Office Space Calculator

Do you know how many sq. ft. your company needs when renting office space and what the cost will be?

You don't give office space a second thought until you need to expand and realize the costs and challenges involved in this transition. When your company was growing, the need to relocate our staff to a larger space arose. I was about to embark in this project when I realized I had no idea how to optimize the resources we required without sacrificing employee moral and productivity or expending unnecessarily large amounts of cash. I wondered: How much office space should we rent? What are our options?

We found a few office space planning calculators online, but they required much more knowledge of the process and specific information than what the typical business has. We did our homework and moved. I'll share more on the path we took and where we decided to take up office later on. I try to present an example that should help anyone decipher what works instead of going into to industry specific jargon that leaves you where you started.

We'll post a few questions you should ask yourself, followed by an example based on our experience finding office space.

How Much Office Space is Needed?

How many people work in your company?

In our case we had 15 full time employees comprised by three senior managers, seven consultants, an IT team of three and two people for admin and support.

What is the ideal office workspace configuration for your type of business?

Our team is very collaborative and we thrive in open space. This, as we will learn below, reduced our cost dramatically. We also needed some privacy for certain positions and meeting space on occasion. We decided for two private offices, shared space for 13 people and access to a meeting room for occasional use. A small kitchen/break area was essential to reduce distractions in the workplace and avoid scheduling (and hygiene) conflicts at the meeting room.

Office Space Planning Calculator

Estimate the amount of space needed for an office using one of these formulas:

Minimum Square Footage Needed = (No. of Employees X 50) + 1000

Sq. Ft. Needed for High-End Office = (No. of Employees X 160) + 2000

For example, we estimated 1750 sq. ft. for an office of 15 people. These equations are good for coming up with estimates, but it's important to really consider all of the employee needs and business needs, such as meeting rooms.

To determine the square footage required, we took into account the following standards for low end and high end office space:

Workstation

from 40 to 125 sq. ft. per person.

Private Office

from 150 to 400 sq. ft.

Meeting Room

a standard 300 sq. ft. for our needs.

Kitchen/Break

from 120 to 320 sq. ft.

Reception

from 100 to 250 sq. ft.

Server Room/Storage

from 40 to 150 sq. ft.

For common areas and corridors

you should assume 20 to 30% of total space based on how efficiently you use the space.

Based on our specific space requirements at the time, we were considering space from 1648 to 4434 square feet.

Here's our math:

That's a big range and doesn't lend itself to plan and budget. Here's where your personal preferences (and your budget restrictions) come into play.

We decided that something in-between would work for us. In our opinion, an ideal scenario would be around 2,800 sq. ft.:

Workstations

80 sq. ft. per person.

Two Private Offices

at 200 sq. ft. each

Meeting Room

300 sq. ft.

Kitchen/Break

280 sq. ft.

Reception

120 sq. ft.

Server Room/Storage

80 sq. ft.

Common areas and corridors

nearly 30% which came to around 600 sq. ft.

A Simple and Effective Office Rent Calculator

Your monthly rent is determined by this formula:

Annual Lease Rate X Total Square Feet / 12 Months = Monthly Rent

Before I wrap up and share, what I feel is the best piece of advice in this post, keep in mind that the above is just your monthly office space rental cost. Security deposits ranging up to six months' worth of rent, build-out costs, furniture, wiring, soundproofing, security and telecom equipment are just some of the many extra costs you may incur when you finally move into your shiny new office.

Disclaimer: all the information above helped us analyze our options and decide what is best for our business. I felt it would be a shame for all this valuable information and research to go to waste, hence, this short article. Now, back to our story.

Consider a Full Service Office

This is what we did. We moved into one of the many Executive Office Suites in our area. We took a large team room where our team interacts and two private offices with an amazing view. We use the meeting room on an as needed basis and don't pay for Kitchen, break areas, reception or common space. We didn't buy any furniture since all was provided, and were able to move in in days with only one month's worth of security deposit. We couldn't be happier.

To find an office that fits your specific needs, start your search at one of our top locations – Miami, Florida. Miami has 45 facilities available and ready for use.

Do not hesitate to contact us for any assistance in your search. Happy browsing.