Report | Adaptive Spaces

European Office Occupier Sentiment Survey 2025

October 1, 2025 10 Minute Read

sustainable office location

Executive Summary

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CBRE’s 2025 European Office Occupier Sentiment Survey reveals how firms are adapting to rising costs, evolving employee expectations, and the drive towards more efficient, engaging workplaces.

Key Themes

  1. The push for increased office attendance and engagement

    The gap: Employers are striving for higher in-office attendance than employees are currently delivering, with 54% wanting three+ days but only 42% achieving it. The unexpected continuation of this discrepancy is contributing to stalled office utilisation rates (46% weekly average and 71% peak day average).

    Growing discomfort: Companies are increasingly less comfortable with current attendance levels, with 47% expecting a rise in attendance, up from 31% in 2024.

    The attraction strategy: Creating a vibrant, engaging office atmosphere is identified as the top challenge (53%) to attract employees back, suggesting a need for stronger ‘pull’ factors alongside potential ‘push’ strategies.

  2. Embracing flexibility while maximising space efficiency

    Flex space rising: There's a growing appetite for flexible workspace solutions, with occupiers now targeting 29% of portfolios in flex by 2027 (vs 21% last year), driven mainly by a desire to avoid capital commitments (64%). 

    Space optimisation: Unassigned desks are the norm (61%), and companies are actively pursuing higher desk-sharing ratios to optimise space usage. The use of 1 to 1.5 people per desk arrangements will drop from 53% to 28% in two years, with that space being consolidated into higher sharing ratios.

    Performance tracking: Companies are increasingly focused on measuring workspace effectiveness, with 88% now doing so (up from 60% in 2024), using a wider array of metrics. 

  3. Balancing cost, employee needs, and future-proofing strategies

    Portfolio reduction still anticipated: Over half of companies (55%) expect to reduce their office footprint in the medium-term, driven by hybrid work (70%) and cost reduction (56%). 

    Factors influencing real estate decisions: Stay-or-go decisions are primarily driven by employee needs, with location (72%), cost (68%) and sustainability (60%) the main factors behind renewals, and sustainability (58%), cost (53%), and location (51%) the driving forces behind decisions to relocate.

    Supply Worries: A significant portion of occupiers (52%) are concerned about future supply constraints, specifically regarding the availability of high-quality and well-located space. Desirable locations are near transport options (94%) and in amenity-rich urban cores (80%). Companies who previously downsized too much are expanding (21%, up from 7% in 2024).

Financial Services Spotlight

Attendance and Utilisation 

Financial Services companies account for 13% of leasing activity (10-year average) across Europe and are particularly significant drivers of demand in major cities such as London (25%), Frankfurt (21%), Milan (17%), and Dublin (17%).

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Attendance: higher requirements, lower show-up rates
Financial Services (FS) occupiers want their staff in more frequently than other sectors; 61% want 3+ days vs 53% of All Other firms. However, on-site attendance differs between groups: only 32% of FS employees come in three+ days vs 46% for All Other.
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Much less content with current attendance levels
Considering higher attendance requirements but lower actual attendance, FS occupiers are likely to anticipate an increase in current attendance levels (57% FS versus 44% for All Other).
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Higher Utilisation
FS occupiers are achieving higher average (53% vs 44%) and peak (74% vs 70%) utilisation than All Other firms. Since they also report lower actual attendance, this likely reflects more intensive workplace strategies than the wider market.
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Challenges to raising attendance reflect higher utilisation
FS occupiers’ office attendance challenges centre on balancing demand across the week (61%), accurately predicting future demand (57%), and providing desks on peak days (54%), reflecting their higher utilisation rates. In contract, All Other occupiers are more concerned with lack of vibrancy on non-peak days (55%), with desk availability on peak days (39%) being a much less significant barrier.

Workplace Strategy

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Appetite for flex
FS occupiers have increased flex space in their portfolios from 15% to 18% across the last two years and plan to reach 25% in the next two.  However, this adoption rate lags behind All Other sectors, which currently use 22% flex space and plan for 30% in the next two years.
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Drivers for flex adoption

The primary driver for flex space adoption is reduced capital expenditure (FS: 68%, All Others: 62%). FS occupiers' secondary drivers are more tactical, such as entering new markets and using swing space while waiting for leased space to be completed (both 40%).

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Challenges to flex adoption

FS and All Other occupiers share similar barriers to flex space adoption, primarily IT/Security (61%) and employee perception (54%).

However, FS occupiers report a significantly greater limitation due to the availability of flex space (50%) compared to All Others (28%)

Portfolio Strategy

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Location Factors
Office space near public transport options is essential for FS occupiers, 100% say it would impact their decision-making, including 67% who say they would exit or reject a building that did not provide adequately on this point (92% and 55% respectively for All Other).
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Building Factors
FS occupiers’ decision-making is more impacted by the presence of sustainable building features and operations than All Other sectors. 82% of FS respondents (vs 79% of All Others) say their decision would be impacted by the sustainable features offered by the building.
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Availability
FS occupiers that are considering a move as part of their medium-term strategy are more concerned (65%) about finding good quality, well-located space than All Others (48%). This is likely because FS firms are more focused on CBDs for their next move (64% vs 42% for All Others).

Conclusions for Occupiers

1. Hybrid work benefits from strong office incentives

  • Employees consistently attend the office slightly less than they are asked to.
  • Incentivise attendance by offering a vibrant workspace and the shortest possible commutes.

2. Rising attendance to come may stretch peak utilisation

  • Significantly more employers are expecting their attendance to rise.
  • With attendance already focused on mid-week days and portfolios smaller than they were, closely monitor space utilisation.

3. Invest in measuring outcomes

  • Ensure your workspace delivers your strategy whilst enhancing your culture by measuring effectiveness in addition to efficiency.
  • Measures of user experience and sentiment can highlight your real estate’s holistic impact on productivity.

4. Desirable features very similar for almost all

  • The ideal office offers engaging, well-connected space with in-house amenities, sustainable design, flex options, and a vibrant mixed-use environment.
  • Meeting these criteria often requires a rental premium or a compromise.

5. Engage early in the search for space

  • The supply of good space in good locations is tight, and most occupiers are aware of this.
  • Start the process as early as possible to secure space that complements your strategy.

Conclusions for Investors

1. Be micro-location led

  • Focus on locations that offer short commutes and nearby amenities.
  • Consider what it would be like to spend a typical day in the location, without a mandate to attend.

2. Track potential spillover demand

  • Central submarkets have low development pipelines, partly because building in them is more costly, complicated, and time-consuming.
  • Occupiers are aware of supply constraints for the offices they want to occupy. Close substitutes will be welcomed.

3. Offer low running-cost assets

  • Stay-or-go decision-making contains a large element of cost-planning.
  • Draw tenants in and keep them longer by including enabling technology that allows cost-saving approaches to building operations and maintenance.

4. Include flex office / meeting space

  • Occupiers do not want to over-commit to space that is then under-utilised.
  • Address occupier needs for flexibility and scalability by offering flex space, which can accelerate lease-up.

5. Offer sustainability future-proofed buildings

  • Occupiers are generally more focused than investors on achieving sustainability metrics and are planning to do so earlier.
  • Offering properties that align with these priorities is vital.

Discover the key insights from our European Office Occupier Sentiment Survey 2025 in the full report.

Contacts

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