International demand for prime workplace house is exhibiting additional indicators of development, with virtually six in ten of the biggest leasing offers within the first half of 2026 involving organisations increasing their footprints, in line with new analysis from Savills. The property consultancy says expansionary offers accounted for 58 % of exercise among the many largest prime workplace transactions it analysed. Simply 5 % concerned organisations decreasing their house, whereas the proportion of occupiers relocating or renewing with broadly the identical footprint fell from 44 % within the second half of 2025 to 37 % within the first six months of this yr.
The findings add to proof that demand for high-quality workplaces is changing into more and more indifferent from the broader workplace market, as organisations focus funding on higher buildings and areas fairly than merely decreasing their general property commitments.
Versatile workspace operators seem notably bullish. Savills discovered that 78 % of the biggest offers involving flex suppliers have been expansions. Greater than half of those concerned operators taking further house in markets the place they already had a presence, suggesting they’re looking for to deepen their positions in chosen cities fairly than pursuing enlargement indiscriminately.
AI companies are additionally rising as an more and more essential supply of demand. They accounted for 17 % of prime workplace offers involving expertise corporations in the course of the first half of 2026, in contrast with simply 3 % two years earlier. Each AI firm transaction recognized by Savills in the course of the interval concerned an enlargement.
Demand from the sector stays concentrated round established expertise and innovation clusters, led by San Francisco, though Savills additionally stories important exercise in Seattle and London’s West Finish.
Sarah Brooks, affiliate director at Savills World Analysis, stated the rising affect of AI and expertise occupiers had been “unmistakable” in the course of the first half of the yr. She stated companies in markets together with San Francisco, London and Shenzhen have been making substantial long-term investments in flagship workplaces as they competed for expertise and sought house that supported consumer engagement and their manufacturers.
The renewed competitors for the most effective workplaces can be feeding by way of into occupancy prices. Savills’ separate Prime Workplace Prices analysis discovered that internet all-in prices, incorporating hire and fit-out, elevated by 1 % globally in the course of the second quarter and have been 5.3 % increased than a yr earlier.
The regional image assorted significantly. Prices rose by 2.1 % in the course of the quarter in North America, in contrast with 0.5 % in each EMEA and Asia Pacific. San Francisco recorded a very sharp quarterly improve of seven.7 %, adopted by Downtown New York at 5.6 %, Washington DC at 4 %, Seoul at 3.8 % and Melbourne at 3.6 %.
Rick Schuham, CEO of International Occupier Companies at Savills, stated organisations continued to prioritise premium workplaces, concentrating demand on the most effective buildings in essentially the most fascinating areas and placing additional upward strain on prices. Nevertheless, he stated the pattern was not common. Some mainland Chinese language markets are experiencing weaker demand alongside elevated availability as new developments and refurbishments come onto the market, creating alternatives for occupiers to safe better-quality workplaces at extra reasonable prices.
Savills defines prime house because the higher tier of Grade A workplaces, usually commanding the best 5–10 % of rents in a market and characterised by trendy amenities, robust sustainability credentials, superior infrastructure and central areas.
