Commercial Kitchen Cost Guide India 2026 - Equipment, Installation and AMC

Who this is forThis guide is for restaurateurs, cloud kitchen founders, hotel and canteen operators budgeting a new commercial kitchen in India in 2026.

A commercial kitchen in India costs between ₹5 lakh and ₹2 crore to set up in 2026, depending on the type of kitchen. A cloud kitchen typically costs ₹5 to 15 lakh, a restaurant kitchen ₹15 to 50 lakh, an industrial canteen ₹30 lakh to 1 crore and a full hotel kitchen ₹50 lakh to 2 crore. This guide breaks down every part of that number: equipment by category, civil work, installation and commissioning, annual maintenance, and the factors that push a budget up or down. Every figure below reflects real Indian market pricing for 2026 based on 35 years of building kitchens across the country.

How Much Does a Commercial Kitchen Cost in India?

The total cost of a commercial kitchen depends far more on the type and scale of the operation than on any single piece of equipment. A delivery-only cloud kitchen fits a compact cooking line, a couple of refrigeration units and a small wash area into a tight footprint, so it sits at the bottom of the range. A hotel kitchen runs multiple sections - a main cooking line, a bakery, a cold kitchen, a banquet kitchen and a large wash-up - so it sits at the top. The table below shows realistic all-in ranges for 2026, including equipment, basic civil work, installation and commissioning.

Cloud kitchen: ₹5 to 15 lakh total

A single-brand cloud kitchen can be equipped from around ₹5 lakh with a compact cooking range, one or two refrigeration units, a prep table, a two-compartment sink and a basic exhaust hood. A twin or multi-brand delivery kitchen with more cooking stations, cold storage and a stronger extraction system moves toward ₹12 to 15 lakh. Because cloud kitchens have no dining area, spend concentrates on cooking capacity and fast dispatch.

Restaurant kitchen: ₹15 to 50 lakh total

A casual dining restaurant kitchen typically lands between ₹15 and 25 lakh, while a larger full-service restaurant with a tandoor section, a Chinese range, walk-in cold storage and a hood-type dishwasher runs ₹30 to 50 lakh. Menu breadth is the driver here - the more cuisines a restaurant serves, the more specialised cooking equipment the line needs.

Hotel kitchen: ₹50 lakh to 2 crore total

A hotel kitchen is really several kitchens in one and is budgeted section by section. A mid-size hotel back-of-house starts near ₹50 lakh, and a large five-star operation with banquet capacity, multiple restaurants, a bakery and extensive cold rooms reaches ₹1 to 2 crore. Bulk cooking equipment, walk-in refrigeration and heavy extraction make up a large share of the total.

Industrial canteen: ₹30 lakh to 1 crore total

An industrial or corporate canteen feeding hundreds to thousands per shift centres on bulk cooking - boiling pans, bulk cookers, steam ranges and rice cooking systems - plus high-volume dishwashing and large cold storage. A canteen serving a single shift starts near ₹30 lakh, while a large multi-shift facility reaches ₹1 crore.

Equipment Cost Breakdown by Category

Equipment is the largest line item in any kitchen budget. The table below gives realistic 2026 ranges per category for basic, mid and premium specifications. Basic covers a compact cloud-kitchen scale, mid covers a typical restaurant, and premium covers hotel and heavy institutional use with larger, higher-grade units.

For a deeper item-by-item breakdown, see our detailed commercial kitchen equipment price guide, and browse the actual units in our product range.

Civil Work and Infrastructure Costs

Civil and infrastructure work is the cost most first-time operators underestimate. It is the plumbing, gas, electrical and structural preparation that has to be in place before equipment can be installed. On a typical restaurant project it adds 15 to 25 percent on top of equipment cost, and more on older or unfitted premises.

Gas line installation

A compliant gas line with piping, regulators, gauges, safety valves and a leak-tested manifold or gas bank typically costs ₹40,000 to ₹2 lakh depending on the number of appliances and the distance from the cylinder point.

Electrical load upgrade

Refrigeration, dishwashers, induction and exhaust fans all add to the electrical load. Upgrading the sanctioned load and wiring the kitchen to it usually costs ₹50,000 to ₹3 lakh depending on the capacity increase and any transformer or panel work required.

Drainage and flooring

Trapped drainage channels, grease traps and sealed anti-slip flooring keep a kitchen safe and FSSAI compliant. This typically costs ₹60,000 to ₹3 lakh depending on floor area and whether existing drainage can be reused.

Exhaust duct fabrication and installation

Beyond the hood itself, the ducting run to an external discharge point, along with fans and any scrubber, is a separate cost of ₹50,000 to ₹2.5 lakh depending on the length of the run and the height of the building. Our exhaust hood guide explains how ducting is sized.

Installation and Commissioning Costs

Installation and commissioning cover positioning and levelling equipment, connecting gas, water and power, fire-testing burners, calibrating refrigeration, balancing the ventilation and handing over a working kitchen. Done properly, this is what turns a pile of equipment into a kitchen that performs from day one.

Typical installation cost as a percentage of equipment cost

As a rule of thumb, budget 8 to 12 percent of the equipment cost for installation and commissioning on a standard project. Complex sites, high-rise ducting or tight timelines push this higher. Steelkraft installs and commissions everything it fabricates through its own in-house build process, so this cost is scoped clearly up front rather than appearing as a surprise.

AMC Costs

An annual maintenance contract keeps equipment running and protects the investment. AMC pricing scales with the number and type of units covered, as shown below.

What AMC covers

A good AMC covers scheduled preventive servicing, priority breakdown response, cleaning and calibration of refrigeration and exhaust, and either included or discounted spare parts. Our guide to what a kitchen AMC should include explains what to look for before signing one.

Factors That Affect Total Cost

Location: Bangalore versus Mumbai versus Tier 2 cities

Equipment prices are broadly similar nationwide, but installation, labour and transport vary. Bangalore and Mumbai carry higher civil and labour rates than tier 2 cities, and remote sites add transport and travel to the installation cost. Sourcing from a Bangalore manufacturer keeps costs predictable for kitchens across South India.

Kitchen size

Larger kitchens cost more in absolute terms but often less per cover, because fixed costs like ducting design and commissioning are spread across more equipment. Under-sizing to save money usually backfires when the kitchen cannot keep up with service.

Equipment specification and material grade

Material grade has a direct, lasting cost impact. Food contact surfaces should be grade 304 stainless steel, which resists corrosion and lasts for years; cheaper grade 202 corrodes and needs replacing sooner. Read the difference in our guide to 304 vs 202 stainless steel.

Import versus local fabrication

Locally fabricated equipment is typically 30 to 50 percent cheaper than imported equivalents, is built to your exact dimensions and is far easier to service in India. Imports can be justified for specialised units such as combi ovens, but for tables, sinks, hoods and cooking lines, in-house fabrication offers the best value.

How to Budget for Your Commercial Kitchen

The smartest way to control cost is to phase the spend. Start with the equipment the kitchen cannot open without - the cooking line, core refrigeration, the exhaust system, the primary wash-up and essential prep tables. These are the units that determine whether you can cook, store and clean safely from day one.

Items that can usually be added later include additional cold storage, secondary prep stations, extra trolleys, display and serving units and any nice-to-have specialised equipment. Plan the layout and utilities for the full kitchen from the start, even if you install in phases, so that later additions simply slot into space and services already prepared. This avoids the far larger cost of reworking civil, gas and electrical work later.

Finally, always build in a contingency of around 10 percent for the unexpected - a load upgrade that turns out larger than planned, a longer duct run, or a menu change during fit-out. A realistic budget with a contingency is far less stressful than a tight one that breaks at the first surprise.

For more detail on individual topics, see our FSSAI compliance checklist and the commercial kitchen equipment glossary.