Copier Leasing: Terms, Rates and Buyout Options

How a copier lease is structured

You select the equipment, we quote it, and a funding source buys the machine and leases it to you. Your monthly payment is the equipment cost multiplied by a rate factor set by the term length, the buyout type and your credit profile. Terms run 24, 36, 48 or 60 months; 60 is the most common because it produces the lowest payment.

A lease is a non-cancellable contract. That is the trade for the low payment, and it is the single most important thing to understand before you sign. Read our guide to reading a copier lease agreement before you commit to anything, from us or anyone else.

Fair market value versus $1 buyout

Every lease ends one of two ways, and the choice changes your monthly payment.

Fair market value (FMV) gives the lowest payment. At the end of the term you return the machine, renew, or purchase it at its then-current market value. Choose FMV if you plan to upgrade on schedule and have no interest in owning a five-year-old copier.

$1 buyout costs more per month, but the machine becomes yours for a dollar at the end. Choose it if you tend to run equipment well past the term, or if your accountant wants capital lease treatment. Our comparison of FMV and $1 buyout leases works through the arithmetic.

One cost to plan for on FMV: the leasing company owns the machine and wants it back. Return freight typically runs $300 to $500 per unit, and you are responsible for insuring the equipment during the term. If you upgrade with us we usually absorb the return cost.

In-house financing when a bank says no

Commercial lease programs decline plenty of sound businesses: companies under two years old, seasonal revenue, a thin credit file, a past restructuring. We run our own financing program for exactly those situations. If a third-party funder turns you down, ask us directly — the answer is frequently different.

What belongs in the payment and what does not

Equipment, delivery, installation, network configuration and staff training are standard. Service labor, parts, preventative maintenance and automatically shipped toner can be bundled into the same invoice or kept separate.

We recommend keeping them separate on the quote even if you combine them on the invoice. A single blended number hides how much you are paying for the machine versus the service, which makes it impossible to compare dealers or renegotiate at renewal. Paper, staples for the finisher and anything consumed outside the machine are always excluded.

Credit and timing

A one-page application covers most transactions. Decisions usually come back the same business day; larger amounts or newer businesses may need bank statements and an extra day. From approval, most installs happen within five to ten business days depending on stock and site readiness.