CONTACT US
Share: Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn I recommend visiting cushmanwakefield.com to read:%0A%0A {0} %0A%0A {1}
London Moves Landing Page Hero Mobile London Moves Landing Page Hero Large

INSIGHTS

London Moves

London Moves 2026 is Cushman & Wakefield's detailed analysis of the who, what, where and why of office relocations across the Capital.

READ THE FULL REPORT

OVERVIEW

Delve into the intricacies of the market, providing thought-provoking insights and actionable data for investors, occupiers, and developers. 

London Moves analyses 9.6 million sq ft of office leasing transactions across 504 deals Central London leasing transactions that took place across 2025. We dissect the data by a combination of metrics and categories including relocation type, submarket, business sector and size.  

This year we will be featuring the Acceleration of AI Demand, looking at the movement of AI Occupiers in the UK capital. With AI companies increasingly taking a significant proportion of office take up. We analyse the market and predict the trajectory of growth of AI Occupier demand for office space in London 

Read the full report and get in touch with the team to understand how this data and insight can be applied for you. 

London Moves 2026 report thumbnail

READ THE FULL REPORT

WATCH VIDEO

London Moves_Web Card Small 750x456px.png London Moves_Web Card Large 2352x720px.png

An introduction to London Moves 2026

Watch Heena Gadhavi, Head of London Offices Research, highlight the key themes from this year’s report.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


  • Deals over 100,000 sq ft increased. Demonstrating London’s continued strength in attracting large corporate HQs. 
  • Continuation of the Loyalty to Local theme. Average distance moved was the lowest on record. Occupiers are moving shorter distances, with a growing preference to remain within established locations and ecosystems. 
  • An overall expansionary market of 3.8m sq ft. 312 companies expanded their footprint while 76 contracted.
  • Emerging sectors are influencing future demand. AI-led occupiers are beginning to shape leasing activity, with the potential to become a significant driver of take-up over the medium term. 

Read the full report External Link

FAQS

London Moves 2026 is Cushman & Wakefield’s annual analysis of office relocation activity across Central London. The report tracks where businesses are moving, how much space they are taking, which sectors are expanding, and how changing market dynamics,  including the rise of AI, are reshaping London’s office geography. 

Despite overall deal numbers falling slightly year-on-year, the market remained highly active and in line with the long-term average. The City continued to dominate leasing activity, East London recorded its strongest post-pandemic year, and occupiers increasingly favoured relocating short distances, reinforcing the growing “loyalty to local” trend. 

Occupiers are prioritising proximity to talent, transport links and established business ecosystems. The average relocation distance fell to a record-low 0.65 miles in 2025, with many businesses choosing to remain within the same submarket rather than undertake large geographic moves. Limited availability of Grade A space around major transport hubs is also encouraging companies to stay local where possible. 

The Wider City remained the strongest-performing market, but Southbank emerged as one of the biggest beneficiaries of “spillover demand” from the City Core and West End. Meanwhile, King’s Cross experienced record levels of mover activity, driven largely by technology and AI-related occupiers seeking well-connected, high-quality office environments. 

AI businesses are becoming a major new source of office demand across Central London. Activity accelerated significantly in early 2026, with AI-focused firms accounting for 12% of total leasing activity in Q1 alone. The report forecasts AI occupiers could generate between 3.0 million and 6.4 million sq ft of office demand over the next three years, driven by both global tech giants and rapidly scaling UK-based startups. 

The report highlights a growing supply shortage of Grade A office space in transport-rich locations, particularly around Elizabeth Line stations and key business districts. As the development pipelines tighten, competition for premium workspace is expected to intensify, pushing more occupiers into neighbouring submarkets and increasing upward pressure on rents across Central London. 

CONTACTS

Heena-Gadhavi
Heena Gadhavi

Partner, Head of London Offices Research
London, United Kingdom

Download VCard

Alistair Brown - London
Alistair Brown

Head of Offices UK
London, United Kingdom

Download VCard

Andrew Tyler- London
Andy Tyler

Head of Leasing UK
London, United Kingdom

Download VCard

James Campbell 002.jpg
James Campbell

International Partner
London, United Kingdom

Download VCard

James Meikle-photo.jpg
James Meikle

Head of London Occupier Representation
London, United Kingdom

Download VCard

Chris Bennett.png
Chris Bennett

Head of London Offices Capital Markets
London, United Kingdom

Download VCard

Martin Richard Forbes Lay
Martin Lay

Chairman of London Offices Capital Markets
London, United Kingdom

Download VCard

Related Insights

UK Central London Offices Marketbeat Webcard.jpg
MarketBeat

UK London Office Marketbeat Reports

Access the latest quarterly commercial real estate results for the London office market. MarketBeat reports analyse quarterly market activity including, supply, demand and pricing trends.
Heena Gadhavi • 19/05/2026
UK Office Marketbeat Webcard.jpg
MarketBeat

UK Regional Offices MarketBeat

Access the latest quarterly commercial real estate results for the UK office sector nationally. MarketBeat reports analyse quarterly market activity including, supply, demand and pricing trends.
Joshua Woolnough • 19/05/2026
UK Life Sciences Marketbeat Webcard.jpg
MarketBeat

UK Life Science Marketbeat Report

Access the latest quarterly commercial real estate results for the UK life science sector nationally. MarketBeat reports analyse quarterly market activity including, supply, demand and pricing trends.
Joshua Woolnough • 19/05/2026
2026 fit out cost guide-web card
Research • Workplace

Office Fit Out Cost Guides

These guides are an essential tool to assist in corporate real estate decision-making regarding fitting out, retrofitting and reinstating office space.
24/03/2026
life sciences feb 2026 web card
Research

Life Sciences Update

The Life Sciences Update covers life sciences venture capital funding, rent and vacancy trends, investment sales, labor analytics, clinical trials and market-level insights for top global life sciences markets.
Sandy Romero • 23/02/2026
Visions 2026 UK_Webcard.png
Research

Visions

Cushman & Wakefield's view on key market trends and insights to drive your future real estate decision making
15/01/2026

Related Services

Office

Strategic environments, global reach, high-performance workspaces

Learn More
Central London Offices
Discover premium Central London office spaces with Cushman & Wakefield. Explore tailored solutions for your business needs in London.
Learn More

LOOKING FOR SOMETHING SPECIFIC?

Get in touch and we can assist with any additional information you need.
CONTACT US
With your permission we and our partners would like to use cookies in order to access and record information and process personal data, such as unique identifiers and standard information sent by a device to ensure our website performs as expected, to develop and improve our products, and for advertising and insight purposes.

Alternatively click on More Options and select your preferences before providing or refusing consent. Some processing of your personal data may not require your consent, but you have a right to object to such processing.

You can change your preferences at any time by returning to this site or clicking on Cookies.
MORE OPTIONS
Agree and Close
These cookies ensure that our website performs as expected,for example website traffic load is balanced across our servers to prevent our website from crashing during particularly high usage.
These cookies allow our website to remember choices you make (such as your user name, language or the region you are in) and provide enhanced features. These cookies do not gather any information about you that could be used for advertising or remember where you have been on the internet.
These cookies allow us to work with our marketing partners to understand which ads or links you have clicked on before arriving on our website or to help us make our advertising more relevant to you.
Cookie preferences
Agree All
Reject All
SAVE SETTINGS
Essential
Non Essential
Marketing