18 Unique Coworking Amenities to Add to Your Space

Desks? Check. Meeting rooms? Check. Meditation room? 

…check?

Every coworking space needs the essentials, but now they need a bit more than that too. If you’re just offering desks and meeting rooms, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity to not only improve member retention, but differentiate your business.

In this article, we’ll share 18 ideas for unique coworking space amenities that you can add to your space, from photography studios to catered lunches. 

We’ll also share examples of these amenities in practice, featuring 16 incredible Optix clients who are thinking outside the box with their offerings.

18 coworking space amenities and perks for members

If you’re looking for inspiration when building out your own coworking space amenity offerings, consider this your ultimate guide.

1. Gym and fitness equipment

Adding an element of health and fitness to your coworking space can be a great way to support the well-being of your members – and you don’t need a lot of space for it. Fitness facilities can range from a few spin bikes to a 1,000 square foot facility stacked with high-end gym equipment. 

Despite the additional investment, fitness-related amenities can become a strong revenue driver. We often see clients charge a premium add-on fee for access to fitness amenities or bundle it with their other coworking membership plans under a higher base cost.

KWENCH work and social club in Victoria, BC offers a large fitness facility for their members, complete with state-of-the-art workout equipment and group exercise classes throughout the day. Members can work out before or after working in the space, with a shower on-site.

2. Greenhouse 

We’ve seen a lot of success with communities that value eco-friendly or sustainable living offering a greenhouse. Not only does it make for a fun mid-day gardening break, it can also double as an event space for a unique after hours community gathering.

Norway-based coworking and event space Greenhouse Oslo by Enterspace offers a greenhouse on-site for members to be able to experiment, collaborate and create sustainable solutions to urban challenges. It’s a strong differentiating factor that draws like-minded members to their community.

3. Childcare services

Of all the unique coworking amenities we see in the market, childcare may be one of the most common. Offering childcare in your coworking space can help you:

• Differentiate your space
• Support your community
• Create an additional revenue stream

Before embarking on the childcare journey however, it’s important to understand the intricacies of this model. We recommend checking out our complete guide to Coworking + Childcare or our list of the top 10 coworking and childcare spaces to help you get a sense as to whether this model is right for you.

BubbaDesk is Australia’s first and leading coworking space offering on-site childcare. They offer separate children’s areas with a 4:1 ratio of children to caretakers to ensure high-quality care for parents. BONUS: they also offer a gym at their facility!

4. Meditation or yoga room

Are your members aching for a quiet space to decompress in the afternoon? Consider adding a yoga or meditation room. The nice part about these rooms are not only are they deeply valued by members, they are incredibly simple and low-cost to assemble.

1. Identify a small open space in your facility
2. Add low lighting, an essential oil diffuser, and a white noise machine
3. Supply yoga mats and pillows
4. Create insulation to block out as much noise as possible

The Urban Hive is the largest coworking space in Sacramento. They offer their members access to a variety of wellness-centered amenities including access to a meditation room, yoga, and massages on-site.

5. High-end drinks

Coffee is a staple in every coworking space, but what about other drink offerings? Many of our clients see success with offering drinks above and beyond coffee including sparkling water, kombucha, and espresso.

Suite Genius is a coworking space in Vancouver, BC. All three of their locations include a premium coffee machine serving up lattes, cappuccinos, Americanos and more. It’s an investment that pays dividends in member satisfaction and retention.

6. On-site cafe

There are many different ways to integrate coworking and cafes. Spaces can choose to have their cafe on-site, on another level of the same building, or next door. In these cases, the cafe is owned and operated by the coworking space operator. This can be a heavy lift, but can pay off.

If you’re not yet ready to run a restaurant, you can consider partnering with a local cafe in the neighbourhood and offering a discount to your members as a member perk.

Flockd offers an on-site espresso bar and cafe serving up coffee and quick bites to eat from 6:30 am to 2:00 pm everyday. Members can grab a mid-morning matcha latte and a croissant and enjoy it at their desk at their convenience. BONUS: they also offer catering services.

7. Outdoor workspace

Outdoor workspaces are a nice addition to break up an otherwise monotonous workday, especially for those who live in warmer climates. When creating an outdoor workspace, we recommend:

• Offering a mix of sunny and shady spots
• Consider providing fans or heaters depending on the climate
• Including sitting spaces (like tables or desks) and outlets

Lifestyle Communities offers an elaborate outdoor lounge area attached to an open-air patio for members to use at their leisure.

8. Catered lunches

Our clients who operate premium work and social clubs find a lot of success with catered lunches. With this add-on amenity, members view a daily or weekly menu and reserve a lunch ahead of time. These lunches can either be made in-house by a chef or catered by a local company, depending on the resources you have available to you.

Highland City Club, is a social club and coworking space offering daily meals to members. Their local, seasonal menu has included items like Red chile braised pork posole and Old bay spiced walleye to name a few. All meals can be ordered exclusively through their Optix White-labeled App for easy purchase.

9. Podcast studio

If you’re targeting creative people in your coworking space, an amenity you may want to consider is a podcasting studio. These typically come with professional podcasting equipment and noise insulation, and may even contain videography equipment for filming podcasts.

The benefit of these studios for members is they’re typically far less expensive than if they were to buy all of the equipment on their own. You’ll benefit from the additional revenue generating opportunity.

Recordical is a coworking space specifically for podcasters and other audio creators. Their goal is to make podcasting and audio recording accessible by offering state-of-the-art audio equipment to their members.

10. Photography studio

Photo studios are typically bright, open spaces with professional photography equipment and lighting. They are an especially attractive option for:

• Artists
• Freelance photographers
• Content creators
• Entrepreneurs 

If you have a lot of members working in the creative industry, it’s worth considering whether or not they would benefit from a studio space.

Elevate Coworking is a women-centered coworking space based out of North Carolina. Here, members can rent access to a beautiful, naturally lit 150 square foot studio space. BONUS: Elevate Coworking also offers members a podcast studio!

11. Storage rental and lockers

If you have a lot of transient members, then offering on-site storage could be a nice add-on. It could benefit those who are traveling for work or going somewhere after the workday (ie. a gym bag for the gym).

Many co-warehousing spaces will offer members the option of storing physical inventory in their space via a storage rental to help lessen the storage burden for entrepreneurs. 

Shedpoint is a co-warehousing facility located in Calgary, Alberta. Along with a photo studio, podcast studio, and fully outfitted gym, they also offer members flexible warehouse and storage space to help them store inventory for their business.

12. Pop-up retail

One interesting amenity that we’ve seen explored in community-driven coworking spaces is a pop-up retail shop. This could mean:

• Partnering with local businesses to sell their products in your space
• Selling member’s products if you have a particularly crafty or entrepreneurial membership base
• Offering coworking space merchandise or essential products like notebooks and pens for purchase as an additional revenue stream

You can sell these items through a coworking app or coworking software platform like Optix using the Marketplace feature so members can easily pay for what they need without any cash exchanging hands.

ECOMsquare is a coworking space specifically for those in the e-commerce industry. They offer a pop-up retail shop where members can showcase their new products and get valuable market research on ways they can improve their offering.

13. Pets and pet amenities

Everybody loves their pets. Allowing members to bring their pets to work, and offering amenities just for them can be a differentiating factor to attract pet lovers.

Before opening your space up to animals however, you’ll want to make sure you set some standard rules to cover all your bases. We wrote an entire article breaking down the pros and cons of pet-friendly coworking spaces that we’d recommend checking out.

Hello Friend is a community-driven coworking space located in Australia. To help their members feel more at home in the space, they allow access to their furry four-legged friends. It’s something that members have come to know and love.

14. Day spa treatments

If your members are interested in integrated work experiences, they may appreciate on-site day spa treatments. This could include:

• Massage therapy
• Nail services
• Reiki and alternative bodywork

We’ve even heard of some operators offering 15-minute massages for their members at their desk to help loosen up the body and break up their work day.

The team at Flockd also offers day spa treatments to help their members relax and unwind, including brow treatments, massage therapy, and 10 min desk massages.

15. Licensed bar

Happy hours and evening open houses are popular community-building tactics for coworking spaces. Have you considered elevating these experiences with a licensed bar?

While it’s great to have for your own coworking space events, it’s a particularly unique selling point when it comes to renting your space for events after-hours. If you’re interested in using space rental to drive revenue, then it may be worth considering the cost of having a bar on-site.

Our friends at KWENCH also offer a licensed bar that members are free to use for private events. It’s a unique selling point that helps them close more event-related deals. 

16. Internal bike racks

Internal bike racks and bike storage are a mainstay at many coworking spaces, and for good reason. While it may seem small, many members appreciate being able to keep their bike nearby – without having to worry about it being damaged by the weather or misplaced.

Work Hive Salt Lake City offers a bike rack at their downtown location. Not only is it a functional addition for their active clientele, it also serves as an interior design element and fits well with the overall aesthetic.

17. Sauna and cold plunges

Saunas and cold plunges are having a moment in the wellness world, and for good reason. Hot and cold therapy has many proven health benefits that many of your members are likely interested in, especially for those in wellness-focused coworking spaces.

Consider offering access to a sauna or a cold plunge as a unique selling point that can appeal to many members. 

KoWorks is a wellness oriented coworking network based in Australia. Apart from typical wellness offerings like yoga classes, KoWorks also offers a sauna and ice bath at their newest location. It’s such a strong differentiator, they have people come into the space asking specifically for that.

18. Educational resources

Many members are seeking out coworking spaces because they want to network and expand their knowledge base. With that, educational resources can be a fantastic addition to your typical coworking offering.

By this we mean:

• Digital content like eBooks and guides
• Curated educational programming
• In-person learning sessions

Salon22 is a women’s-only social and professional women’s hub located in New Orleans. They offer a comprehensive set of programs each month specifically designed to support women entrepreneurs.

Think outside of the amenity box

Unique and differentiated coworking space amenities help coworking spaces set themselves apart in the market. 

Many of the coworking amenities above can be booked  through the use of a coworking app like Optix, from using it to automate payments in your Marketplace to booking a massage for the afternoon with Resources.

To learn more about Optix can help you automate access to your amenities, connect with a member of our team today.