Office Space Needed Per Employee

PDFPrintE-mail
How much office space do you need? Are you looking to start a personal, little company or are you hoping to have enough space to support 10 or more people? Always compare other companies to what you need, if your friend runs a mortgage business with 6 employees, and you think you are going to have about the same number of employees, then take a tour of his place and take some notes. The general rule of thumb is to allow 175 to 250 usable square feet per person depending upon the type and style of the business. This figure can vary based upon special needs such as extra-large conference rooms or storage requirements, but will include normal amenities within a general use office. For a realistic determination of space requirements, an office space planner might be consulted. If you want to begin searching for office space we can help.

The following standards can be used to help estimate the amount of usable space required for your business or company.

Average President' s office or Chairman of the Board
250 to 400 sq. ft. (4 to 5 windows in length)

Average VP' s Office
150 to 250 sq. ft. (3 to 4 windows in length)

Average Executive' s Office
100 to 150 sq. ft. (2 widows in length)

Partitioned Open Space - how much?
Clerical Supervisor or Manager 80 to 110 sq. ft.

Open Space and what you might need
Clerical or Secretary 60 to 110 sq. ft.

Conference Rooms - shared rooms, etc
15 sq. ft. per person: theater style
25 to 30 sq. ft. per person: conference seats

Mail Room - as example below
8 to 9 ft. wide with 30" counters on either side.

Formal or Informal Reception Area - meeting space for clients
125 to 200 sq. ft. Receptionist and 2 - 4 people
200 to 300 sq. ft. Receptionist and 6 - 8 people

File Room
7 sq. ft. per file

Library maybe
175 to 450 sq. ft. with seating for 4 - 6

Lunch Rooms
15 sq. ft. per person, not including kitchen.

Corridors
20% to 30% of the total usable space

Closets
1 ft. for -4 coats - or 3 per person

Water Coolers
1 unit for 75 employees

Suggested Column Spacing
28' to 30' per bay - depending

Suggested Windows Spacing
4'6" to 5'. This helps figure the overall office width