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Flexible office fit-out costs depend on the building, location, specification and what the landlord has already provided. For a UK starting point, Knight Frank’s Spring 2026 guide—assuming delivery from landlord CAT A—puts furniture at £25/£30/£35 per ft², internal walls at £7/£13/£20, electrical services including fire alarm and power at £10/£20/£25, and data cabling at £3/£4/£5, for low/medium/high specifications respectively. These are component benchmarks, not a site-specific quote or a universal rate for every office.
The figures help you build an initial allowance and ask better questions of contractors. They do not, by themselves, tell you the full project price: the total guide bands are £100/£175/£250+ per ft², and the other work, fees, exclusions and assumptions behind a quote must be checked before comparing it with those line items.
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What do the four main packages cost?
The most useful first step is to budget furniture, internal walls, electrical services and data cabling as separate packages. The table gives Knight Frank’s UK low, medium and high specification benchmarks for each category. Rates are per square foot and assume the fit-out starts from landlord CAT A; the guide’s corresponding overall fit-out bands are shown for context, not as the sum of these four lines.
| Package | Low | Medium | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Furniture | £25/ft² | £30/ft² | £35/ft² |
| Internal walls | £7/ft² | £13/ft² | £20/ft² |
| Electrical services (fire alarm and power) | £10/ft² | £20/ft² | £25/ft² |
| Data cabling | £3/ft² | £4/ft² | £5/ft² |
| Knight Frank total fit-out guide band | £100/ft² | £175/ft² | £250+/ft² |
Rates published in Knight Frank’s Occupier Fit Out Cost Guide, Spring 2026; price information checked November 2026. Specifications and project scope vary. The total bands are the guide’s own benchmarks, not a quotation or the sum of only the four package lines.
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Multiplying a rate by the area gives an initial allowance for that package. For example, for 1,000 ft², the medium benchmark implies £30,000 for furniture, £13,000 for internal walls, £20,000 for electrical services and £4,000 for data cabling: £67,000 across those four lines. That arithmetic is not a forecast of the final project cost. It excludes anything outside those allowances and does not confirm that the building condition, layout or specification matches the guide’s assumptions.
What does CAT A mean for this budget?
Knight Frank’s component figures assume a starting point of landlord CAT A. In practical budgeting terms, treat that as a defined handover condition—not a guarantee that every service, connection or space is ready for your particular layout. Establish what the landlord is delivering, what is already installed, what is operational, and what your fit-out must add or alter.
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Use the component table as a starting allowance for a project with broadly comparable scope, then get a measured, site-specific estimate. Do not apply the rates as though they were a guaranteed cost per square foot for any office, or assume that a CAT A handover removes the need to inspect existing services.
What belongs in each package?
Package labels are useful only if the scope behind each one is clear. Ask for the proposed work, quantities and exclusions to be described separately so you can see whether two estimates are pricing the same thing.
Furniture
Furniture can cover the workstations and seating needed for the planned occupancy, as well as meeting-room and shared-space items if these are included in the schedule. The benchmark is an area-based allowance, not a specification. Before requesting prices, set out how many people the office is expected to accommodate, how many desks and chairs are required, and what furniture is to be provided in meeting or collaboration areas. An office task chair and a desk or workstation are natural parts of a furniture schedule, but consumer product prices do not substitute for a commercial furniture specification and project quotation.
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Clarify whether the furniture figure includes delivery, assembly, installation, removal of packaging, and any existing items to be reused. These are scope questions for the quotation; the benchmark does not establish that each is included.
Internal walls and partitions
The internal-walls allowance is not a single price for every partition design. The room plan, wall length and height, fixed versus demountable construction, and acoustic or privacy requirements affect what needs to be specified and priced. Mark up the desired layout, identifying enclosed rooms and the type of separation required, and ask the contractor to state which partition system and finish the estimate assumes.
As a separate supplier indication—not an independent market benchmark—SK Fitouts lists demountable partitions at £180–£350/m² in its guide, reviewed 26 October 2026. Its stated general guide prices exclude VAT, furniture, IT/AV, landlord and professional fees, statutory application fees, and major mechanical plant replacement unless stated. Treat that figure as supplier guide pricing, not an installed quotation for your premises. It is also in a different unit and describes a particular package, so it cannot be directly substituted for Knight Frank’s per-ft² internal-wall allowance.
Electrical services: power and fire alarm
Knight Frank groups fire alarm and power under electrical services. For a useful estimate, explain where desks, meeting rooms and other work areas will be, and ask how the allowance covers power distribution and the points needed for the proposed arrangement. Confirm whether work to existing electrical services is assumed, and ask the contractor to flag any assumptions that depend on inspection or testing.
Do not read the £10–£25/ft² range as a price for every electrical item in an office. The source labels the category “electrical services (fire alarm and power)”; a quote should spell out its actual inclusions and exclusions rather than relying on a broad label.
Data cabling
The data-cabling line is distinct from electrical power. Give the estimator a plan of desk positions and enclosed rooms, and explain the anticipated requirements for data points, Wi-Fi and AV. Ask which of these are included in the cabling allowance, which are separate packages and which are excluded. Knight Frank names IT hardware such as racks and servers as excluded, so do not assume the data-cabling benchmark includes that equipment.
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Clarify whether the estimate concerns cabling infrastructure only or also includes hardware, configuration or other technology work. The benchmark gives a guide rate for data cabling; it does not define every occupier’s IT or AV scope.
Why is the total higher than these four line items?
The four medium allowances add to £67/ft², while Knight Frank’s medium total guide band is £175/ft². That is not a discrepancy to resolve by forcing the lines to match: the four packages are components, whereas the guide’s total covers a broader fit-out scope. The same distinction applies to the low and high figures: the four listed packages add to £45/ft² and £85/ft², respectively, while the overall bands are £100/ft² and £250+/ft².
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Before treating an “all-in” number as comparable, find out what it includes. Possible scope differences include furniture, AV, professional fees, contingency, VAT, landlord work, statutory fees and existing building services. The source guides do not all define totals in the same way. Knight Frank’s component table specifically excludes IT hardware such as racks and servers; other exclusions must be confirmed against the estimate you receive.
For example, Cushman & Wakefield’s 2026 UK city benchmarks are all-in rates in euros per square metre and include furniture, AV, professional fees and contingency. That is a different basis from Knight Frank’s component rates in pounds per square foot. Do not rank or directly compare the numbers until currency, unit, specification and scope have been aligned.
How do costs vary by UK city?
Location changes the benchmark, but city figures are still guide rates rather than project quotations. Cushman & Wakefield’s 2026 table reports these low/medium/high all-in fit-out benchmarks in EUR/m²:
| City | Low | Medium | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| London | €1,612/m² | €2,668/m² | €3,954/m² |
| Birmingham | €1,330/m² | €2,195/m² | €3,262/m² |
| Glasgow | €1,277/m² | €2,109/m² | €3,131/m² |
| Manchester | €1,402/m² | €2,309/m² | €3,428/m² |
Source: Cushman & Wakefield, EMEA Office Fit Out Cost Guide 2026; price information checked November 2026. Figures are guide benchmarks in EUR/m². Its all-in section includes furniture, AV, professional fees and contingency.
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The guide reports an average 3.8% increase in all-in fit-out costs in 2025. Keep the reference year attached to that statistic: it is an increase for 2025 reported in the 2026 guide, not a claim about every city or a forecast for the year ahead. Cushman & Wakefield describes its figures as indicative market averages based on certain assumptions.
A wider comparison does not remove the need for local pricing. JLL’s 2025 guide covers 68 cities in 40 countries and gives a global average of $1,830/m² for its standardized moderate, medium-quality CBD office fit-out benchmark. That is useful context for the scale and variability of global office costs, but it is not a UK quote and should not be compared directly with either UK guide without reconciling currency, units, location and inclusions.
How should you build a flexible-office budget?
Start with a defined occupancy and layout, then price the packages against that plan. “Flexible” can mean a space expected to accommodate changing patterns of use, but the cost guides do not give a separate universal flexible-office rate. The practical budget therefore depends on the actual number and type of work settings, partitions, services and furniture being delivered.
- Set the area and occupancy assumptions. Confirm the measured floor area and the number of people and workstations the plan is intended to serve. State any occupancy assumptions explicitly rather than leaving contractors to infer them.
- Prepare a furniture schedule. List desks, chairs and furniture for meeting or shared areas, including quantities and any items to retain. Identify whether delivery and installation are expected in the estimate.
- Mark up the partition plan. Show the room layout and note where you need fixed or demountable walls, as well as any acoustic or privacy requirements. Ask the estimator to specify the system and finish assumed.
- Map power requirements. Show desk and room locations, then ask how the electrical proposal supports them. Confirm the assumed condition of existing power and fire-alarm services.
- Define data and technology scope. Identify desired data points and the intended Wi-Fi and AV scope. Ask separately about cabling, IT hardware and other technology work so the boundaries are visible.
- Record the handover condition. Obtain a clear description of what the landlord provides and what exists on site. Ask which services are treated as reusable and whether that assumption is subject to a survey or checks.
- Allow for delivery and sequencing. State any required phasing, access or installation assumptions in the brief. The guides do not price your project’s logistics; the contractor needs to explain how these requirements affect its proposal.
- Make the commercial basis explicit. Ask for fees, contingency, VAT, landlord works, statutory fees, AV and IT hardware to be identified as included, excluded or separately priced. Do not rely on the phrase “all-in” without a written scope.
What should you ask for in a quote?
A defensible estimate makes assumptions visible. Send the same brief and drawings to each estimator, then compare like with like. Ask for each of the four packages to be shown separately, with quantities or a clear description of the work, rather than receiving only one blended rate.
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- What handover condition is assumed, and what existing power, fire alarm, data or other services are assumed to be reusable?
- What furniture quantities, partition type and electrical/data scope are included?
- Are AV, IT hardware, professional fees, contingency, VAT, landlord work and statutory fees included, excluded or provisional?
- Does the price include delivery, installation and any project-specific phasing or access assumptions?
- Which parts of the estimate are subject to a survey, further information or confirmation of existing services?
- What is the basis for each allowance, and how will changes to the layout or specification affect it?
Use the published rates to frame an initial budget, not to commit funds. A measured survey and a site-specific professional estimate are needed to confirm the building condition, detailed quantities, specification and complete scope.
How can you compare two fit-out estimates fairly?
Align the basis before deciding that one estimate is cheaper. Compare the same city and currency, equivalent specification and workplace density, matching floor area and layout, and the same partition approach. Check whether the existing building condition and the reuse of power, data and mechanical systems are treated consistently.
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Then compare the commercial scope: component lines versus all-in totals, furniture and AV, IT hardware, professional fees, contingency, VAT, landlord work and statutory fees. Finally, check delivery, installation and procurement assumptions. If the quotes differ on any of these points, ask for a revised breakdown or a schedule of exclusions; a headline rate alone can conceal a materially different scope.
Rates from different guides are not a league table. Knight Frank’s pounds-per-square-foot component benchmarks, Cushman & Wakefield’s euro-per-square-metre all-in city rates and JLL’s global-dollar benchmark describe different units, places and scopes. Convert and reconcile those bases before using them to judge a local proposal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a fit-out budget include VAT?
It depends on the estimate’s stated basis. SK Fitouts says its general guide prices exclude VAT, but that supplier note does not establish the tax treatment of another contractor’s proposal; ask for VAT to be shown explicitly.
Can I compare a quote in square metres with one in square feet?
Only after converting the area unit and checking that the currency, specification, location and inclusions match. Unit conversion alone does not make a component allowance comparable with an all-in rate.
What does an all-in office fit-out rate usually tell me?
The phrase has no safe meaning without the guide or contractor’s scope definition. One named 2026 city guide includes furniture, AV, professional fees and contingency, while the line-item guide separately identifies exclusions such as IT hardware.
Can I use an international average to budget a UK office?
Use a global benchmark as context, not as a local estimate. JLL’s 2025 figure is for a standardized moderate, medium-quality CBD office fit-out and spans cities across multiple countries, so local market and project conditions still matter.
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