spec sheets in our space and power checklist) if you change your mind. An operator does this across a route. You'd do it for one machine.
Why businesses consider owning
The two reasons we see most in what hosts write online:
- The operator stopped showing up. A company buying a machine for its staff wrote in March 2026 that the vendors it had "over the years" found its volume not worth their time, which "leaves us with a half-stocked machine". Owning is its fix for a service problem.
- They want control of the menu and prices. Residents and staff complain about overpriced machines. A 290-unit apartment building runs its own micro market and, by its manager's account, budgets for a monthly loss as a resident amenity.
Both are real reasons. Neither needs ownership if the host can choose the menu, get a named contact and remove the operator on short notice. That's the problem hosting terms should solve, and it's the one the vending agreement checklist is built around.
When owning makes sense
- You already run a retail till, a PST account and staff who restock shelves (a gym front desk, a convenience counter, a hotel).
- You want the machine to carry your own products.
- No operator will take the site, and the convenience is worth the work to you.
When hosting makes more sense
- Nobody on site has time to restock, fix jams or answer refund requests.
- You don't want a PST account or extra GST lines for one machine.
- You want the option to have it removed on 30 days' notice at no cost.
How VendFynd fits
We don't sell machines. We're your vending advocate: we find an operator whose route makes your site worth servicing, your people choose the menu, and you get one contact who replies within 1 business day. Placement is $0 to you: you provide the spot and an outlet. It's month to month, with 30 days' notice and no-cost removal, and most sites receive a commission, agreed in writing before install. The full terms are in our host terms. To start, see if your site qualifies.
Sources
- Government of BC, "Register to collect PST": https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/taxes/sales-taxes/pst/register, accessed 2026-09-29
- BC Ministry of Finance, Notice 2021-002: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/taxes/sales-taxes/publications/notice-2021-002-sellers-soda-beverages.pdf, accessed 2026-09-26
- Excise Tax Act, Schedule VI, Part III: https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/E-15/page-121.html, and s.148(1): https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/E-15/page-34.html, current to 2026-09-03
- City of Surrey, Business License By-law No. 13680: https://www.surrey.ca/city-government/bylaws/13680; City of Richmond, Consolidated Fees Bylaw No. 8636: https://www.richmond.ca/__shared/assets/BL_8636_Consolidated_with_ABLs_10699__10702_and_10720_11102578073.pdf; City of Burnaby, Fees and Charges Bylaw No. 14485: https://bylaws.burnaby.ca/media/Consolidated/14485CC.pdf, all accessed 2026-09-26
- Food Premises Regulation, B.C. Reg. 210/99: https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/11_210_99
- US DOE FEMP, refrigerated beverage vending machines (1,354–1,456 kWh a year): https://www.energy.gov/femp/purchasing-energy-efficient-refrigerated-beverage-vending-machines; at BC Hydro's small general service rate of about 14.06¢/kWh that's roughly $16–17 a month (VendFynd calculation)
- r/vending, "Buying a vending machine for internal staff use", March 2026: https://www.reddit.com/r/vending/comments/1s5j14o/buying_a_vending_machine_for_internal_staff_use/
- r/vending, "290 unit apartment micro mart opportunity", December 2025: https://www.reddit.com/r/vending/comments/1pq83v8/290_unit_apartment_micro_mart_opportunity/