Coworking is all the craze and for good reason. Companies can save big bucks sharing an office with other people instead of renting or buying your own. Freelancers and part-timers can affordably find an office space where they an socialize and network in the heart of bustling city.
ClickBoost still hasn't made the coworking leap - we work out of a small office in Edgewater, NJ - but we've flirted with WeWork and met with companies at WeWork spaces and other coworking spaces.
If you are in the market for a coworking space in New York City, here are the 10 we'd recommend. While this is far from a scientific study, we put in some serious time to this list. We really think it's a good starting point for your coworking space search. The list is in no particular order.
1. WeWork
The reigning king of coworking spaces. I've been to numerous WeWork spaces and always leave impressed. Their now opening a WeLive community for people who want to work and network even in their apartment complex. There are 4 pricing levels: 1) Membership - $45/month but gets you very limited work space access, 2) Hot Desk - starting at $220/month gets you access to one workspace without a dedicated desk, 3) Dedicated Desk - starting at $325/month gets you a dedicated desk at one workspace, 4) Private Office - starting at $450/month gets you a fully funrished space that can accomdate up to 100 people.
2. Croissant
Nope this isn't a food focused coworking space, but I think it's a cool name nonetheless. Croissant highlights "three easy steps" to their coworking experience: 1) Find Your Space, 2) Check in upon arrival and 3) Start Creating. So the big benefit with Croissant is that you aren't locked in to any one location - with any of their membership plans you can bounce around to any of their 42 locations (33 in NYC) without having to give prior notice. Their premium plan is a very affordable $299 a month.
3. Alley
Alley's strong suit is the sense of community they offer members. They organize bi-weekly happy hours and a lot of other networking events. They claim to be the "most supportive community on the planet for early stage businesses, start-ups, and entrepreneurs of all types." A shared desk (their most affordable plan) goes for $450 a month, a dedicated desk is $650/month and a private office goes for $2,200 a month.
4. Friends Work Here
Friends Work Here is a Brooklyn-based coworking space. It appears to be a more intimate space than the Manhattan coworking spaces on this list - they have 30 work stations. Amenities include a full kitche, phone booths, a lounge, a meeting room and white boards. Membership starts at $400 without a dedicated desk and $650 for a dedicated desk.
Here's a nice video about the Friends Work Here's origin:
5. Ensemble
Abutting Bryant Park, the Ensemble coworking community does not lack for prime location. The space sits on the 4th floor of an office building and is 7,000 square feet. It features all the amenities of a fully featured coworking space: kitchen, conference room, telephone room, mail service, networking events and a bunch more neat aspects. Another cool features is the Perks page, which contains references for legal work, accounting work, HR help and a lot more. Prices start at $450/month for a dedicated desk and $2000/month for a private office.
6. The Farm SoHo
Super cool coworking space in, you guessed it, SoHo. From their website: "We designed The Farm to look & feel like the real deal; from the treehouse (really!) to the barn wood salvaged from Missouri, The Farm is americana-inspired with high-tech guts located in the heart of SoHo." Just $250/month for access to the workspace and $450/month for a dedicated desk.
7. BatHaus
Siutated in Bushwick, Brooklyn, here's a neat description of this coworking space straight from the BatHaus website:
Community and productivity require a true workspace where members share resources, share space, and share respect. Bat Haus welcomes people and start-ups of wide-ranging disciplines. Creativity, after all, is fueled by the cross-pollination of ideas.
You get daily 24/7 access for just $225/month. If you may only need the space a few days a week, or less, they offer 5 other lower priced membership plans. If you want a la carte access, pay just $15/day. There's a weekly happy hour and a really nice backyard they throw parties at!
8. Projective
According to their website, the Projective coworking space was where UBER's NYC branch and Buffer both launched. Projective is a coworking space that bills itself as "a curated membership community for entrepreneurs, creatives and innovators." They've got two locations on the Lower East Side, including one that sits on the second floor of Freemans Restaurant. Membership is $225/month gets you a dedicated workspace for the month, plus exclusive invites to members-only dinners and events and 10% off Freemans Restaurant.
9. Brooklyn Desks
A beautifully decorated coworking space in Bushwick, Brooklyn Desks' boldly asks on their website, "What Don't We Offer?" and boldly states "9,000 Square Feet of Awesome." They really do cover most of the coworking necessities. They are as affordable as any other coworking space: just $250/month for 24/7 access. They also offer a deal that may be the most affordable in the city: $179/month for Monday through Friday, 5am to 10pm access.
10. the Productive
Situated a couple blocks away from Grand Central Terminal, the Productive offers a lot of nice coworking amenities like a conference room, PC stations and a lot of space to roam. But this space lacks the bells and whistles of the other coworking spaces on this list. It's an affordable $290/month for 24/7 access and goes down to $250/month if you make a 6 month commitment. A dedicated desk starts at $610/month.
