Research from commercial real estate agents Savills found that there has been a take-up of 490,000 square feet of office space in Dublin so far this year.
This is a two per cent rise compared to the last quarter of 2010, and at least a doubling of the figures for the same quarter last year.
The research predicted that by the end of the year, office space take-up in Dublin could reach up to 1.6 million square feet.
Joan Henry, head of research at Savills Ireland, said: “Demand for office space in the first three months of the year has been strong.
“The fall in vacancy rate reflects a combination of factors, in particular, a consistent level of demand for space since the middle of 2010 and a halt in the amount of newly completed space coming to the market, especially Grade A space in prime locations.”
Almost half the take-up has been due to Google’s recent purchase of the Montevetro building, which has over 200,000 square feet of office space.
Roland O’Connell, the Director of Office Agency at Savills Ireland, said: “We expect demand for space to remain consistent as existing occupiers look for opportunities to move to better locations on more favourable terms and conditions.”
He added that there is continued demand from multinationals in the IT sector, despite the financial climate. O’Connell also said that demand from the financial sector ‘boded well’ for the future.
Currently, EU and IMF officials are meeting with the Irish government on the state of the country’s economy. The meetings will continue over the next ten days to see whether Ireland is meeting the conditions under which the bailout was granted.
Editor’s notes: In 2022, the total office space take-up in Dublin was 2.47 million square feet leased across 191 deals – take-up was 50 per cent more than it was in 2021.
This was despite the slowdown in the Tech sector, which made up 24 per cent of the market – its lowest stake since 2008.
The most active sector was Banking and Finance, making up 32 per cent of the leased office space volume.
Between 2020 – 2022, Grade A office space accounted for 80.8 per cent of the take-up, compared with 60.4 per cent between 2010 – 2019, indicating a flight to quality by occupiers.
This was fuelled by employers seeking to retain staff and entice them back to the office, whilst also aiming to achieve greater environmental, social and governance (ESG) credentials.
In 2026, it was reported that Dublin’s full‑year take‑up by way of office lettings in 2025 reached 2.6 million square feet, an increase of 14.5 per cent on the previous year and the first time since before the pandemic that it exceeded the long-term average.
This was fuelled by a resurgence in activity in the Tech sector, specifically those occupiers in the AI sector. In April 2025, for instance, the AI platform Workday acquired 416,000 square feet at the College Square development on a pre-let basis. This deal was notable as Europe’s largest office deal since the pandemic.
In April 2026, JLL reported that the positive leasing momentum from 2025 had continued into 2026, with Q1 take-up of 377,000 square feet across 40 transactions, 34 per cent above the five-year Q1 average.
Activity was observed across technology, financial services, insurance and professional services sectors.
The overall vacancy rate fell to 12.6 per cent at the end of Q1 2026, and the Dublin 2 vacancy rate reached approximately 9.9 per cent, approaching single-digit levels for the first time in three years.
It was also reported that Dublin’s development pipeline was at its lowest level since the post-global financial crisis recovery period of 2013 and 2014. The volume of space under construction stood at 1,490,000 square feet at the end of Q1 2026, with only 398,000 square feet scheduled for delivery in 2027.