Coworking: When Working from Home Doesn’t Work

One of the appealing things about working for yourself is being able to work in your pajamas from home. But many people find that this is not the panacea they hoped for: constant distractions, a lack of separation between work and play, and loneliness are common.

Thankfully, there’s an affordable option for people that want a more social work environment out of the home without having to rent an office for their business.

That solution is coworking, and its popularity is soaring. According to Allwork, there are over 35,000 coworking spaces today and the growth of coworking is expected to continue despite the impact of the pandemic.

How a Coworking Space Can Help You

Coworking spaces bring together many solopreneurs and startups into an office-like environment. Most coworking spaces include dedicated and shared desks, meeting rooms, kitchens, printers, and other perks of traditional offices. They also include Internet service.

Some of the benefits of working in a coworking space are:

• The feeling like you’re part of a team, even if the people you work next to aren’t part of your business.
• Meeting like-minded people, some of whom may help you think about how to improve your business or serve as important contacts in the future.
• Boundaries between work and home.
• A professional space to meet with clients or fellow freelancers and entrepreneurs.
• Event or conference space when needed.

Coworking Space Costs and Options

WeWork is perhaps the most popular coworking business out there, but there are probably lots of small coworking options in your town. The best way to pick one is to visit them and take a tour.

In addition to inspecting the facilities and their vibe, some coworking spaces offer educational seminars and social events that might provide additional value to you.

Also, the national and worldwide chains usually offer some sort of visiting rights when you are traveling and need a space to work or meet clients.

In general, coworking spaces offer four different packages:

1. Virtual office – You get a mailing address at the coworking office, or perhaps a receptionist. You can also buy coworking time on an a la carte basis. This sort of service usually starts at $50 per month but can cost much more.
2. Hot desk – Hot desk packages let you use any open desk each day instead of a dedicated desk. Hot desk packages usually have a pool of hours or days you can use each month but you can also choose an unlimited/all-days plan. Packages might include limited meeting room time as well. Depending on your location, expect to pay at least $200 a month.
3. Dedicated desk – This means that a dedicated desk is yours every day. This is good for small teams that need to have space next to each other. It also enables you to leave some stuff like office supplies or a computer monitor at your desk. Pricing at WeWork starts at $350 depending on location, and other coworking spaces will be similar.
4. Dedicated office – Need your own space with walls? This is for you. Expect to pay $450 or more depending on how expensive real estate is in your city.

It’s Flexible

One of the best things about coworking spaces is that you can typically try it out to see what works for you. With month-to-month contracts, you can take your time figuring out if you need a dedicated office and how many days a week you’ll make the effort to leave your house and head to the “office.”

If coworking sounds appealing, book a tour at a coworking space near you. You might end up working right next to another Namecheap customer like you.

This post was updated on July 6, 2022 to reflect a new link and statistics.