Office — cosmetic refresh
$30 – $60/sf
Second-generation office space, like-for-like paint, carpet, ceiling tile, and minor finishes. No demising walls, no major MEP changes.
Cost guide
What a commercial build-out actually costs in NYC right now.
Per-square-foot cost benchmarks for NYC office, restaurant, retail, and medical build-outs in 2026, with the base-building and tenant-program factors that drive the number.
Commercial build-out costs in NYC are typically quoted per square foot. The number depends on the use type (office, restaurant, medical, retail), the base-building condition (cold shell, warm shell, second-generation space), the tenant program, and the finish tier.
The benchmarks below reflect 2026 NYC commercial build-out costs for tenant fit-outs in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens, assuming a licensed general contractor coordinating with the landlord work-letter, expediter, and tenant program.
Cost tiers
What clients typically spend at each tier.
Cost ranges below reflect typical 2026 NYC pricing for the scope tier described. Your actual number depends on building type, finish level, and project specifics.
Office — standard build-out
$80 – $150/sf
Tenant fit-out with demising walls, conference rooms, private offices, open workstation areas, new lighting, data infrastructure, basic finishes, and pantry. Most mid-market office fit-outs.
Office — premium build-out
$150 – $300/sf
Custom millwork, premium finishes, integrated AV, glass-front conference rooms, custom lighting, high-end pantry, and specialty rooms. Common for law firms, finance, and design-conscious tenants.
Restaurant build-out
$200 – $600/sf
Full restaurant scope including hood and exhaust, grease handling, plumbing, electrical service upgrade, HVAC, ADA restrooms, kitchen finishes, and front-of-house build-out. Wide range driven by concept tier and equipment package.
Medical & dental build-out
$150 – $400/sf
Operatory or exam-room layout, equipment plumbing and electrical, lead-lined walls where required, ADA restrooms, reception and patient-facing finishes. Higher end for imaging, surgical, and specialty practices.
What drives the per-square-foot number
Two projects with the same per-square-foot budget can deliver very different spaces depending on these factors.
- Base-building condition: cold shell (no MEP, no flooring, no ceiling) requires more work than second-gen space with usable MEP and finishes.
- Landlord work-letter: what the landlord delivers vs. what the tenant pays for can swing the apparent cost by $20–$80/sf.
- Demising and reconfiguration: more walls = more electrical = more HVAC zoning = more cost.
- MEP and capacity: electrical service upgrades, HVAC capacity additions, and plumbing relocations are major line items.
- Filed-plan path: Alt-1 / Alt-2 filings and expediter coordination add soft cost and schedule.
- Finish tier: paint-grade demountable walls vs. custom millwork and integrated AV are different orders of magnitude.
Restaurant and food-service specifics
Restaurants run the widest per-square-foot range of any commercial build-out type because the equipment package, hood and exhaust scope, and finish tier vary so widely.
- Counter-service cafe in second-gen food-service space: $200–$300/sf
- Full-service restaurant in second-gen space: $300–$450/sf
- Full-service restaurant in non-food-service conversion: $400–$600/sf+
- High-end / specialty concepts (sushi, fine dining, custom open kitchens): $500–$800/sf+
Schedule realities for commercial work
Commercial build-outs run on tenant lease milestones. The schedule is usually less flexible than residential renovation, which affects how the project is planned and priced.
- Permitting and filed-plan path: 6–14 weeks
- Long-lead materials and equipment: 8–20 weeks depending on use type
- Active construction: 8–24 weeks depending on size and complexity
- Inspections and turnover: 1–3 weeks
- Off-hours and after-hours work to meet move-in dates is common and adds 10–25% to labor cost when required.
Related services
Where this work fits in our service catalog.
The services that map most directly to the scope discussed in this guide.
FAQ
Common questions about scope, schedule, and budget.
The questions clients ask most often after reading a cost guide.
Per-square-foot pricing is a useful benchmark across different sizes, but it's a starting point — not a quote. The actual cost depends on use type, base-building condition, finish tier, and tenant program. Two 5,000 sf offices can vary by 3x in actual cost.
Next Step
Planning a commercial build-out?
Send the space size, use type, base-building condition, and your tenant move-in date, and we'll come back with realistic per-square-foot benchmarks and a construction path.