Indian corporates become the second-largest occupiers for flex space

New Delhi: Indian corporates become the second-largest company segment accounting for 23.4% of flex demand in 2026 after startups (39.2%), emerging as the key driver of next phase of growth for flexible workspace industry along with BFSI.

Average requirement has also more than doubled, from 25 seats in 2023 to 55 seats in 2026, as flex is becoming part of mainstream corporate office planning, according to aggregator myHQ data.

Indian corporates have overtaken SMEs in terms of demand.


However, startup teams are getting leaner. The average startup requirement has fallen from 22 seats in 2023 to 13 seats in 2026, as AI helps new companies start and scale with smaller teams. In 2023, the average corporate needed just 3 more seats than the average startup; in 2026 the gap is 42 seats.

The biggest shift is across industries. BFSI's share of flex demand has grown 2.7x since 2023, from 4.5% to 12.2%, the biggest gain of any industry, taking it from the ninth-largest contributor to the market in 2023 to the second-largest in 2026. IT/ITeS remains the largest industry at 43.9%, but its share has eased from a peak of 44.8% in 2025, its first decline in four years.

"Indian corporates are making flex part of how they plan their real estate, and we expect them to drive the next phase of flex growth. At the same time, AI is letting startups build with leaner teams, and BFSI rising from ninth to second tells you flex is no longer just a tech-and-startup product,” said Utkarsh Kawatra, Co-Founder & CEO, myHQ.

Demand from MNCs, including global capability centres(GCCs), has stabilized at 14.6% of flex demand, compared with 14.9% in 2025. With MNC demand steady, the growth in enterprise flex demand is now coming from Indian corporates.

“GCC, technology companies and BFSI institutions are increasingly choosing managed and flexible environments because they need speed to market, scalability and certainty. In a market where GCCs alone leased approximately 10.3 million sq. ft. during the quarter, workspace providers must evolve into enterprise partners, delivering secure, customisable, ESG-aligned and experience-led environments,” said Sanjay Chatrath, Co-founder & Managing partner, Incuspaze.

The report also identifies clear headroom for flex adoption. Among end users of office space, BFSI accounts for 12.2% of flex demand against 17.8% of traditional office leasing, with secure, compliance-ready workspace formats expected to support further adoption by banks, insurers and financial services firms.

“India today offers global capability centres a strong combination: a stable operating environment, a workforce that is quickly adapting to AI-enabled work, and tech-park infrastructure that matches global standards. This is making India the destination of choice for GCCs, and the leasing data shows it,” said Aashit Verma, Founder, Hanto Workspace.

Logistics (3.3% of flex demand vs 8.2% of traditional leasing) and Life Sciences (3.0% vs 6.8%) remain the most under-represented sectors relative to their size, with their head office, sales and regional teams seen as a natural fit for flex.

“Flexible workspaces have become a core part of the real estate strategy for India Inc. They are no longer a stop-gap arrangement, but a deliberate choice that gives businesses greater agility without the heavy capex commitments of traditional offices. Companies can focus on their core business while we take care of the entire workspace journey—from design and build to day-to-day operations,” said Rajiv Bathla, CEO & Business Head at The Circle.Work.

The report is based on myHQ's demand data of over 20,000 requirements, comprising company-level seat requirements received by myHQ across India's top six office markets (Bengaluru, Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad and Chennai).

“We’re seeing larger corporate teams move in, with the same expectations they have of any office: reliability, security and the ability to scale quickly as business needs evolve. We expect this demand to deepen as more companies make flexible workspaces an integral part of their real estate and workplace strategy,” said Bathla.