One thing that many new business owners don’t understand is how much it costs to have an office fitted out. Before you go rushing into making any decisions, first you should have a clear understanding as to how much you will need to establish a decent enough working space for your office. You’ll want a good foundation to build your business upon and a great environment in which your office employees can thrive.
In this article, we’re going to talk about average fit out charges, including office fit out costs per square foot, and square meter. This should give you a solid enough idea as to how much you are likely to need for investing in getting your office set up and established.
Of course, it all really depends on how lavish you want to go. Are you going to have clients and potential customers visit the office? Or will it strictly be a ‘behind the scenes’ operation? Do you need to favour lavish over functionality? Consider the fact that you can always have your office refurbished later and stick with a more conservative fitout in the early stages of your development.
In any case, it’s entirely up to you. Our aim is to give you a clearer picture on the average fitout costs so that you can make your mind up with confidence.
Office fit out costs per square metre
Let’s look at office fitout costs per square meter. Most commercial fitouts will typically cost between $500 and $2000 AUD per square meter, for an average sized office. That being said, your fit out costs per square metre really does depend on the scope of the project. For example, if you only need a few workstations and breakout areas with telephone and internet access, then you can easily budget for around the $500 PSQM mark if you want to.
Office fit out costs per square foot
There are approximately 11 square foot in a square meter (10.7639), thus finding the average fitout cost per square foot is a simple case of division. Let’s say that a typical mid-range office fitout costs $800 AUD per square meter; you’d be looking at approximately $72 AUD per square foot.
Let’s look at some typical office fitout costs per sq ft (bear in mind that these are simply approximations and that we cannot offer an accurate estimation without understanding the scope of your project and precisely what you want to achieve):
- Open plan fitout: $38.63 per sq ft
- Open plan fitout with a few offices: $59.09 per fq ft
- Mid-range office fitout: $86.36 per sq ft
- High-end office fitout: $204.54 per sq ft
Typical office fit out costs
Going off typical office fit out costs might give you some indication as to how much budget you will need to set aside for your new project. Again, your best bet is going to be to contact professional office fit out contractors and consult with them. That way, you can start building up a much clearer image with the most accurate quotes from a number of sources.
In any case, whilst you are in the early planning phase, here are some ballpark figures to go on:
- Open plan fitout: $350-$550 per sqm
- Open plan fitout with a few offices: $550-$750 per sqm
- Mid-range office fitout: $800-$1,100 per sqm
- High-end office fitout: $2000-$2,400 per sqm
Typical fit out charges
Your typical fitout charges really depend on the spec. High-spec commercial fit outs for example, including new ceilings, flooring, lighting, ait conditioning units, a kitchenette area and so on, are much more likely to cost around the $2000 per sqm mark. That is assuming, you want the lavish materials and a truly high-end fitout. This will include walls, joinery, all of your storage, breakout spaces, a lounge area, a number of coffee tables and so on. A full-blown executive office as you would expect to see in the central business district of Sydney.
Then of course, open plan fitouts with less of a requirement on the best materials in terms of aesthetics, and basic office functionality, you could be aiming more towards the $425 per sqm mark. Again, it is all relative. However, one thing that is worth noting, is that smaller offices can tend to cost more per sqm due to the economies of scale. It’s still a labourious task, no matter how small the scale.
How do shop fit out costs compare?
When it comes to shop fit out cost per square metre, it shouldn’t really change too much in comparison with offices. It’s all down to the complexity of the task and which contractor you are using.
Conclusion
As we have mentioned, please do not take these average costs as gospel. You may find these prices to vary significantly depending on where you are in Australia, and who you are dealing with. Thus, it is important to take your time and do a bit of shopping around before making your final decision.
Find yourself a reputable and established contractor such as Alpha Ceilings and Partitions, if you are looking for a fair price in comparison to a superior standard of work. After all, that is what matters: the quality of the finish. If you can save a tonne of money per sqm while you are at it then even better.
In any case, we wish you the very best of luck with your new commercial fit out. Enjoy the planning process and take your time with it. If you feel overwhelmed by the sheer scale, rest assured that your office fitout contractors will be well-versed in this. They may even be able to design the entire space for you, so that you don’t have to worry. Simply tell them exactly what you want and watch as they make the magic happen! Enjoy.