What Is a Commissary Kitchen?

A commissary kitchen is a licensed commercial kitchen where food businesses prepare and store food. It gives you licensed equipment, clean cooking stations, and health department approval without the cost of building your own kitchen.

You likely want to start a food truck, a bakery, or a packaged-food line. You need to know if the law requires you to rent one, and what the rental will cost you.

You can compare rates across your state and contact a local kitchen to schedule a tour. The numbers on this page come from 1265 kitchens in 50 states on rentedkitchen.com, collected on 2026-09-17.

How does a commissary kitchen differ from a shared-use kitchen or incubator?

A commissary kitchen often focuses on service operations like food trucks, while shared-use kitchens and incubators focus on production space or business growth. Read our guide on shared-use kitchen vs incubator kitchen for more details.

A commissary kitchen supplies specialized services like water disposal, grease removal, and truck parking. A shared-use kitchen rents scheduled stations by the hour to caterers, bakers, and meal prep cooks.

An incubator kitchen adds business classes, legal help, and sales coaching to standard kitchen stations. Across the directory, 48 commissaries show a rate from $5 to $95 per hour, with a median of $25. Among 140 shared-use kitchens, rates range from $5 to $300, with a median of $25. Forty-four incubators range from $5 to $85, with a median of $22.50. Five church kitchens range from $10 to $40, with a median of $20.

Who is required to use a commissary kitchen?

Mobile food vendors and growing home food producers must use one in most jurisdictions. Most counties require a food truck or food cart to hold an agreement with a licensed kitchen to pass inspection.

Many home cooks who operate under cottage food laws must move into a commercial kitchen. This move happens when their sales exceed the annual dollar limit set by their state. Ask your county health department about the specific rules for your food business.

How much does a commissary kitchen cost to rent?

A commissary kitchen costs a median rate of $24.50 per hour across the United States. In our directory, 239 of the 1265 kitchens publish an hourly rate, with prices running from $5 to $300 per hour.

Read our breakdown of what a commercial kitchen costs to see rates by region. For monthly users, 232 kitchens publish a monthly membership fee, which runs from $9.99 to $13,000 per month. The median membership fee is $693.75 per month.

Hourly rates also vary by state. In Texas, 22 kitchens publish a rate, with a median of $25 per hour and a range from $11 to $120. In Florida, 18 kitchens publish a rate, with a median of $21.50 per hour and a range from $5 to $50.

You will find higher rates for commissary kitchens in California, where 28 kitchens publish rates from $6.13 to $300 per hour with a median of $33.75 across 205 total locations.

What do you need before you can book a commissary kitchen?

You must provide proof of business liability insurance, a certified food handler card, and an active business license. Many kitchens also ask for a signed agreement with your local health agency.

Before you tour a site, read what to check before you sign a kitchen agreement. Some locations set a minimum number of hours for every booking. Across our directory, 177 kitchens publish a minimum booking rule, and the most common rule is 4 hours, found at 52 kitchens. Read how much kitchen time do you need to plan your schedule.

Certain facilities offer special storage or late schedules. Across all listings, 562 kitchens list 24/7 access, and 594 kitchens list cold or frozen storage. Confirm all intake requirements directly with the kitchen management.

How do you find a commissary kitchen near you?

Browse the directory of commercial kitchens for rent by state to view local listings with published prices, equipment inventories, and booking rules.

You can also use the Kitchen Match tool to filter listings by your equipment needs, storage demands, and target city. Each listing links to the kitchen website so you can schedule an intake call.