The local authorities with the largest office footprints have been revealed
Demand for remote work has soared in recent years and flexible working has become an established model for many UK employers and employees, with 39% of Brits now working from home at least part of the week.
Booking.com for Business has analysed corporate footprints across the top office markets in the UK, highlighting the locations which could be most affected by reduced workplace demand if this trend continues.
Local authorities with the biggest office footprints
Rank | Local authority | Total Office Floorspace (m²) |
1 | Birmingham | 11,774,000 |
2 | Leeds | 9,804,000 |
3 | North Yorkshire | 7,663,000 |
4 | West Northamptonshire | 7,577,000 |
5 | North Northamptonshire | 7,445,000 |
6 | Westminster | 6,774,000 |
7 | Bradford | 6,450,000 |
8 | Sheffield | 6,273,000 |
9 | Somerset | 6,230,000 |
10 | County Durham | 6,109,000 |
Birmingham has the UK’s largest office footprint
Birmingham ranks first with almost 11.8 million square metres of office floorspace, making it the largest office market in the ranking by total space. Professional services, including legal and accountancy firms, continue to drive demand in the city, accounting for 40% of Birmingham’s office take-up in 2025, totalling 281,598 square feet.2 As workplace habits continue to evolve, markets like this one, with larger volumes of office space, may face greater pressure to adapt.
Yorkshire emerges as one of the UK’s strongest office markets
Yorkshire has a particularly strong presence in the rankings, with Leeds, North Yorkshire, Bradford, and Sheffield all appearing in the top 10 for total office floorspace. This highlights the scale of corporate activity beyond the traditional business hubs of London and the South East, with several Yorkshire locations offering significant office capacity for organisations looking to establish regional bases or expand existing operations.
Northamptonshire is a surprise office space hotspot
West Northamptonshire and North Northamptonshire rank fourth and fifth respectively, with a combined office floorspace of more than 15 million square metres. Their position demonstrates that significant office markets are not limited to the UK’s largest cities. The latest available ONS figures show that these local authorities have a combined registered business population of 33,970.3
Joshua Wood, director of business travel at Booking.com for Business, comments: “The workplace is continuing to evolve as businesses find the right balance between flexibility and in-person collaboration. While employees may not be travelling to the office every day, many organisations still need ways to bring teams and clients together.
“We are seeing businesses use travel for purposeful moments such as team meetings, project planning, customer visits and company events. Having the right business travel management tool to manage those trips helps organisations coordinate travel efficiently while supporting the flexibility employees now expect.”