How it works
Occupancy answers 'is it in use?' It is the share of available units, such as desks, rooms or floor area, in use at a point in time or on average over a period: occupied ÷ available. A floor with 90 of 200 desks in use at 11 am is 45% occupied at that moment.
Utilization answers 'how intensively is the capacity used over time?' It is the share of available capacity-time actually used: how often a space is used multiplied by how full it is when used. A ten-person room in use every afternoon by two people is occupied all afternoon but only 20% utilized during those hours. For single-person desks, utilization reduces to the share of available desk-hours in use.
A third measure shares the name. Some benchmarking programs, including CBRE's, use occupancy rate for people allocated per seat, a sharing ratio that can pass 100% in shared-desk offices. Check the denominator before you compare figures: units available, capacity-time available, or seats per allocated person.
How to measure it
- Write the definition, unit and time period of each metric at the top of every report.
- Use presence data for both; bookings measure intent, not use.
- For meeting rooms, report frequency, seat occupancy and utilization side by side.
- When you compare with an external benchmark, check whether its occupancy means people present or people allocated.
Examples
- Desks: occupancy and utilization are close but not equal. A desk used for one morning counts as occupied that day but is used for only part of it.
- Meeting rooms: rooms are occupied most of the day, but eight-person rooms average three people. Occupancy says 'we need more rooms'; utilization says 'we need smaller ones'.
- Portfolio: a building with 1.2 people allocated per seat is 120% occupied in allocation terms while only half its desks are in use on an average day.
Benchmarks
CBRE's benchmarking uses occupancy rate for people allocated per seat and reported a global figure of 111%, meaning more people are allocated than there are seats.
CBRE, The Hybrid Reality (2026 Global Workplace & Occupancy Insights)
Common mistakes
- Using the two words as synonyms in the same report.
- Comparing an internal occupancy figure (people present) with an external one (people allocated).
- Closing rooms because occupancy is low without checking seat use, or adding rooms because occupancy is high without checking room size.
How Kadence helps
Kadence Workplace Insights reports occupancy, attendance and no-shows from check-ins and presence data, with office heatmaps and CSV export, so teams can build both measures from one source. SpaceOps uses that occupancy data when it plans floors and compares scenarios.
Workplace analytics · Workplace occupancy · SpaceOps
Frequently asked questions
Is occupancy the same as utilization?
No. Occupancy is the share of available desks, rooms or area in use, at a point in time or on average. Utilization is the share of available capacity-time actually used, combining how often a space is used with how full it is. For desks the two are close; for meeting rooms and floors they can differ widely.
Which is more useful for real estate decisions?
Both, for different decisions. Occupancy over time, and at the peak, tells you how much space people use. Utilization tells you whether the space you have is the right size and type. Lease and consolidation decisions need both, measured over several normal weeks.
Why can occupancy be over 100%?
When occupancy means people allocated to a building per seat, shared-desk offices can allocate more people than seats. CBRE reported a global figure of 111%. That is an allocation ratio, not a measure of how many people were actually present.
How do you measure occupancy and utilization together?
Use one presence source, such as check-ins or network presence, for both. Count spaces in use to get occupancy, then add the number of people per space and the hours used to get utilization, broken down by space type and day.
Related terms
- Occupancy rate The share of available desks, rooms or floor area in use, at a point in time or on average over a period.
- Space utilization How intensively buildings, floors, rooms and desks are used against their full capacity over time.
- Desk utilization The share of available desk-hours people actually use, measured desk by desk from check-ins or presence data.
- Peak occupancy The busiest level of use a floor or building reaches in a normal week, which sets the capacity you actually need.
- Workplace analytics Analysis of bookings, check-ins, attendance and occupancy data to guide decisions about office space, policy and services.
- Meeting room utilization How often meeting rooms are used and how full they are when used, which shows whether you need more rooms or different ones.
Sources
Kadence editorial team · Last reviewed