If you’re getting a new business up and running, you already know the importance of shaving costs wherever possible. One area that you may consider saving money is on computers for your office. Renting vs. buying computers is a hotly debated issue, but the truth is there really is no right answer. The best solution depends on your unique situation.
To help you determine if renting computers is the best choice for your situation, I’ve come up with some of the pros and cons of renting.
Pros
Here are some of the top benefits of renting computers.
- Upfront savings—For startup businesses, cash is everything. That’s why it’s so important to save money now while cash is tight. By renting computers, your upfront costs are much lower than if you were to buy them. When you buy, each computer can cost hundreds, even thousands of dollars. When you rent, you only pay a fraction of that cost in the beginning.
- Use the most current models—The technology with computers is always moving forward. As soon as you walk out of the store with yours, it’s pretty much outdated. The good thing about renting is that you can always swap your computers out for the latest models. This ensures your company is always on the cutting edge, using the latest available technology.
- Test different computers—Renting is a good way to test drive various models of computers. Maybe you’re debating whether your office should use PCs or Macs. Instead of spending thousands of dollars without being sure which better meets your needs, you can spend a little time renting each type of computer. Then, once you find the model you prefer, you can consider buying them.
- Add or remove computers easily—Whenever you buy computers, you’re stuck with them should an employee quit or you need to downsize. Or, if you need to hire new employees, you have to buy more computers. With renting, you have the flexibility to add or remove computers quickly, easily, and affordably.
Cons
Of course, renting computers isn’t the ideal solution for everyone, and doing so does have its drawbacks. Here are some of the top reasons not to rent computers.
- No ownership—When you rent something, you don’t really have anything to actually show for your investment. Sure, you get to use the computers all you want, but you have no ownership in them. For some, spending all this money each month without owning the computers is difficult to swallow.
- Support varies—The level of tech support varies widely from one rental company to another. If you have technical issues or malfunctioning computers, you need to get them repaired quickly so your office can stay up and running. Unfortunately, not all rental companies are quick to respond, so this can lead to significant downtime.
- Can be more expensive in the long run—If you plan on leasing the computers for a long time to come, you should know that it actually ends up costing more to lease than to buy. Sure, the upfront costs are lower, but over time, you end up paying more for the rented computers.
What do you think about renting vs. buying computers for an office? Leave a comment with your opinion.