Home / Industries / How Much Does It Cost to Start a Bowling Alley? (2026 Figures)

How much does it cost to start a bowling alley?

By Muhammad Tayyab Shabbir, Business Plan Firm, the US practice of Avvale. Last updated 13 October 2026.

A new 16-lane bowling center in a leased shell runs roughly $2.19 million to $8.18 million all in, with a typical build around $4.56 million, or about $137,000 to $511,000 per lane, on Business Plan Firm's own planning estimates rather than any published index. That excludes buying land or the building. The largest line in our table is not the lanes but the shell fit-out, and the building has to take the lanes first: USBC minimums for the approach, the lane and the pit add up to nearly 80 feet of depth per lane row, and that runs only as far as the pit cushion, so measure any site before you sign a lease.

Verify every fee and license figure below with the named agency before committing capital. Fee schedules, quotas and auction results change, and the decision on any individual application belongs to that agency or lender.

Cost at a glance: 16-lane center, leased shell, United States, 2026

Named exclusions. These totals assume a leased shell. They exclude land purchase, building purchase, any landlord tenant improvement allowance you may negotiate back, and the price of acquiring an existing center as a going concern. Add those separately.

Why is per-lane cost quoted in four incompatible numbers?

A figure quoted for cost per lane can be any one of four different things. A price that does not say which cannot be compared with another.

1. FOB factory. Equipment priced at the factory gate, freight and duty excluded. The lowest of the four.
2. Landed. FOB plus ocean or road freight, customs duty, insurance and delivery to your dock.
3. Installed. Landed plus installation labor, manufacturer supervision days, lane laying, leveling and commissioning.
4. All-in project cost per lane. Installed equipment plus its share of the building, bar, arcade, fees and working capital. This is the number in the last row of our table.

When you request a quote, ask for it in writing with the Incoterm stated, the number of supervision days included, and whether freight and duty are the buyer's responsibility. Two quotes that look far apart can turn out close once they are put on the same basis. The per-lane figures in our table above are our own planning estimates and are not a published index.

String pinsetters or free-fall: which should you buy?

USBC has certified string pin bowling as an independent category of equipment and competition, effective 1 August 2023. Certified league and tournament play on string machines is therefore possible. USBC's initial research put strike percentage on string machines 7.1% below free-fall, but the scoring report it released on 9 November 2023 found "no statistically significant difference between the scoring pace of USBC-certified string pinsetters and traditional free-fall machines", and USBC said averages on the two would be interchangeable, with no conversion. Its November 2025 report on member averages (66 centers, 10,658 bowlers) has scoring "trending at 3.4 pins lower on string pinsetters", about 7 pins lower for bowlers averaging over 210, and says USBC is not pursuing an average adjustment. As of the USBC approval table, 13 string pinsetter models from manufacturers including Brunswick, QubicaAMF, Funk Bowling and US Bowling Corporation carry approval, with approval dates running from April 2023 to August 2026.

One specification to hold your installer to is string length. USBC's Equipment Specifications and Certifications Manual requires a minimum of 54 inches measured from the bottom of the stabilizing ring to the head of the pin with the string pulled tight, and states that "The string length must always be a minimum of 54 inches long." The manual says a center that shortens the string below the minimum is subject to loss of its center certification.

We retrieved no primary source comparing purchase price, parts or staffing for the two machine types, so get both quoted for your lane count with service priced in.

Refurbished equipment from closed centers is one route to the low end of our capex range. We have not surveyed prices for it and publish none, so budget an independent mechanical inspection before you commit.

What building do you actually need, and how much depth does a lane row take?

Work it from the USBC Equipment Specifications and Certifications Manual, which sets the dimensions your installer must hit:

• Approach: not less than 15 feet in length, unobstructed and level, free from depressions exceeding 1/4 inch.
• Lane: overall reference length of 62 feet, 10-3/16 inches from the lane side of the foul line to the rear edge of the pin deck, and 60 feet plus or minus 1/2 inch to the center of the No. 1 pin spot.
• Lane width: 41-1/2 inches plus or minus 1/2 inch, with a gutter 9-1/4 inches wide, plus or minus 1/4 inch, on each side. Kickback face to kickback face: 60-1/8 inches, which is the lane and its two gutters and nothing outside them. The manual's typical cross section (Figure 29) draws a further 2-3/4 inches outside one gutter and 2 to 10-1/2 inches outside the other, each starred with a note that it "is not a USBC specification but is an accepted standard for installing bowling lanes". We found no width per lane or per pair of lanes in the manual, so get the installed width of a lane pair from your installer before you measure a site.
• Pit length: minimum 25 inches from the end of the lane to the nearest point on the cushion, and a minimum of 35 inches where a string machine is installed.
• Lane surface tolerance: for new center installations, plus or minus 0.030 inch over a 42-inch span for crosswise tilt, crowns and depressions, and 0.040 inch over a 42-inch span for lengthwise tilt.

Add the minimums: 15 feet of approach plus 62 feet 10-3/16 inches of lane plus a 25-inch pit is 79 feet 11 inches of clear depth, rising to 80 feet 9 inches with a string machine. That depth runs only as far as the pit cushion: the manual sets the pit length in its specifications for the pinsetting device. We found no dimension in the manual for anything behind the cushion or for service access, so get the installed depth of your machine, and of any service aisle it needs, from your supplier. Then put a concourse, settees and a bar in front of the approach. On our own planning allowance for those zones, which is not a published standard, a lane row therefore needs well over 100 feet of clear depth.

Two consequences follow, and both are our own planning rules rather than published standards. First, allow around 1,000 square feet of building per lane once concourse, bar, kitchen, arcade, restrooms and back of house are included, keeping the bowling area itself to roughly half the building. Second, budget separately for slab preparation. The USBC tolerances above are for the finished lane surface, so ask your lane installer what it needs from the slab and have the slab surveyed before you sign a lease.

What licenses do you need, and what do they really cost?

A liquor license is not always a modest application fee. Where a state limits the number of licenses, it can be an asset you buy at auction or from an existing holder.

• New Jersey. The Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control states the rule this way in an advisory notice of 31 July 2024: "Generally, municipalities that have reached the population cap for plenary retail consumption licenses (one for every 3,000 municipal residents) cannot issue additional licenses." It cites N.J.S.A. 33:1-12.14, whose text we could not retrieve, so we rely on the Division's wording. Its handbook for retail licensees, revised November 2015, says "most persons obtain a license by purchasing an existing license and having it transferred to the purchaser". Two routes outside the cap opened on 1 August 2024: Shopping Mall licenses, for a food and beverage establishment in a qualifying mall of at least 750,000 gross square feet, at an initial fee of at least $250,000; and, under a notice of 26 July 2024, the transfer of an inactive license from an adjoining municipality into a qualifying redevelopment project.
• Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board auctions expired restaurant licenses by sealed bid. The minimum bid for each license is $25,000, and each bid must be accompanied by a bid surety of $5,000 or 5% of the total bid, whichever is higher. In the excess auction whose results were announced on 17 June 2026, top bids on 10 licenses ranged from $105,000 to $557,777, with an average top bid of $284,394.50. Every top bidder proposed to move its license to another county, and each "must also pay, in addition to the winning bid payment, a fee of $50,000 to transfer the license into the new county", which puts bid plus fee on those ten licenses at $155,000 to $607,777. In the 16th regular auction of 20 licenses, whose results the PLCB announced on 8 October 2026, top bids ranged from $30,000 to $350,000, the average top bid was $114,497 and four licenses received no valid bids. Licenses in that auction, unlike those in the excess auction, "cannot be transferred across county lines". Winners have up to 30 days to remit payment and up to six months to submit a license application.
• California. The Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control charges $19,840 as the application fee for a general license obtained through the priority drawing, covering types 21, 47, 48, 57, 71, 72, 75, 87 and 88, under the application fee schedule effective 1 January 2026. A person-to-person transfer including a general license is $1,565. The department has posted the amounts that apply from 1 January 2027: $20,495 and $1,620.

On the family entertainment center side, amusement rides and attractions can carry their own state rules. Pennsylvania is a useful example because the rules are specific and the fees are published: under 7 Pa. Code Chapter 139, an amusement ride or amusement attraction at any location, amusement parks included, must be inspected before operating for the riding public and monthly thereafter during a season of operation; the Department of Agriculture does not charge for issuing a registration plate, though "it will charge a registrant $30 to replace a lost or obliterated registration plate", and a qualified inspector's application fee is $50 with the same fee on renewal every three years. The chapter's own examples of simple rides include bumper cars, go-carts and inflatable bounce rides; waterslides are outside it to the extent the Department of Health regulates them. We did not check redemption and skill-game rules for this page. Ask your state's gaming or amusement regulator directly; we are not going to guess on your behalf.

Local approvals come on top. We did not check them for any one city, so ask your building, health and fire departments which permits and inspections your project needs and obtain the published fee schedule rather than accepting any generic national range.

How long does approval take?

There is no national answer, but three published timing rules are worth planning around. USBC requires that new center installations be inspected within 14 days of completion of the installation, or within 14 days of USBC being notified. A PLCB auction winner has up to 30 days to pay and up to six months to file the license application. On the finance side, where a 504 Project needs a real estate appraisal, that appraisal must be submitted to and approved by SBA's Sacramento Loan Processing Center before closing, except on delegated loans.

Our own scheduling rule, not a published standard: run the liquor license search and any appraisal in parallel with design, not after it.

How do buyers finance a bowling alley, and why does SBA treat it differently?

SBA SOP 50 10 8.1, in force since 1 October 2026, lists bowling alleys as an example of a Limited or Special Purpose Property. The list sits in the 504 chapter (Section C, Chapter 1, under Borrower's Contribution) and is introduced with the words "This list is not intended to be all-inclusive and SBA may determine that other properties meet the Limited or Special Purpose Property definition." Appendix 3 gives that definition: "A limited-market property with a unique physical design, special construction materials, or a layout that restricts its utility to the use for which it was built." Directly above the list: "CDCs must address whether the Project Property is Limited or Special Purpose in their credit memorandum and include an explanation of their conclusion." So ask your CDC how it will treat your site, a leased shell included. For a leased site the same chapter adds, under Adequacy of Collateral: "Because leasehold improvements provide minimal collateral value, the CDC must consider requiring additional collateral."

That classification changes the 504 structure:

• Standard project: borrower contributes at least 10%. The SOP's typical structure is 50% Third Party Lender, 40% debenture, 10% borrower.
• New business, or a Limited or Special Purpose Property: borrower contributes at least 15%, the debenture finances no more than 35%, and at least 50% comes from banks or other financial institutions, state or local government, or foundations or other non-profit institutions. Appendix 3 defines a New Business as "A business that has been in operation for 2 years or less at the time the loan is approved." The same entry says a business in operation for more than 2 years "may be considered a New Business if it is a change of ownership that will result in new, unproven ownership/management and increased debt unrelated to business operations", and that on a change of ownership "the CDC must review the management and level of debt in order to decide whether an additional Borrower's contribution of 5% is necessary".
• Both a new business and a Limited or Special Purpose Property: the applicant must contribute at least 20% and the debenture finances no more than 30%.

If your CDC classes the Project Property as Limited or Special Purpose and the business is a New Business, the Project is both and the 20% tier applies. If the whole $4,555,000 were the 504 Project, that is the difference between a $455,500 contribution at the standard 10% and $911,000 at 20%, with the debenture falling from $1,822,000 to $1,366,500. Model the 20% until your CDC confirms otherwise. One case the SOP treats differently is an existing operator adding a center: "When an existing business starts a business that is in the same 3-digit NAICS code with identical ownership, and they are Co-Borrowers, SBA considers this to be a business expansion and not a new business."

Two limits on that arithmetic. The SOP measures the contribution on the Project, "excluding administrative costs", and Appendix 3 defines a Project as the purchase, lease, improvement or renovation of long-term fixed assets. Working capital and opening inventory are not fixed assets, so ask your CDC which lines of our table it counts (our SBA 504 loan requirements page sets out what 504 proceeds can pay for). And the contribution need not be cash: land that is part of the Project Property, or borrowed funds subordinate to the Third Party Loan and the 504 debenture, also count.

The 504 appraisal rules in Section C, Chapter 1 sit under separate headings. Those under Commercial Real Estate open: "SBA requires a real estate appraisal if the estimated value of the Project Property is greater than $500,000." Our table prices a leased shell with no land or building purchase, so ask your CDC whether they apply to your Project. Where they do: "When the collateral is a Special Purpose Property, the appraiser must be experienced in the particular industry." And if the appraisal comes in at less than 90% of the estimated value, the debenture must be reduced or, if available, the CDC must secure additional collateral or additional investment that is added to your required contribution; failing both, the Sacramento Loan Processing Center can still approve the appraisal where the applicant shows strong, consistent cash flow sufficient to support the debt. Buying an existing center faces a higher bar, which SOP 50 10 8.1 widened: "For both non-arm's length transactions and change of ownership projects, the property must appraise for 100% of the estimated value." SOP 50 10 8 said "non-arm's length change of ownership projects". Under Equipment Appraisal, for used equipment such as lanes and pinsetters: "SBA requires that an equipment appraisal be obtained when used equipment is part of the Project and is either being purchased from someone other than an equipment dealer or being refinanced."

On the 7(a) side, SOP 50 10 8.1 sets the maximum for any one Standard 7(a) loan at $5,000,000 (Section B, Chapter 1) and says "All 7(a) loans made to a Start-Up Business require a 10% equity injection based on the project cost", where SBA treats a business as a start-up if it has been generating revenue from intended operations for one year or less. That one-year test is separate from the two-year New Business test on the 504 side; our SBA equity injection requirements page sets out both. The 504 gross debenture is limited to "an outstanding maximum balance of $5,000,000 in the aggregate for each small business concern, including its affiliates", except for Eligible Energy Public Policy Projects and Projects for Small Manufacturers, with a $25,000 minimum debenture (Section C, Chapter 1, Debenture Limits).

Note the edition. SOP 50 10 8.1 took effect on 1 October 2026 and replaced SOP 50 10 8. Under Information Notice 5000-882227 of 25 September 2026 it applies to applications SBA received on or after 1 October 2026, and SOP 50 10 8 stays in use for applications submitted through 30 September 2026. The special purpose list, the contribution tiers and the typical 504 structures read the same in both editions. Confirm the contribution that applies to your project with your CDC before you model your equity.

What do the operating economics look like?

Here is what we could verify from a dated primary source. Bureau of Labor Statistics Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages figures for NAICS 713950 Bowling Centers, private ownership, show 3,320 establishments nationally in 2025 employing an annual average of 67,891 people, down from 3,360 establishments and 68,921 employees in 2024. Average weekly wage was $497 in 2025, up from $482 in 2024, and average annual pay was $25,846.

Read those numbers carefully. They work out to roughly 20 jobs per center at an average annual pay of $25,846. The data counts jobs and pay, not hours, so it does not say how much of that work is part-time: build your payroll from your own schedule of staffed hours, not from a headcount. Establishments fell by 40 and employment by 1,030 in a year. The data does not say why, so test whether your trade area can support another center before you assume it can.

We have not published lineage per lane per day or per-head spend figures here because we could not retrieve them from a named primary source. If you want them, ask the Bowling Proprietors' Association of America whether it provides them to members, or commission a market study for your specific trade area. Do not take a national average off a content site and underwrite a $4 million project with it.

What makes bowling alley projects fail?

• The equity gap discovered late. The founder modeled 10% and the Project falls in the 20% tier. If our whole typical build cost were the 504 Project, that is a gap of $455,500.
• A site that cannot take the depth. Signing a lease before confirming the clear depth is there: nearly 80 feet on USBC minimums alone, and more than 100 feet on our planning allowance.
• Treating the liquor license as a fee. In a quota state the license can be a six-figure asset purchase with its own timeline and its own financing question.
• Deciding string versus free-fall after the lease is signed. USBC's minimum pit length is 25 inches, or 35 inches where a string machine is installed, so the choice changes the depth you need.

Is this viable for you? Sometimes the answer is no

Be honest about three tests. If you cannot put together the contribution your CDC confirms, which at the 20% tier would be $911,000 if our whole typical 16-lane build cost were the 504 Project, a 504 on those terms does not fit a project of that size and you should reduce lane count or find a partner. Buying an existing center is not a way around the tier by itself, because a change of ownership may be considered a New Business. If no site in your trade area can take the depth worked out above, the answer is no until a suitable building appears; fighting the building is not a strategy. And if you are in a quota state and have not priced a license in your specific municipality, you do not yet have a budget, you have a guess.

A smaller concept of six to eight lanes with a heavier bar and food weighting needs less width but the same depth per lane row. Plan it as a hospitality business with lanes, not as a smaller bowling center.

Frequently asked questions

Is a bowling alley classed as a special purpose property by the SBA?

For the SBA 504 borrower contribution, yes: SOP 50 10 8.1 lists bowling alleys among examples of Limited or Special Purpose Property, and the CDC must address the classification. The minimum contribution is 15%, or 20% for a New Business: one in operation 2 years or less at approval. A change of ownership with new, unproven ownership or management and increased debt unrelated to business operations may be considered one.

How much equity do I need for an SBA 504 bowling alley loan?

Under SOP 50 10 8.1, at least 20% of the 504 Project cost if the Project finances both a New Business (in operation 2 years or less at approval) and a Limited or Special Purpose Property. The debenture then finances no more than 30% and at least 50% comes from a bank or other qualifying source. If our whole $4,555,000 typical bowling alley build were the Project, that is $911,000.

Can I still run certified leagues on string pinsetters?

Yes. USBC certified string pinsetters and string pin bowling as an independent category of equipment and competition effective 1 August 2023, with 13 approved models listed on 11 October 2026. USBC said in November 2023 that averages on certified string and free-fall machines are interchangeable, and its November 2025 report has scoring trending 3.4 pins lower on string machines. Your center must pass a USBC certification inspection.

How much space does a bowling lane need?

USBC minimums are 15 feet of approach, a lane with a reference length of 62 feet 10-3/16 inches, and a pit of at least 25 inches, or 35 inches with a string machine. That is 79 feet 11 inches to 80 feet 9 inches of clear depth to the pit cushion. The lane and its gutters are about five feet wide. Installed lanes take more: ask your installer how much.

How much is a liquor license for a bowling alley?

It depends on your state. Pennsylvania's liquor license auctions have a $25,000 minimum bid; top bids in the June 2026 excess auction ran from $105,000 to $557,777, plus a $50,000 county transfer fee. California charges $19,840 for a general license application through its priority drawing. New Jersey municipalities at the cap of one plenary retail consumption license per 3,000 residents generally cannot issue more. Ask your state agency directly.

Should I buy refurbished pinsetters?

It can take you to the low end of our equipment range. We have not surveyed used equipment prices and publish none. Commission an independent mechanical inspection and confirm parts availability for the specific model before you transfer funds. On a 504 Project, SOP 50 10 8.1 requires an equipment appraisal when used equipment is bought from someone other than an equipment dealer.

Can I finance a bowling alley with a 7(a) loan instead?

Standard 7(a) loans have a maximum of $5,000,000 and require a 10% equity injection based on project cost for a start-up, which SBA defines as a business generating revenue from intended operations for one year or less. A 504 Project is the purchase, lease, improvement or renovation of long-term fixed assets, which working capital and opening inventory are not. Ask a lender and a CDC which program fits yours.

What your plan should show before you approach a CDC or a bank

Have these ready. Where an item rests on the 504 chapter of SOP 50 10 8.1 (Section C, Chapter 1) we quote it; the rest are our recommendations, not SBA wording.

• A total project cost schedule with every line item and a named source for each, matching the structure of the table above. A 504 application includes "Copies of key cost documents such as contractor costs, estimates, vendor quotes for machinery and equipment".
• At least two years of projections with the assumptions justified. On a 504 loan, where historical cash flow does not show sufficient debt service coverage, "the analysis must include a minimum of 2 years of projections" and the CDC must calculate the projected debt service coverage.
• The borrower contribution, modeled at 20% for a New Business in a Limited or Special Purpose Property until your CDC confirms the tier, with the source of funds shown.
• A signed letter of intent or lease stating the clear dimensions and the slab specification, plus the landlord's work letter.
• Written equipment quotes stating the Incoterm, freight and duty responsibility, installation scope and supervision days.
• Evidence of the liquor license route: a purchase agreement, an auction bid, or your state agency's written confirmation that a license is available.
• A market study for your specific trade area, not national averages. On a 504 loan SBA may request a feasibility study, and the causes the SOP lists include "Highly specialized Project property".

We build exactly these packages. Feasibility studies run $3,900, $6,500 and $9,800, with complex multi-site work from $14,000. SBA loan plans are $1,000, $1,800 and $2,500. Financial models are $750, $1,250 and $1,950.

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Written by Muhammad Tayyab Shabbir. Business Plan Firm is the US practice of Avvale, a London consultancy. We have supported 500+ founders across 30+ countries and our clients have raised $500M+, consulting since 2019. Avvale Ltd was incorporated in April 2023, company no. 14805382.

Figures first retrieved 11 September 2026. The SBA rules (SOP 50 10 8.1, effective 1 October 2026) and the USBC, PLCB, New Jersey ABC, California ABC, Pennsylvania Code and BLS figures were checked again against the named sources on 11 October 2026. Verify all fees, quotas and SBA terms with the named agency or your lender before committing capital.

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