- Shared space development in suburban areas increased by 58% since 2023, while urban development saw an increase of only 4%
- Los Angeles, CA has the largest volume of suburban shared spaces, with 7.2 million square feet
- Indianapolis, IN and Virginia Beach, VA top the list with 83% of shared spaces located in suburban areas
- New York City has the largest volume of urban shared space, with 14.8 million square feet, and continues to focus its development in this area (75% of all shared space development is in urban areas)
- Fresno, CA saw the greatest difference in suburban versus urban shared space development, amounting to 755%
As the landscape of coworking continues to evolve, the distribution of shared office spaces across urban and suburban areas highlights key shifts in demand and availability. The latest national summary data reveals significant growth in suburban coworking spaces, outpacing urban expansion in recent years. While urban coworking remains a dominant force, the increasing square footage allocated to suburban locations suggests a shift in workplace preferences, possibly influenced by hybrid work models, cost considerations and accessibility.
This article analyzes coworking data from the Yardi CommercialEdge real estate research division to identify the latest trends in shared workspace growth, compare urban and suburban markets, and analyze what these changes mean for businesses, workers and the future of coworking in the U.S.
Coworking Spaces Migrating to the Suburbs, with a 58% Increase in Development Over the Past Two Years
In recent years, the national coworking space landscape has experienced a notable shift, with suburban locations seeing substantial growth in total shared workspace square footage. According to the latest data available in the Yardi CommercialEdge real estate research division, suburban coworking space expanded from approximately 55.5 million square feet in 2023 to over 68.2 million square feet in 2024, marking a significant increase. This trend will continue into 2025, with shared space volume surpassing 87.6 million square feet.
In contrast, urban coworking space saw only modest growth, rising from 60.7 million square feet in 2023 to 62.2 million square feet in 2024, before a slight increase to 63.2 million square feet in 2025. In fact, when comparing the suburban development in January of this year to that of 2023, there is 58% increase in the square footage of shared space added to the market, while urban development only saw an increase of 4%. This data suggests a growing preference for suburban workspaces, likely driven by evolving work-from-home policies, the demand for flexible office solutions closer to residential areas and the rising costs associated with urban office leasing. As the coworking industry adapts, these shifts may redefine the balance between urban and suburban work environments in the coming years.
Los Angeles, CA has the Largest Volume of Suburban Shared Spaces with over 7 Million Square Feet
The leading cities for shared spaces in suburban areas have seen significant shifts from 2023 to 2025. Los Angeles has consistently held the top position, with suburban shared space volume reaching 7.2 million in 2025, despite a slight dip from 7.4 million in 2023. Dallas and Chicago followed, with Dallas experiencing a remarkable increase from 4.5 million in 2023 to over 6.3 million square feet in 2025, while Chicago climbed from 3 million to nearly 6 million square feet in the same period.
New York, though maintaining a strong presence, experienced a more moderate expansion, while Atlanta surged ahead, climbing two positions in 2025 compared to 2024, driven by a notable increase in suburban square footage. This trend reflects a growing demand for flexible workspaces in suburban markets, influenced by remote work trends and shifting corporate strategies.
Jacksonville, FL saw the highest increase in the volume of suburban shared spaces in 2025 compared to 2023, going up 13 positions. From being in 40th place in 2023 with just over 270,000 square feet, it reached position 27 with over 1 million square feet two years later.
New York City, NY Continues to Lead in Urban Shared Space Volume, despite a 2 Million Square Foot Drop Since 2023
In urban settings, major metros like New York City, NY and Los Angeles, CA continue to dominate urban shared space markets. New York City is number one when it comes to shared spaces, though its urban shared space volume has decreased from approximately 16.7 million square feet in 2023 to 14.8 million in 2025, reflecting a possible shift toward hybrid work and suburban expansion. Los Angeles follows, maintaining a strong presence with around 5.7 million square feet in 2025, though slightly declining from previous years. Chicago, IL, Washington, D.C. and San Francisco, CA round out the top five, with Chicago experiencing a more pronounced drop from 4.2 million in 2023 to 3.8 million in 2025.
Riverside, CA reached position 15 in 2025 with just under 1 million square feet of urban shared spaces, 28 positions higher compared to 2023, where it only had around 180,000 square feet of shared spaces. This reflects the largest change in the volume of urban shared spaces over the two years.
Despite stable rankings, the overall trend indicates a gradual contraction in urban shared space demand, likely due to evolving work patterns and a growing preference for suburban flexibility. The overall increase in suburban shared spaces suggests a decentralization of office demand, which can be seen as a response to hybrid work models and evolving commuter patterns. Especially in cities like Dallas, TX and Atlanta, GA, this growing trend suggests that businesses are expanding outside traditional urban cores to accommodate a more dispersed workforce. Furthermore, the contrast between urban and suburban trends highlights the ongoing transformation in workspace distribution across the country.
Indianapolis, IN and Virginia Beach, VA Top the List with 83% of Shared Spaces Located in Suburban Areas
In 2025, the continued expansion of suburban coworking spaces solidifies a growing trend that has been reshaping the shared office landscape. The data indicates that several metropolitan areas have experienced notable gains in suburban coworking growth, often outpacing their urban counterparts. This shift is reflected in position changes among the top markets, where suburban spaces have climbed in rankings, while urban locations have either plateaued or experienced slower growth. Indianapolis, IN and Virginia Beach, VA take the lead with 83% of shared spaces available being located in suburban areas and only 17% in urban areas. They are followed by Charlotte, NC, Phoenix, AZ and Jacksonville, FL, all of which have more than 80% of their shared space supply in the suburbs.
The relative stagnation in urban coworking expansion suggests that businesses and remote workers are favoring cost-effective, commuter-friendly alternatives outside traditional city centers. As suburban coworking gains traction, it challenges the long-held dominance of urban hubs, indicating a potential long-term transformation in where and how professionals choose to work. Only ten metros from the list saw higher urban shared space development than suburban.
Urban Areas Dominate Shared Space in New York, Accounting for 75% of Total Supply
New York City remains the metro where urban shared spaces remain the most popular options. In fact, 75% of all shared space supply can be found in urban areas, while only 25% is in suburban areas, making it the metro with the largest difference in urban versus suburban shared space supply. This may be in part due to the unique geography of New York City, which is already made up of five boroughs, enabling most of the population to be spread across this area as opposed to the surrounding suburbs. As such, limited space and high costs, shared offices, co-living spaces and communal hubs offer affordable and efficient alternatives for professionals, freelancers and businesses, making shared spaces somewhat of a necessity here. Furthermore, the city’s great public transportation access makes these spaces convenient, while the city’s vibrant culture and networking opportunities attract individuals seeking collaboration.
Other metros where urban supply is higher include Providence, RI, Salt Lake City, UT, San Francisco, CA, Pittsburgh, PA, Seattle, WA, Buffalo, NY, Boston, MA, Louisville, KY and Portland, OR. In each of the metros mentioned, the supply of shared spaces in urban areas is between 50% and 60%, which shows that urban areas are only slightly more popular options for coworking spaces, with their suburban counterparts receiving just about as much attention in terms of the supply of shared spaces there.
Fresno, CA Suburban vs. Urban Development Amounts to 755% Difference
Fresno, CA saw the greatest difference in suburban versus urban shared space development, amounting to 755%. This percentage reflects the difference in the volume of shared spaces seen in both areas from 2023 to 2025. Suburban shared spaces saw a growth of 755% over the two years while urban shared spaces only added 750 square feet to their volume, amounting to barely a 1% increase. While the volume of shared spaces in Fresno overall is only around 545,000 square feet, it is pretty clear that demand for such spaces in the suburbs is much higher than that in downtown.
Over the last two years, the volume of shared spaces in the suburban areas of Virginia Beach, VA increased by nearly 700,000 square feet, reaching 1,000,571 from 308,374 square feet. In other words, there were 224% more square feet of suburban shared spaces in 2025 than in 2023. On the other hand, urban development of shared spaces saw a decrease of 14% in the number of square feet of such office spaces. This means that since 2023, the volume of shared spaces has gone down in downtown Virginia Beach, going down to 210,720 from 245, 676. The difference between suburban and urban development amounts to 238% in the last two years, indicating the significant investments made toward the development of shared spaces in the suburbs of Virginia Beach.
Following close behind is Jacksonville, FL. Here, the suburban shared space volume increased by 202% compared to that in the urban area over the last two years. In the suburbs, there were 269% more square feet of shared spaces added to the market, over 730,000 square feet, while the urban supply only went up by 67%, or 90,136 square feet. While urban development of shared space remains important in Jacksonville, it has been overcome by the demand in suburban areas.
In Phoenix, AZ and Pittsburgh, PA, the increase in volume of shared spaces in suburban versus urban areas is 174% and 152%, respectively. Here, while the urban volume of shared spaces has gone up by 11% in Phoenix and 29% in Pittsburgh, the suburban growth has been much more significant, amounting to 185% and 181%, respectively. In Phoenix, the supply of suburban shared spaces amounts to over 4.5 million square feet, four times more than that in downtown. On the other hand, in Pittsburgh, while the volume of shared spaces in the urban area is higher than that in the suburbs, 768,781 compared to 567,916 square feet, given the rate of growth, the suburban volume is likely to overcome the urban in the near future.
Conclusion
The rapid expansion of suburban coworking spaces underscores a fundamental shift in workplace dynamics, driven by evolving work habits and economic considerations. While urban coworking hubs remain integral to the industry, the surge in suburban shared spaces suggests a growing demand for flexible, cost-effective work environments closer to where people live. As businesses and workers continue to prioritize accessibility and adaptability, the coworking industry will likely see further decentralization, reshaping the future of office space distribution. This trend not only reflects immediate market responses but also signals a long-term transformation in how and where people choose to work.
Methodology
- For this analysis, we used Yardi proprietary data to determine the distribution of square footage allocated to coworking spaces by market and location type between January 2023 and January 2025.
- Through the term “coworking space”, we refer to any office space that an office space leasing company offers to business or individual clients as flexible workspace.
- Spaces destined for coworking are often found in office buildings though not always. In this study, we aimed to provide an exhaustive account of flexible workspaces. Therefore, we included coworking spaces located in any type of commercial building, excluding those tailored to serve specific activities, such as medical offices.
- Regarding location type, each coworking space was categorized as being in either an urban or suburban location.
- The markets analyzed include the 50 largest U.S. metro areas by population, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau through the 2023 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.
- Yardi experts assessed location type based on a combination of data points, including building density, proximity to business districts or the downtown core, accessibility via public or private transportation and price per square foot relative to the broader metro market.
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