India: Office space leasing by coworking operators across India’s top nine cities dropped 43 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025, according to real estate consultancy CBRE.
Between January and March, coworking firms leased 21.6 million square feet of office space, down from 37.6 million square feet during the same period last year. This reduced their share of total office leasing transactions from 22 per cent to 12 per cent.
The data covers Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, Ahmedabad and Kochi.
CBRE defines coworking operators as companies that rent space from landlords and sub-let it as managed, flexible workspace to corporate clients. Major operators include WeWork India, Smartworks, Awfis, Incuspaze, Simpliwork Offices and IndiQube.
Despite the slowdown in coworking leasing, total gross office leasing across the nine cities rose 5 per cent year-on-year to 180 lakh square feet in Q1 2025.
CBRE attributed the broader rise in activity to strong demand from global capability centres (GCCs) as multinationals continue to expand in India.
Ram Chandnani, managing director of advisory and transaction services at CBRE India, said: “India is rapidly evolving as a global hub for GCCs, with multinational firms leveraging its skilled workforce to drive innovation and digital transformation.”
CBRE expects GCCs to account for 35 to 40 per cent of total office absorption in 2025, with growth driven not only in metro areas but also in emerging business hubs, backed by supportive state policies.
Chandnani added that while US companies continue to lead GCC expansion, more European and Asian firms are entering the market, drawn by cost advantages and India’s mature operations infrastructure.
Technology and BFSI sectors are forecast to remain the key drivers of office space demand this year.
