A harm reduction vending machine costs about US$800–1,500 for a compact wall-mount unit at our published prices, and from US$1,200 to US$2,100 for floor-standing models. That is the cabinet. Over a three-year program, software, restocking labour, connectivity and evaluation usually cost more than the machines, and for naloxone the product itself can outweigh everything else. This page sets out our hardware bands, the options that move them, what published programs have spent, a worked three-year budget with every assumption labelled, how programs pay for it, and where a machine is the wrong use of the money.
Quick answer
- Hardware: compact wall-mount US$800–1,500; BG10X10 from US$1,200; KF10X22 from US$2,100. Freight, duty and installation are extra.
- Software: a published code-and-quota system cost US$11,000 to build and about US$200 a month.
- Running costs: stock, restocking labour, 4G at about US$5–10 per machine per month, software fees and evaluation.
- Published programs: from $7,635 for one stocked machine (Ozaukee County, 2026) to about $161,700 for six stocked and maintained machines (Shasta County, 2025).
- Funding: mostly opioid settlement funds and state health budgets in the US; state health funding in Australia. Since 24 April 2026, HHS funds can buy naloxone and its distribution boxes but not syringes or test strips.
What the machine costs
These are the starting prices published on our vending machine cost page, mapped to harm reduction use.
| Platform | Published price (USD) | Typical harm reduction use | Temperature |
|---|---|---|---|
| Compact wall-mount | 800–1,500 | Naloxone cartons, test strips, small kits in an indoor or sheltered position | Ambient |
| BG10X10 touchscreen | from 1,200 | A wider range with on-screen instructions | Ambient or refrigerated |
| KF10X22 full-size | from 2,100 | Larger kits, high-volume sites, mixed ranges | Ambient or refrigerated |
Every machine is built to order in our partner factories, so these are starting points, not prices for a finished configuration. Standard models can be ordered singly; a full custom enclosure typically starts at about ten units. Build time is about 4–6 weeks for a modified standard machine and 8–12 weeks for a custom design, with shipping on top.
What moves the price
| Option | What it does | Cost effect |
|---|---|---|
| Touchscreen (7- to 32-inch Android) | Instructions, languages, on-screen questions, code entry | Raises the price within or above the band; a wall-mount unit can also run screen-free with a QR code |
| Cellular (4G) | Stock alerts, fault alerts and data without the host’s Wi-Fi | Modem in the hardware; data plan about US$5–10 per machine per month |
| Temperature monitoring | Logs and alerts when the cabinet leaves the label range | Optional sensor and reporting, quoted per project |
| Refrigerated cabinet | Active cooling where the site cannot be relied on | Floor-standing models only; refrigerated costs more than ambient |
| Code and quota software | Registration on the user’s phone, codes, per-person limits across machines | Published project: US$11,000 build, about US$200 a month |
| Questionnaire backend | Optional questions before release, feeding evaluation | On one published five-machine pilot, the software and cloud cost about US$20,000, roughly the same as the hardware |
| Custom enclosure and branding | Program colours, pictograms, distinct look from syringe units | Panel artwork is modest; a new enclosure needs volume |
| Payment hardware | Only if users pay | Free vend, codes and QR need no reader |
The control choices behind these lines, such as push button versus code, and per-vend versus per-period limits, are explained in controlled dispensing on harm reduction machines and on-screen questions.
What published programs have cost
These are third-party figures, not KioskForce prices. Each bundles different things, so read the “what it covers” column before comparing.
| Program | Date | What it covers | Figure | Funding |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ozaukee County, Wisconsin | Approved 3 June 2026 | One machine, installation at Mequon Health Center, initial stock of naloxone, fentanyl test strips and other supplies | $7,635 | County Opioid Settlement Special Revenue Fund |
| Shasta County, California | Approved 21 October 2025 | Six naloxone machines; the Shasta Substance Use Coalition stocks and maintains them | About $161,700 (about $26,950 each, our arithmetic) | Opioid settlement funds |
| New York City | Announced 2022; halted May 2024 | Ten public health vending machines planned; four installed | Nearly $750,000 city funding | City funds |
| New York City, Staten Island | Opened 29 June 2026 | Two more machines; earlier machines used over 73,000 times, 6,600+ naloxone kits | From $12 million opioid settlement allocation (2023), program-wide | Opioid settlement funds |
| Naloxone Texas | 2025 | 112 machines planned statewide, code release | Not published | State funding through Texas HHSC, with SAMHSA support |
| Tbilisi, Georgia (syringe machines) | April 2018 – December 2020 | Ten machines over 33 months, including staff, kits and equipment | €204,358 total; €7 per transaction | Not covered here |
Two things stand out. Scope swings the total far more than hardware does: Ozaukee’s figure buys a machine and its first fill, while Shasta’s includes ongoing stocking and maintenance. And NYC’s experience is a cost warning of a different kind: money was available, but the program stopped at four machines because, the health department said, not enough eligible organisations were interested in managing them.
Running costs to budget for
- Stock. For naloxone this is usually the largest line. Narcan’s manufacturer’s suggested retail price at its US over-the-counter launch was $44.99 per two-dose carton, and its public interest price for organisations serving people at risk was $41.00 per carton from 31 August 2023. Many programs get naloxone through a state or national supply program instead, in which case this line falls away; Australia’s Take Home Naloxone program supplies it free through approved providers.
- Restocking labour. Someone visits, refills, rotates stock by expiry date, clears faults and answers the help line. In the Tbilisi syringe-machine cost study, staff were 51% of total cost, kits 28% and equipment 10%.
- Connectivity. About US$5–10 per machine per month for 4G.
- Software and platform fees. Our cloud dashboard is included with the machine; custom code-and-quota software on our published projects runs at about US$200 a month.
- Evaluation. Funders ask for data, and someone has to turn exports into reports. Budget it as its own line.
- Spares and repairs. A 12-month warranty covers manufacturing defects. Support is by email; where a local distributor supplied the machine, it handles warranty and service. Otherwise your own staff or contractor fit the parts we ship.
- Disposal. If a sharps bin sits beside a syringe machine, collection is a recurring cost.
A worked three-year budget (illustrative)
This is an illustration, not a quotation. It uses our published figures where they exist; every other number is an assumption, labelled as such, for you to replace with your own.
Scenario: five compact wall-mount naloxone machines with touchscreens, 4G and temperature monitoring, code release with a per-person limit, indoor conditioned sites, 30 cartons per machine per month.
| Line | Basis | Three-year figure (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| Machines | 5 × US$1,500 (top of the published band, assuming options) | 7,500 |
| Freight, duty and installation | Assumption: 25% of hardware; get a broker’s and installer’s estimate | 1,875 |
| Code and quota software, build | Published comparable project | 11,000 |
| Software, running | US$200 × 36 months (published comparable project) | 7,200 |
| Connectivity | 5 × US$10 × 36 months | 1,800 |
| Restocking labour | Assumption: 1 hour per machine per week at US$40 per hour, loaded | 31,200 |
| Evaluation | Assumption: allowance for analysis and reporting | 10,000 |
| Spares after warranty | Assumption: 5% of hardware per year in years 2–3 | 750 |
| Subtotal before stock | 71,325 | |
| Naloxone | 5,400 cartons × US$41.00 public interest price; nil if supplied by a state program | 221,400 |
| Total with purchased naloxone | 292,725 |
Even with the machines at the top of the band, hardware is about 3% of the total with purchased naloxone and about 10% of the cost before stock. Labour, software and product are where the money goes.
Cost per carton dispensed
Most of the subtotal is fixed, so the cost per carton depends on how much the machines are used. Holding the subtotal at US$71,325:
| Cartons per machine per month | Cartons over 3 years (5 machines) | Machine-related cost per carton | Plus naloxone at US$41 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 1,800 | about US$40 | about US$81 |
| 30 | 5,400 | about US$13 | about US$54 |
| 60 | 10,800 | about US$7 | about US$48 |
The Tbilisi study found the same pattern in real data: fixed cost per transaction fell below €1 at its peak month of 4,714 transactions. Placement drives volume, which is why siting matters to the budget as much as to access; see where to put a harm reduction vending machine.
How programs pay for it
United States
- Opioid settlement funds pay for most recent naloxone machines: Shasta County, Ozaukee County and New York City, and Howard County, Maryland, from its Opioid Restitution Fund in July 2026. Johns Hopkins’ opioid settlement principles project says settlement funds can support the machines and their stocking.
- State funds. Naloxone Texas is funded through the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, with SAMHSA support. In Boston, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health’s Bureau of Substance Addiction Services bought four public health vending machines announced in June 2026.
- Braided funding. More than half of the syringe services programs interviewed by RTI International combined funding sources, and some used donated machines.
- Federal HHS funds, after 24 April 2026. SAMHSA’s Dear Colleague letter lists as supportable “opioid overdose reversal medications (OORMs) such as naloxone and nalmefene” and “distribution mechanisms (e.g., bags or metal boxes/containers) for OORMs”. It states that no HHS funding can be used to purchase or distribute syringes or needles used to inject illicit drugs, pipes or safer smoking supplies, or “fentanyl test strips or any other substance test kits, including xylazine and medetomidine test strips, intended for use by people using drugs”, and none for sterile water, saline or ascorbic acid. The test-strip bar does not apply to law enforcement, EMS, public health officials or clinicians in their professional duties. A machine that stocks naloxone alongside test strips or syringes therefore needs non-HHS money for those items. Whether your machine counts as a “distribution mechanism” under your grant is a question for your grants officer.
Australia
- State health budgets fund the machines: Victoria’s 20-machine naloxone trial sits within the $95.1 million Statewide Action Plan announced in April 2025, and runs until June 2027.
- Naloxone itself is supplied free without prescription through the national Take Home Naloxone program, via approved providers, which removes the largest US running cost. See naloxone vending machines for how a machine fits inside that program.
This is a summary for planning, not legal or grant advice. Rules change; confirm with your funder. Facts stated as of October 2026.
What to send for an accurate quote
- Products and carton dimensions, and whether naloxone shares the cabinet with other items.
- Number of sites, their temperature ranges and whether each is indoor or sheltered.
- Release method and limits: push button, code, card or PIN; per-vend and per-period.
- Questions and data fields the funder needs, and the export format.
- Connectivity at each site, and who provides it.
- Delivery country, so freight can be priced, and who installs.
The quotation lists the cabinet, options and software as separate lines, so you can map each to a funding source. Tender-style requirements are set out in our naloxone dispensing machine specification, and the harm reduction hub covers the rest of the cluster. Send it all through the contact page.
Our public health proof points are the HIVConnect and MyTest HIV self-test programs: compact wall-mount machines, a few questions on the user’s phone, a code, a per-person quota and nothing personal stored on the machine. We have not supplied machines to a naloxone, syringe or test-strip program; the same platform and controls are what those programs need.
Where a machine is the wrong answer
- Low demand. At 10 cartons a month, the illustrative cost per carton before stock is about US$40. A staffed outreach session that already runs, a basket at a reception desk, or a simple locked box may reach the same people for less. RTI found two programs using refurbished newspaper stands as a less resource-intensive option.
- No one to restock. Restocking labour is the largest non-product cost, and a free machine that is often empty damages trust.
- Engagement is the aim. RTI’s interviewees were clear that vending machines cannot replace face-to-face engagement and the connections to services it produces.
- No host willing to manage it. NYC had the money and not the hosts. Secure host agreements before the order.
- The items cannot be funded. If the money is HHS money and the stock is syringes or test strips, the budget does not work; find other funds first.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a harm reduction vending machine cost?
At KioskForce’s published prices, a compact wall-mount machine costs about US$800 to 1,500 depending on configuration, and floor-standing machines start from US$1,200 (BG10X10) and US$2,100 (KF10X22). Those prices are for the cabinet before freight, duty and installation. Options such as a touchscreen, cellular connectivity and temperature monitoring move the price within or above those bands, and software for codes and quotas is quoted separately. A published code-and-quota project cost US$11,000 to build plus about US$200 a month.
How much does a naloxone vending machine program cost?
Published figures vary because they cover different things. Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, approved $7,635 in June 2026 for one machine, its installation and initial stock. Shasta County, California, approved about $161,700 in October 2025 for six naloxone machines stocked and maintained by a local coalition. New York City allocated nearly $750,000 for ten public health vending machines announced in 2022 but installed four. Ask what each figure includes before comparing: machines, software, installation, months of stock and who restocks.
What are the running costs of a harm reduction vending machine?
Stock, restocking labour, connectivity, software fees and evaluation. Stock is often the largest line: Narcan’s public interest price was $41.00 per two-dose carton from August 2023. Staff time is next: in a costed syringe vending program in Tbilisi, Georgia, staff made up 51 percent of total cost. A 4G data plan typically costs US$5 to 10 per machine per month. Published code-and-quota software runs at about US$200 a month. Budget evaluation explicitly, because funders will ask for it.
Can opioid settlement funds pay for a naloxone vending machine?
Many US counties and cities have used them. Shasta County, California, Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, and New York City funded naloxone or public health vending machines from opioid settlement money, and Howard County, Maryland, used its Opioid Restitution Fund. Johns Hopkins’ opioid settlement principles project says settlement funds can support the machines and their stocking. Check your own state’s settlement terms and local spending plan before committing.
Can federal HHS or SAMHSA funds buy a harm reduction vending machine?
For naloxone, largely yes; for some other items, no. SAMHSA’s Dear Colleague letter of 24 April 2026 lists overdose reversal medications such as naloxone and nalmefene, and distribution mechanisms such as bags or metal boxes or containers for them, as supportable. It says no HHS funding may buy syringes or needles used to inject illicit drugs, safer smoking supplies, or fentanyl, xylazine and medetomidine test strips intended for people using drugs. A machine stocking both needs other funds for those items. Confirm with your grants officer.
What does it cost per naloxone kit dispensed?
It depends mostly on volume, because most machine costs are fixed. In our illustrative five-machine, three-year example, the cost of machines, software, connectivity, restocking and evaluation works out at about US$40 per carton at 10 cartons per machine per month, about US$13 at 30, and under US$7 at 60, before the cost of the naloxone itself. The Tbilisi cost study found the same pattern: fixed cost per transaction fell below one euro at peak use.
When is a harm reduction vending machine not worth the cost?
When demand at the site is low, when nobody owns restocking, or when the program’s real aim is engagement rather than access. At low volume the fixed cost per item dispensed is high, and a staffed outreach session, a basket at a reception desk or a newspaper-box style dispenser may reach the same people for less. Machines earn their cost where demand is steady, especially outside service hours, and where a program already has staff to restock them.
References
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration — “Dear Colleague” letter, updated harm reduction funding guidance (24 April 2026). https://www.samhsa.gov/sites/default/files/dear-colleague-letter-upated-hr-funding-guidance.pdf
- Shasta Scout — “Shasta supervisors approve naloxone vending machines after some debate” (22 October 2025). https://shastascout.org/shasta-supervisors-approve-naloxone-vending/
- Ozaukee Press — “County to buy anti-overdose vending machine” (3 June 2026). https://www.ozaukeepress.com/content/county-buy-anti-overdose-vending-machine
- Route Fifty / THE CITY — “New York City’s public health vending machine program ends up with just 4 installed out of 10 announced” (29 July 2024). https://www.route-fifty.com/management/2024/07/new-york-citys-public-health-vending-machine-program-ends-just-4-installed-out-10-announced/398399/
- NYC Mayor’s Office — “Mayor Mamdani Opens City’s First Public Health Vending Machines on Staten Island” (29 June 2026). https://www.nyc.gov/mayors-office/news/2026/06/mayor-mamdani-opens-city-s-first-public-health-vending-machines-
- Walker JG et al. — “Costs of syringe vending machines in Tbilisi, Georgia”, Harm Reduction Journal 20:103 (2 August 2023). https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10394772/
- Emergent BioSolutions via U.S. SEC — “NARCAN Nasal Spray launches over the counter” (30 August 2023). https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1367644/000136764423000163/a08302023otc.htm
- Philbrick S et al., RTI International — “Vending machines: A tool for distributing harm reduction equipment” (2025). https://harmreduction.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Vending-Machines-for-Harm-Reduction-2025.pdf
Also consulted: Be Well Texas, “Narcan vending machines help prevent opioid overdoses” (August 2025), https://bewelltexas.org/narcan-vending-machines-help-prevent-opioid-overdoses/; Maryland Association of Counties, “Howard County Launches 24/7 Overdose Prevention Vending Machines” (9 July 2026), https://conduitstreet.mdcounties.org/2026/07/09/howard-county-launches-24-7-overdose-prevention-vending-machines/; City of Boston, “Public Health Vending Machines And Naloxone Access Points Announced Across Boston” (23 June 2026), https://www.boston.gov/news/public-health-vending-machines-and-naloxone-access-points-announced-across-boston; Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, “Harm reduction vending machines: what are they and do they work?”, https://opioidprinciples.jhsph.edu/harm-reduction-vending-machines-what-are-they-and-do-they-work/; Premier of Victoria, “More Access To Life-Saving Medication To Reverse Overdose” (22 April 2025), https://www.premier.vic.gov.au/more-access-life-saving-medication-reverse-overdose.
Related
- Harm reduction vending machines — the cluster hub.
- Naloxone dispensing machine specification
- Controlled dispensing on harm reduction vending machines
- Do harm reduction vending machines work?
- Syringe vending machines
- Naloxone (Narcan) vending machines
- What a medicine vending machine costs
Talk to us about a harm reduction vending budget
Send the products, the number of sites, the release method and what your funder needs reported. We will come back with a configuration and a quotation that prices the cabinet, the options and the software as separate lines.
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