Swurf

What Swurf does

Swurf Ltd is a UK-based, Edinburgh-headquartered private company that operates a free mobile marketplace app connecting remote and hybrid workers with hospitality venues (hotels, cafes, bars, restaurants) that offer workspace during daytime hours. Founded in 2020 by Nikki Gibson and launched in Edinburgh in May 2021, the platform now spans multiple UK cities including Leeds, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Manchester, with 14,000+ registered users and 450+ venues as of March 2026.

The core technology is a mobile app (iOS and Android) built around a curated venue discovery experience, check-in functionality that unlocks promotions and WiFi access, and a Host Portal (hosts.swurf.co) for venue onboarding and subscription management. A self-developed physical-digital product, SWURF Pods, layers on bookable private meeting pods (soundproofed, private WiFi, smart lighting, air filtration, Stripe-powered payments) deployed at Edinburgh Airport (Gates 2 and 20), YOTEL Edinburgh and St James Quarter, with 30-minute minimum booking windows. The supply side is governed by a Host Manifesto that functions as a quality control layer for venue onboarding. Payment integrations are Stripe (PCI DSS Level 4 self-assessment) and PayPal; events leverage lu.ma.

Swurf's commercial model is a hybrid SaaS-plus-transaction marketplace. End users (Swurfers) use the app at no cost and with no minimum spend; revenue is generated from (1) recurring monthly subscriptions paid by host venues (pricing not publicly disclosed), and (2) transactional revenue share from SWURF Pod bookings (e.g., £15.00/hour at SJQ). Distribution is mixed: self-serve consumer acquisition via App Store/Google Play and community-led growth (Coffee & Cowork events, newsletter), combined with enterprise field sales to large hospitality groups. Anchor partnerships include Kew Green Hotels (49 properties across Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, voco, Moxy brands, signed July 2025) and RBH Hospitality Management (55-hotel portfolio, signed March 2026). The company has raised grant funding (Scottish Government Digital Boost Grant, 2021) and multiple six-figure rounds from angel investors including Gareth Williams (Skyscanner co-founder), Anna Lagerqvist Christopherson (Boda Bar), Techscaler and Scottish Enterprise.

Name

Swurf

Legal name

Swurf Ltd

Website

https://swurf.co

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Swurf is a UK-based mobile marketplace that connects remote and hybrid workers with vetted hospitality venues offering workspace, monetised via host subscriptions and bookable private meeting pods.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Flexible Workspace Marketplace

NAICS

Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars (722515)

akta.pro primary industry

Coworking Cafes / Work Cafes (THAFADAJ)

Keywords

• Flexible workspace marketplace
• Remote worker app
• Hospitality venue network
• Bookable meeting pods
• Coworking discovery platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Edinburgh

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Host Venue Annual Subscription: Hosts (venues such as hotels, cafes, bars) pay an annual subscription fee to be listed on the Swurf platform. Subscription terms are managed via the host portal (hosts.swurf.co) with payment options including PayPal. No minimum spend required from end users.
2. SWURF Pod Bookings: Bookable private meeting pods at select venues (Edinburgh Airport, YOTEL Edinburgh, SJQ). Priced per hour (e.g., £15.00 per hour at SJQ Pod Floor 4). Booked via the SWURF app. Revenue shared with venue hosts.
3. Free User App with Host Monetisation: The app is free for users (Swurfers) to download and use. Swurf generates revenue exclusively from host subscription fees, promoting venues to the growing remote/hybrid worker community.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Swurf operates a free two-sided mobile marketplace app that connects remote and hybrid workers ("Swurfers") with vetted hospitality venues ("hosts") offering workspace, WiFi and promotions. The company supplements the marketplace with SWURF Pods, bookable private soundproofed meeting spaces with private WiFi at locations including Edinburgh Airport, YOTEL Edinburgh and St James Quarter, and a self-serve Host Portal for venue onboarding.

Product overview

SWURF operates as a marketplace platform connecting remote and hybrid workers with hospitality venues offering flexible workspace. The core offering is the free SWURF App for workspace discovery and booking, supplemented by SWURF Pods - bookable private meeting spaces at select venues. The Host Portal enables venue partners to onboard and manage their listings. Additional offerings include coworking events that bring the community together.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SWURF Pods: Bookable private meeting spaces equipped with soundproofing, private WiFi, smart lighting and air filtration at venues including Edinburgh Airport and YOTEL hotels.

Products and services

• SWURF App Free iOS and Android marketplace app that lets remote and hybrid workers ("Swurfers") discover and check in to vetted hospitality venues, unlock venue-specific promotions and WiFi, and access the SWURF Pod booking system.
• SWURF Pods Bookable private meeting pods with soundproofing, private WiFi, smart lighting, air filtration and ergonomic seating, located at venues including Edinburgh Airport (Gate 2 and Gate 20), YOTEL Edinburgh and St James Quarter. Available from 30 minutes via the SWURF app with Stripe-powered payments.
• Host Portal (hosts.swurf.co) Self-serve portal where hospitality venues can register, sign the Swurf Host Manifesto, manage their listings, configure SWURF Pods availability and pay their monthly subscription via PayPal. Onboarding takes approximately 10 minutes.
• Coworking Events (Coffee & Cowork) Ticketed in-person coworking events (£5+VAT including coffee and pastry) for digital nomads, remote and hybrid workers to network and collaborate at Swurf host venues, scheduled via the integrated lu.ma events calendar.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over £2 million in additional revenue generated for host partners since 2020
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• RBH Hospitality ManagementcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 24 March 2026RBH Hospitality Management agreed a UK-wide partnership with Swurf, enabling its 55-hotel portfolio across Scotland and wider UK to attract hybrid and remote workers seeking flexible workspace options. The collaboration aims to drive footfall and unlock new income streams for RBH while supporting Swurf's expansion of its partner venue network. Swurf generates over £2 million in additional revenue for partners.
• Kew Green HotelscoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 July 2025Swurf partnered with Kew Green Hotels making it possible to work remotely from any of their 49 properties across the UK, including Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, voco, and Moxy brands. Users check in via the SWURF App to receive a 10% discount, driving daytime footfall into hotel lobbies, lounges, and underused areas.
• Alison Grieve (G-Hold Founder)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAlison Grieve, award-winning founder of G-Hold, joins the SWURF board as Chair. She brings experience in product innovation and international scale-ups, guiding Swurf's European and global rollout.
• Scott LeckiecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerScott Leckie, former Fractional CTO, takes a permanent seat on the SWURF board to lead long-term technology strategy and platform development.
• Daniel Rodgers (QikServe Founder)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDaniel Rodgers, founder of Scottish success story QikServe (a digital transformation company), joins as Non-Executive Director, offering insight into digital transformation and strategic growth for the next phase of expansion.
• Netwomen.cominorGTM or Marketing PartnerSwurf partnered with Netwomen.co, a global online community helping small/medium businesses increase profitability and performance, for a Coffee & Cowork IRL event at The Black Ivy, Edinburgh. The event brought together remote workers and netwomen community members for collaboration and networking.
• FutureXminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSwurf was selected as a semi-finalist in the FutureX Startup Summit Competition in 2021, competing against five other Scottish startups for a place on the FutureX Silicon Valley Scale programme.
• The Black IvyminorGTM or Marketing PartnerThe Black Ivy Edinburgh is a key Swurf host venue used for community events including Coffee & Cowork, serving as a recurring partner for Swurf's IRL community-building activities.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Coworker.com: Global coworking directory and booking platform connecting remote workers with shared workspaces. Comparable marketplace aggregation model targeting nomads and remote workers.
• Deskpass: On-demand workspace marketplace offering day-pass and meeting-room bookings across thousands of venues. Comparable two-sided marketplace model monetising flexible workspace supply.
• Croissant: Workspace booking app providing pay-as-you-go access to coworking spaces, cafes and meeting rooms. Directly comparable product UX and venue-discovery proposition to Swurf.
• Hubble / Hubble Pass: UK-based flexible office marketplace providing on-demand workspace bookings and meeting rooms across London and the UK. Closest UK-headquartered direct competitor serving hybrid workers.
• Workfrom: App and web platform helping remote workers find WiFi-friendly cafes and shared workspaces. Closest direct competitor to Swurf in mapping/check-in-style third-place workspace discovery.

Broad incumbents

• Industrious: Premium flexible workspace operator with a hospitality-leaning aesthetic and an enterprise partnership model. Comparable in its reliance on hotel/hospitality group partnerships for premium locations.
• WeWork: Largest global coworking and flexible office operator. Incumbent with broader portfolio including on-demand meeting room and day-pass products that overlap with Swurf's SWURF Pods proposition.
• Hilton (Hilton Hotels & Resorts): Major hotel group operating brands such as Hampton and DoubleTree. Already invests in lobby-as-coworking use cases and digital guest apps that could disintermediate Swurf for partner venues.

Emerging players

• Anyplace: Remote-work platform offering curated workspaces, coliving and stays for digital nomads. Adjacent in audience (remote/digital-nomad workers) and partially overlaps with Swurf's third-place value proposition.
• Workplaceless: Remote-work enablement platform for distributed teams offering curated workspace and community programming. Overlaps with Swurf's community-event and hybrid-work positioning.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/swurf_free
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/swurf
• Instagraminstagram.com/swurf.free

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Swurf