New Delhi [India], March 24 : Nearly 65 per cent of office occupiers in India expect to integrate flexible workspaces into their portfolios by 2027. Currently, 55 per cent of respondents already maintain such spaces within their office setups, according to the "Flex-plosion: India's Flexible Workspaces Era," report published by CBRE India Research in collaboration with FICCI, highlighting the shift in corporate real estate.
The report noted that for modern businesses, "flexibility is no longer an add-on but an intentional, embedded component of office portfolio strategy".
The sector has "transitioned from a start-up enabler to a core component of an occupier's real estate strategy" over the last decade.
What began before 2015 as small co-working hubs and serviced offices now serves an enterprise-grade clientele. This group includes everything from large corporations and global capability centres (GCCs) to MSMEs.
This "accelerated expansion is driven by a fundamental shift in occupier strategy," positioning these spaces as integral to corporate portfolios.
The report showed that the market has undergone a roughly 3X increase in total stock between 2020 and 2025. Approximately 50 per cent of the current total inventory was added after 2021.
As of 2025, India's flexible workspace stock stood between 110 and 114 million square feet (MSF). Tier-1 cities dominate this landscape, accounting for more than 90 per cent of the total flexible workspace stock.
On average, flexible workspaces now represent a 10 to 12 per cent penetration within the broader office stock.
As per the report, regionally, Bengaluru remains the largest market with 30 to 32 MSF of flexible stock and a penetration rate of 12 to 14 per cent. Delhi-NCR follows with 21 to 23 MSF.
However, Pune reported the highest sectoral penetration nationally at 14 to 16 per cent, supported by 13.6 to 14.6 MSF of stock. In Mumbai, demand is driven by the BFSI sector and large corporates, where leasing activity saw a steady increase through 2024 and 2025.
The market is also seeing deeper capital market integration as operators secure public listings. The current market capitalisation for all listed flexible workspace operators is estimated at USD 2.0 to 2.2 billion. This influx of institutional capital supports faster network expansion and asset-light models.
Moving forward, the increased presence of institutional capital is "expected to shift flex growth towards more disciplined, networked expansion," further reinforcing the sector's stability within the national office market.