Rent or Lease a Private Office: Which a Startup Should Do
A startup rents a private office when it takes a room inside a coworking space under a membership or license, pays per desk each month, and can leave on short notice. It leases one when it signs for a term on a suite or floor of its own and pays per square foot per year. Two things decide which is right: headcount, and how far ahead you can see. Under about 15 people, or with less than a year of certainty, renting usually wins. Past about 20 people with a plan that holds, leasing usually costs less per person. The floors below are in SoHo.
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Send me SoHo officesUpdated 2026-10-03 · Nomad Group
Renting a room and leasing a suite carry different rights
When a startup rents, the agreement is usually a membership or a license. The operator is the building's tenant, and your company has permission to use a room. You can leave on short notice, and the operator can reprice the room or move you just as quickly.
When a startup leases, it becomes a tenant for a fixed term. The rent is set out for every year of that term, the suite stays yours for the length of it, and rights such as subletting and renewal can be negotiated in. In return, rent is owed for the full term. Lease vs rent goes through the differences.
Per desk per month against per square foot per year
Renting is billed by the desk: $800 to $1,400 a month in Manhattan, with furniture, internet and cleaning inside the price. Twelve desks cost $9,600 to $16,800 a month.
Leasing is billed by area and quoted by the year. Twelve people need about 2,100 square feet. Suppose a suite that size asks $80 a square foot: the rent is $14,000 a month, and electricity, internet and cleaning come on top. At twelve people the two bills are close. What separates them is the next year. Every hire adds a desk to the first bill and nothing to the second until the suite is full.
Which one fits at 8, 15 and 25 people
- Around 8 to 10 people, or with less than a year of certainty: rent. The premium buys flexibility you need.
- Around 15 to 20: price both. A furnished suite on a 12-month lease is the middle path.
- At 25 and beyond, with a plan that holds: lease. The desk bill has outrun the cost of a floor.
Our decision guide adds the sublease route to the comparison.
What a startup should look for in an office lease
- The shortest term that still earns free rent and landlord money toward the space.
- A good guy guarantee in place of a broad personal guarantee.
- A sublet and assignment clause you can actually use, including on an acquisition.
- A deposit that steps down as you pay on time.
- A renewal option, and a clear statement of what you must restore when you leave.
Your attorney should confirm each of these in the draft.
How long each route takes, and why SoHo floors are shown
A rented room can be ready in days. A leased furnished floor is usually in use two to four weeks after signing, or six to eight weeks counted from the first tour. A custom buildout puts the total at four to six months.
The floors in the block on this page are in SoHo, where startups with a consumer or design focus tend to look: cast-iron loft buildings with high ceilings, with the 6 and the N/Q/R/W at Prince and Spring Streets, the B/D/F/M at Broadway-Lafayette, and the A/C/E on the western edge. For other neighborhoods, the availability page lists every floor on our book.
SoHo office space available now
Live from our listings · 6 of the 9, cheapest first9 offices are available in SoHo right now, from 3,750 to 27,344 square feet, asking $68 to $125 per square foot per year. The SoHo median is $98.
- Floors
- 9
- Sizes
- 3,750-27,344 sq ft
- Asking rent
- $68-$125 / sq ft
- Median
- $98 / sq ft
- One Soho Square, Partial 2nd Floor 27,344 sq ft $68/sq ft about 156 people
- 6 Greene Street, Entire 2nd Floor 4,900 sq ft $78/sq ft about 28 people
- 110 Greene Street, Partial 5th Floor 3,750 sq ft $95/sq ft about 21 people
- 50 Greene Street, 3rd Floor 7,300 sq ft $98/sq ft about 70 people
- 60 Charlton Street, Partial 8th Floor 5,003 sq ft $120/sq ft about 29 people
- 520 Broadway, Entire 10th Floor 5,539 sq ft $125/sq ft about 32 people
The full guide
This page is the short answer. The long one, with the numbers worked through, is here:
Related topics
- Flexible Workspace for Rent: A Private Office on 12, 24 or 36 Months
- Flexible Workspace Services: What Comes With a Serviced Private Floor
- Flexible Workspace and Private Offices at 50 People: Membership or Floor
- Private Closed-Door Office Space for Lease: A Door That Is Really Yours
Is a coworking membership the same as a lease?
Almost never. Most coworking agreements are memberships or licenses, so the company holds no leasehold, cannot assign or sublet, and has no protected position when the agreement renews. The title on the document does not settle it. Have your attorney confirm what it is.
Does renting cost more per square foot than leasing?
Generally, yes. Divide a membership bill by the area you actually occupy and the figure comes out above leased rent. Part of the difference pays for furniture, internet and services, so compare all-in totals.
Can a startup lease an office and still keep a way out?
It can. Three things do most of the work: a term no longer than you can forecast, with an option to renew; a guarantee of the good guy kind; and sublet rights the landlord cannot refuse unreasonably. Together they give a tenant most of the exits that renting provides. How to exit a lease early compares each way out.
What will a landlord ask a young company for?
Usually a larger security deposit or a letter of credit, and a guarantee from a principal. Both are negotiable. Organized financials often bring the deposit down, and a good guy guarantee, which ends when you leave in good standing with notice, is the usual form. Your attorney should confirm the wording.
Talk to a broker
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