How much does a kegerator cost? / draft beer system cost?
Now that I’ve explained how a draft beer system works (explained here) … I can get into the nitty gritty on cost. As a purveyor of such goods, I am close to this topic, as I am always trying to compete in the market. That said, this is not as straight forward as it sounds, so I will first explain the basic costs and easiest entry, then I will get into how that can grow from there.
- Kegerator costs:
- self-contained kegerator systems (meaning fridge with beer tower mounted to it, usually on castors)
- single faucet tower – from $540 up to well over $1,500 – depending on size and whether or not it is commercial grade
- double faucet tower – from $770 up to well over $1,500 – again depending on size and whether or not it is commercial grade
- triple faucet tower – from $1,100 to up to well over $2,000 – size is typically the largest 1 tower kegerator available (24 inch wide or 5.7 CU FT)
A couple notes on these fridges:
A 24” width fridge will let you fit
- 1- ½ barrel keg (typically called full size keg) or 3-1/6 barrel kegs or 3-Cornelius kegs (soda / homebrew kegs) or a combination of 1/6 kegs and Cornelius kegs
A 20” width fridge will let you fit
- 1- 1/2 barrel keg (typically called full size keg) or 2-1/6 barrel kegs or 2-Cornelius kegs (soda / homebrew kegs) or a combination of 1/6 kegs and Cornelius kegs
An 18” width fridge will let you fit
- 1-1/6 barrel kegs or 1-Cornelius kegs (soda / homebrew kegs) or a combination of 1/6 kegs and Cornelius kegs
For keg descriptions (size, quantity and variety) – I did a quick write up on it here
An alternative to kegerators is to convert a mini fridge or a chest freezer into a kegerator (called a Keezer). This is a less expensive method and potentially a little more attractive method to have a draft beer system at home … it removes the “I’m in college with a kegerator in my living room” look.
- these conversion kit systems typically cost:
- $175 for single faucet kit
- $250 for double faucet kit
- $450 for triple faucet kit
The downside to this is that you must provide your own fridge and requires a bit of a build.
We do assemble and sell custom draft beer systems here at Keg & Brew Supplies, however if you want to do this on the cheap, you can scoop up a cheap chest freezer as well as an inexpensive temperature controller (to keep the freezer at fridge temps) for $150-$400. The 7ish CU FT chest freezers can typically fit 1-1/2 barrel or 3-1/6 barrels or 3-1/6 Cornelius kegs or a combination of 1/6 barrel kegs and corny kegs. I have included a picture of one that I built that was a 11.2 cu ft freezer (I could fit 3 corny kegs and a couple 5 gallon glass carboys fermenting lagers!). It is typical to build a collar around the top to allow enough space for the coupler on top of the keg as well as a place to mount the faucets.
Now that I have explained the basics … moving onto commercial systems. These systems can be anything from large kegerator style systems, with under counter fridges that run lines up to bar top mounted towers, to the largest and most complicated of all systems. These large systems are cold rooms that hold the kegs and have glycol lined beer lines that run to the bar (sometimes a long distance away from the kegs). The prices on these systems vary greatly but usually start in the $2,000 frame and can go way way up from there.
If you are looking for a custom built system, we do stock a couple (Seen here).
If you need something specific to your needs, please send us a note, we can design a draft beer setup to fit whatever your needs are, contact us here.
CHEERS!