SquareFoot
SquareFoot is a tech-enabled commercial real estate brokerage that helps businesses find, compare, and lease office space across 20+ US markets. Founded in 2011, it serves 500+ companies with proprietary listing tools, tenant-side broker representation, and flexible lease products.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2011
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What SquareFoot does
SquareFoot is a venture-backed commercial real estate technology company founded in 2011 and headquartered in New York City. The company operates a tech-enabled tenant-representation brokerage that helps businesses find, compare, and lease office space across 20+ U.S. markets. SquareFoot combines a proprietary online listings platform with a network of commercial real estate brokers who represent tenants (rather than landlords), addressing the structural conflict of interest in traditional landlord-side brokerage. The company has served more than 500 companies, including notable clients such as Venmo, Instacart, Casper, Ollie, Breather, Greatist, and Materialize.
The company's core product is an online listings marketplace supplemented by smart planning tools, including a Space Calculator (estimating required square footage based on headcount), a Commute Calculator (mapping employee commute times), and TourBook (collaborative tour notes for stakeholders). The technology stack is described as a listing platform with a proprietary recommendation engine. SquareFoot has expanded its product surface through acquisitions: PivotDesk (acquired February 2019) operates a sublease marketplace connecting businesses with excess space to those needing flexible options; Upsuite (acquired June 2021) added flexible workspace capabilities; and Transcend (acquired July 2021) brought Atlanta and southern market presence. SquareFoot also offers FLEX, a flexible-lease product offering 2-3 year terms with turnkey services (furniture, IT, cleaning) as an alternative to traditional 5-10 year leases.
Revenue is generated primarily through tenant-representation broker commissions paid by landlords, typically a percentage of total lease value, with the service offered at no out-of-pocket cost to tenants. The PivotDesk marketplace generates additional marketplace commission revenue. Geographic expansion has been pursued through a combination of organic market launches (Houston, Los Angeles) and acquisitions, with the company now serving markets including Austin, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Miami, San Francisco, and Washington D.C. The company has raised approximately $31.4M in venture funding across seven rounds from 2013 to 2019, with a $16M Series B led by DRW Venture Capital in November 2019. The company is led by CEO and co-founder Jonathan Wasserstrum and VP of Growth Nell Lanman.
SquareFoot firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- SquareFoot
- Legal name
- SquareFoot
- Website
- https://squarefoot.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2011
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- SquareFoot is a tech-enabled commercial real estate brokerage that helps businesses find, compare, and lease office space across 20+ US markets. Founded in 2011, it serves 500+ companies with proprietary listing tools, tenant-side broker representation, and flexible lease products.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
SquareFoot industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Commercial Real Estate Technology
- NAICS
- Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers (5312), Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers (53121)
- SIC
- Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Land & Development Site Brokerage (BPAJABAG)
Keywords
Where SquareFoot is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
SquareFoot business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others
Revenue model
- Broker Commission (Tenant Representation): SquareFoot operates as a tenant broker, representing businesses looking for office space. Their brokers spend 100% of their time doing deals and are compensated through commissions paid by landlords (typically a percentage of the lease value). The service is described as at no cost to tenants.
- PivotDesk Marketplace Fees: Revenue from the PivotDesk marketplace platform which connects people needing office space with those having extra space. Hosts can list their available desks and offset costs of unused space.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Broker-assisted office space search |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
SquareFoot product offering
Product offeringCore offering
SquareFoot is a technology-enabled commercial real estate brokerage that helps businesses search, tour, and lease office space through an online listings platform supported by a team of tenant-representative brokers. Its core platform combines a proprietary listing database and recommendation engine with broker guidance, flexible lease products (FLEX), and a subleasing marketplace (PivotDesk) acquired in 2019. The service is offered at no out-of-pocket cost to tenants, with revenue generated through landlord-paid broker commissions.
Product overview
SquareFoot operates as a unified commercial real estate technology platform combining an online listings marketplace with broker services and smart planning tools. The core platform (SquareFoot) provides access to commercial office space listings with broker support throughout the leasing process. This is supplemented by FLEX by SquareFoot, a flexible office solution offering shorter lease terms and turnkey spaces, and PivotDesk, an acquired subleasing marketplace. Supporting tools include the Space Calculator for space requirement planning, the Commute Calculator for location analysis, TourBook for collaborative tour management, and Leasopedia as an educational resource hub. A mobile app extends access to the platform on iOS devices.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- SquareFoot Platform A technology-powered commercial real estate brokerage platform that enables businesses to search, compare, and lease office space. Combines an online listings database with broker services and smart search tools to guide tenants from initial inquiry through lease signing, with commissions paid by landlords.
- FLEX by SquareFoot A flexible office space solution allowing businesses to lease any space in NYC for 2-3 years instead of traditional 5-10 year terms. Offers turnkey solutions with flexible terms, sizing, and services including furniture, IT, and cleaning.
- PivotDesk An online marketplace acquired by SquareFoot that connects businesses needing office space with those that have extra space to sublease. Enables growing companies to offset costs of unused space and provides flexible, cost-effective options for small teams.
Companies that use SquareFoot
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
SquareFoot technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
SquareFoot partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- TranscendcoreAtlanta-based company acquired by SquareFoot to expand operations to Atlanta and southern markets. Led by Patrick Braswell. Represents SquareFoot's first entry into the Atlanta market.
- UpsuiteminorAcquired company whose acquisition preceded the Transcend acquisition and helped expand SquareFoot's market presence before entering Atlanta.
- PivotDeskcoreSquareFoot's first acquisition - a marketplace connecting people needing office space with those having extra space. PivotDesk allows growing businesses to offset costs of unused space and enables flexible, cost-effective options for small teams. PivotDesk operates as a stand-alone business within SquareFoot.
- Preferred Vendor NetworkminorSquareFoot has assembled a network of preferred vendors offering exclusive discounts to clients including architects, furniture providers, IT/data vendors, and grants/incentives specialists for relocation to outer boroughs and select Manhattan areas.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves10 records
Expansion highlights6 records
SquareFoot competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Compass: Compass is a large, publicly listed real estate brokerage platform that started in residential and has expanded into adjacent commercial and luxury segments. Comparable to SquareFoot in combining technology-driven search and agent-led representation, though Compass is much larger and primarily residential, making it a broad incumbent rather than a direct competitor.
- LoopNet: LoopNet, a CoStar Group property, is the largest public marketplace for commercial real estate listings, including offices. It is comparable to SquareFoot's listing-database approach but operates as a lead-generation platform for landlord brokers rather than as a tenant-representation platform with broker services.
- Cushman & Wakefield: Cushman & Wakefield is a global commercial real estate services firm offering tenant representation, agency leasing, and workplace strategy. Comparable to SquareFoot's tenant-representation and brokerage services but at much greater scale across global markets; competes for the same enterprise office mandates.
- CBRE: CBRE is the world's largest commercial real estate services firm with a global tenant-representation practice. Comparable to SquareFoot on tenant representation and advisory work, but operates as a broad incumbent with substantially larger teams, deeper landlord relationships, and global scale.
- JLL (Jones Lang LaSalle): JLL is a global real estate services firm with a significant tenant-representation and office-leasing practice in the US. Comparable to SquareFoot's tenant-representation and brokerage services but with global scale, institutional client base, and broader service offerings including capital markets and project management.
Direct peers
- VTS: VTS is a commercial real estate leasing and asset management platform that digitizes deal management for landlords and brokers. While focused on the landlord side rather than tenant representation, it is a closely comparable PropTech player operating in the same office-leasing workflow and competing for the same broker mindshare.
- CommercialCafe: CommercialCafe is a Yardi-owned commercial real estate listing and search platform with national office space inventory. Comparable to SquareFoot's listing and search functionality, it represents a direct competitor for online office-space discovery by prospective tenants.
- Crexi: Crexi is a commercial real estate marketplace and technology platform with strong adoption among brokers for listing and deal management. It overlaps with SquareFoot on listings, search, and broker workflow tools, though it focuses more on investment sales than tenant representation.
- OfficeSpace.com: OfficeSpace.com is a commercial real estate listing and brokerage platform focused on office leasing across North America. Directly comparable to SquareFoot's tenant-representation and online-search model, it serves as a head-to-head competitor for SMB and mid-market office leases.
- Catylist: Catylist is a commercial real estate listing platform serving brokers and tenants across the US with a focus on office and retail. It competes with SquareFoot's listing-database approach, providing an alternative search platform for office leasing prospects.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
SquareFoot social profiles
Digital presenceSquareFoot financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
SquareFoot leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
SquareFoot subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries3 records
SquareFoot funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds8 records
Investors12 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
SquareFoot M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A3 records
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about SquareFoot
What does SquareFoot do?
SquareFoot is a technology-enabled commercial real estate brokerage that helps businesses search, tour, and lease office space through an online listings platform supported by a team of tenant-representative brokers. Its core platform combines a proprietary listing database and recommendation engine with broker guidance, flexible lease products (FLEX), and a subleasing marketplace (PivotDesk) acquired in 2019. The service is offered at no out-of-pocket cost to tenants, with revenue generated through landlord-paid broker commissions.
Is SquareFoot a public or private company?
SquareFoot is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was SquareFoot founded?
SquareFoot was founded in 2011. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is SquareFoot based?
SquareFoot is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does SquareFoot make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Broker Commission (Tenant Representation) is the primary driver. The others are pivotDesk Marketplace Fees.
Who are SquareFoot's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Compass, LoopNet, Cushman & Wakefield, CBRE and JLL (Jones Lang LaSalle). Direct peers are VTS, CommercialCafe, Crexi, OfficeSpace.com and Catylist.
Does SquareFoot have an API?
No public API is recorded for SquareFoot.
What industry is SquareFoot in?
SquareFoot's product category is Commercial Real Estate Technology. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAJABAG, Land & Development Site Brokerage. Its NAICS code is 5312 and its SIC code is 6531.