Outside London: where UK coworking actually lives

CoworkingCafe’s latest UK & Ireland Quarterly Coworking Report is out, and the headline numbers tell a story anyone working in regional flex space already knew: Manchester is leading the pack outside the M25.

The UK now has 4,270 coworking spaces. Greater London accounts for 1,209 of them, close to 30 percent of the total. That dominance is no surprise. What’s more interesting is what the rest of the country looks like.

Manchester out in front

Manchester sits at 123 spaces, making it the top regional hub by a clear margin. Glasgow follows on 72, with Birmingham at 68, then Bristol and Leeds tied at 64 each.

For an industry that still gets discussed as if it begins at Old Street and ends in Shoreditch, this is worth pausing on. The regional flex market isn’t catching up to London in absolute numbers, but Manchester’s lead over every other city outside the capital points to a serious operator base, sustained occupier demand, and a coworking ecosystem that has been building for the better part of a decade.

Bruntwood, headquartered in Manchester, ranks fourth among UK operators with 51 locations across the top markets. They sit behind Regus (79) and Fora (62), and ahead of Workspace Group (47) and Spaces (44). That a Manchester-rooted operator is among the largest in the country is not incidental. It reflects the city’s position as both a market and a base.

The wider regional picture

Beyond the largest hubs, England has 3,729 coworking spaces in total. Scotland counts 311, Wales 131, and Northern Ireland 99. Ireland, taken separately, has 280, with Dublin accounting for almost half.

The pricing benchmarks in the report give a useful frame for operators planning 2026 commercials. The UK median sits at £180 per month for membership, £25 for a day pass, £115 for a virtual office, and £30 per hour for a meeting room. Variation across cities is significant, which anyone running a regional space already knows but rarely sees backed up with national figures.

Why this matters for GCUC Manchester

GCUC UK Manchester runs on 4 and 5 June at Campfield. The choice of city wasn’t accidental, and the data confirms why.

The regional conversation in coworking has shifted. Operators outside London aren’t asking how to replicate the capital’s model. They’re working out how to build something that fits their own market, with different occupier demands, different pricing pressures, and different opportunities around community and place. The Manchester agenda reflects that, with sessions on the regional opportunity, the data gap in flex workspace, the generous operator, and what comes next for member-led space.

If you operate, invest in, design, or work alongside flex spaces in the regions, this is the room.

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The full CoworkingCafe report is available here.