Flexible workspace accounted for 26% of India’s office demand in the first nine months of 2026, as companies increasingly combine permanent campuses with managed and co-working offices.
Co-working has overtaken information technology and IT-enabled services as India’s biggest occupier of office space for the first time over a nine-month period, underscoring how flexible work arrangements have moved from the margins of corporate real estate to its centre. Anarock Research & Advisory said co-working accounted for 26% of office demand between January and September 2026, ahead of IT/ITeS at 25% and banking, financial services and insurance at 21%. The firm said the shift reflects a wider change in how companies are planning their property needs, especially as enterprise tenants seek speed, adaptability and lower capital commitments.
Peush Jain, managing director for commercial leasing and advisory at Anarock Group, said flex space is increasingly working alongside, rather than against, conventional leasing. Large occupiers, especially global capability centres, are now using a mixed portfolio approach, with permanent campuses for core teams and flexible space for project work, expansion and quicker set-up times. Karan Chopra, chairman and co-chief executive of Table Space, said the rise of managed offices is pushing the market towards a convergence between traditional leases and operator-led models, with some providers taking entire buildings on standard lease terms to meet enterprise demand.
The data also points to a broader reshaping of demand across sectors. Anarock said co-working and BFSI together represented 47% of total leasing in the first nine months of 2026, up from 41% a year earlier, while IT/ITeS has lost ground from its long-held lead. Market data from Cushman & Wakefield shows the flex segment itself is still expanding quickly: flexible workspace operators leased 11.9 million square feet in the first nine months of 2026, up 42% from a year earlier, and accounted for 18% of total leasing activity. The consultancy also said India’s flex office inventory reached 88.7 million square feet in the first half of the year and could move beyond 100 million square feet in 2026.
Geographically, Bengaluru remained the largest office market in Anarock’s study, with 16.7 million square feet of transactions in the January-September period, equal to 25% of the total across eight cities. Hyderabad followed with 13.1 million square feet and emerged as the strongest market in the third quarter, posting 5.6 million square feet of transactions, up 92% from a year earlier. Recent market commentary from Knight Frank India, reported by The Economic Times, suggests the broader demand picture is being shaped by the same forces: stronger leasing from global capability centres, softer demand from traditional IT services firms and a steady rise in flexible workspace usage. For occupiers, the message is increasingly clear, office strategy is no longer a choice between fixed and flexible space, but a mix of both.
Disclaimer: This article is intended to inform and educate, not to recommend or endorse any financial product, investment or strategy. Please consider your own financial circumstances and seek professional advice where appropriate before making financial decisions.
