India has established itself as one of the world’s most advanced and mature flexible office ecosystems, scoring 100 on Cushman & Wakefield’s maturity index.
India has outpaced its global peers with well-established office markets, including the United Kingdom at 98%, France at 97%, the United States at 81%, and both Japan and Singapore at 77%.
To gauge market maturity, measures including flexible inventory as a percentage of total office space; the number of flexible providers in a market; leasing activity of flexible providers; the presence of emerging flexible agreement structures; and other variables were taken into consideration.
“India’s flexible office sector is widely recognised as a global pacesetter. What sets it apart is the maturity, diversity of operators, and its ability to pivot with demand—qualities that many Western markets are still developing. With more operators entering, leasing volumes rising, and IPOs validating the sector, India has built the world’s most agile, enterprise-ready ecosystem,” said Ramita Arora, Head – Flex, India, Cushman & Wakefield.
India today is the largest flexible office market in APAC, with 79.7 million square feet (MSF) of stock across the top eight cities as of Q2 2025. It is expected to reach 85 MSF by year-end and surpass 100 MSF by 2026.
“One of the reasons India’s flexible office market has surged ahead is because commercial real estate remains largely unorganised and non-transparent, unlike the residential sector which is governed by RERA. This opacity adds another layer of complexity for global companies and GCCs, making it challenging to navigate real estate transactions, government regulations, local state and labour laws, fit-outs, and day-to-day operations,” said Shruti Singh, co-founder and director, operations of Carbon Guardians, which is in the design & build and managed offices business.
“Partnering with a single operator who can integrate all these aspects provides much-needed efficiency and reliability — and that has positioned India as one of the most mature flexible office ecosystems globally,” Singh said.
Since 2020, flex demand has risen nearly sixfold, fueled by occupiers prioritising shorter commitments, managed solutions, and speed-to-market strategies. In 2024 alone, flexible space accounted for 15% of total new office leasing, confirming its mainstream adoption.
“India’s commercial office stock is expanding at an unprecedented pace, with flexible workspaces becoming integral to modern enterprise culture. The sector has grown at a remarkable 23–24% CAGR between 2020 and 2024, underscoring its transformation from an alternative to a mainstream strategy for enterprises. With the country projected to reach 1 bn square feet of office stock in the next decade, managed campuses will continue to play a defining role,” said Neetish Sarda, founder and MD, Smartworks.
Operator expansion has also accelerated sharply. Over the past three years (2022–2024), flexible workspace providers leased 33.5 MSF, equivalent to 500,000+ seats. Annual operator take-up has tripled in just five years, from 4.3 MSF in 2020 to 15.4 MSF in 2024.
Flexibility and agility are driving India’s flex space story, and this trend is set to accelerate as firms actively seek business-ready offices to rapidly scale or adjust headcount as needed. The bulk of this demand is coming from international enterprises, which accounted for 72% of flex seat absorption in 2024, while start-ups took up 28%.
The significant influx of Global Capability Centres and other new companies entering India is accelerating this shift, further solidifying flexible workspaces as the preferred model for companies seeking speed, resilience, and growth in a dynamic market.
The managed office/enterprise model now dominates, accounting for 70–80% of demand post-COVID, well ahead of traditional coworking.
The bulk of this stock remains concentrated in the top eight cities, with Bengaluru leading the charge with 30% of national flex inventory, followed by Delhi NCR, Pune, and Hyderabad. Bengaluru also leads demand with an average of one-third of annual enterprise transactions in the country.
Beyond these leading metros, occupiers are increasingly expanding to Tier II cities such as Chandigarh, Jaipur, Kochi, Trivandrum, Coimbatore, Visakhapatnam, and Bhubaneswar to tap into new talent pools and capitalise on lower operating costs.
India’s flexible office sector is also drawing strong institutional validation. Four operators have already gone public, with more IPOs expected, signaling heightened transparency, governance, and investor confidence. The next three to five years are expected to bring consolidation, with leading players cementing their market share while niche and regional operators continue to serve specialised requirements.
India has outpaced its global peers with well-established office markets, including the United Kingdom at 98%, France at 97%, the United States at 81%, and both Japan and Singapore at 77%.
To gauge market maturity, measures including flexible inventory as a percentage of total office space; the number of flexible providers in a market; leasing activity of flexible providers; the presence of emerging flexible agreement structures; and other variables were taken into consideration.
“India’s flexible office sector is widely recognised as a global pacesetter. What sets it apart is the maturity, diversity of operators, and its ability to pivot with demand—qualities that many Western markets are still developing. With more operators entering, leasing volumes rising, and IPOs validating the sector, India has built the world’s most agile, enterprise-ready ecosystem,” said Ramita Arora, Head – Flex, India, Cushman & Wakefield.
India today is the largest flexible office market in APAC, with 79.7 million square feet (MSF) of stock across the top eight cities as of Q2 2025. It is expected to reach 85 MSF by year-end and surpass 100 MSF by 2026.
“One of the reasons India’s flexible office market has surged ahead is because commercial real estate remains largely unorganised and non-transparent, unlike the residential sector which is governed by RERA. This opacity adds another layer of complexity for global companies and GCCs, making it challenging to navigate real estate transactions, government regulations, local state and labour laws, fit-outs, and day-to-day operations,” said Shruti Singh, co-founder and director, operations of Carbon Guardians, which is in the design & build and managed offices business.
“Partnering with a single operator who can integrate all these aspects provides much-needed efficiency and reliability — and that has positioned India as one of the most mature flexible office ecosystems globally,” Singh said.
Since 2020, flex demand has risen nearly sixfold, fueled by occupiers prioritising shorter commitments, managed solutions, and speed-to-market strategies. In 2024 alone, flexible space accounted for 15% of total new office leasing, confirming its mainstream adoption.
“India’s commercial office stock is expanding at an unprecedented pace, with flexible workspaces becoming integral to modern enterprise culture. The sector has grown at a remarkable 23–24% CAGR between 2020 and 2024, underscoring its transformation from an alternative to a mainstream strategy for enterprises. With the country projected to reach 1 bn square feet of office stock in the next decade, managed campuses will continue to play a defining role,” said Neetish Sarda, founder and MD, Smartworks.
Operator expansion has also accelerated sharply. Over the past three years (2022–2024), flexible workspace providers leased 33.5 MSF, equivalent to 500,000+ seats. Annual operator take-up has tripled in just five years, from 4.3 MSF in 2020 to 15.4 MSF in 2024.
Flexibility and agility are driving India’s flex space story, and this trend is set to accelerate as firms actively seek business-ready offices to rapidly scale or adjust headcount as needed. The bulk of this demand is coming from international enterprises, which accounted for 72% of flex seat absorption in 2024, while start-ups took up 28%.
The significant influx of Global Capability Centres and other new companies entering India is accelerating this shift, further solidifying flexible workspaces as the preferred model for companies seeking speed, resilience, and growth in a dynamic market.
The managed office/enterprise model now dominates, accounting for 70–80% of demand post-COVID, well ahead of traditional coworking.
The bulk of this stock remains concentrated in the top eight cities, with Bengaluru leading the charge with 30% of national flex inventory, followed by Delhi NCR, Pune, and Hyderabad. Bengaluru also leads demand with an average of one-third of annual enterprise transactions in the country.
Beyond these leading metros, occupiers are increasingly expanding to Tier II cities such as Chandigarh, Jaipur, Kochi, Trivandrum, Coimbatore, Visakhapatnam, and Bhubaneswar to tap into new talent pools and capitalise on lower operating costs.
India’s flexible office sector is also drawing strong institutional validation. Four operators have already gone public, with more IPOs expected, signaling heightened transparency, governance, and investor confidence. The next three to five years are expected to bring consolidation, with leading players cementing their market share while niche and regional operators continue to serve specialised requirements.
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