Three figures get confused. Booked occupancy is how many desks were reserved. Actual occupancy is how many were used. Peak occupancy is the highest either reached on the busiest day. A floor can run at 45% average and still be full on Tuesday, and the average is the figure that gets someone to sign a lease reduction that does not survive contact with a Tuesday.
Measure against peak and against the days that matter, not the mean. And take the figure from check-in rather than booking, or no-shows will hold desks that read as occupied all day. See space utilisation for the same idea applied to the whole floor.
HybridHero derives occupancy from bookings and check-ins together, by floor, zone and day. See reporting and analytics.
Common questions
Should you plan space around average or peak occupancy?+
Peak, or a high percentile of it. Planning around the average guarantees the office is short of desks on its busiest day, which is the day people judge it on.
Why do booking figures overstate occupancy?+
Because a booking nobody claims still counts. Without a check-in rule, no-shows hold desks all day and the reported figure describes intent rather than attendance.
What is a healthy desk occupancy rate?+
There is no universal number, and anyone quoting one is guessing. What matters is the gap between your peak and your average, because that gap is the capacity you are paying for and not using.