How to plan office seating, including hot desking

Where people sit at work affects how they collaborate, how well they can focus and how they feel about coming in. Whether you're moving into a new office or reshuffling an existing one, a seating chart turns a stressful move into a plan.

Step 1: Map the space

Start with what doesn't move:

• Walls, windows and doors
• Meeting rooms and phone booths
• The kitchen, printers and storage
• Power and network points, which decide where desks can go

Then add the desks. Pods of four or six desks are common in open-plan offices. Our open-plan office template has six pods of four, a meeting table, a kitchen and a lounge.

Step 2: Group by how people work

• Keep teams together. People who collaborate daily should sit within easy talking distance.
• Put teams that work closely next to each other. Design next to product, sales next to support.
• Create quiet zones away from the kitchen and meeting rooms, for focused work.
• Put noisy roles, like people on calls all day, together and away from the quiet zone.

Step 3: Think about people, not just teams

• New starters do best near their manager and a helpful teammate.
• Managers often sit with their teams rather than in a separate corner.
• Accessibility needs come first: wide routes, desks near entrances or restrooms, and adjustable desks where needed.
• Light and temperature matter. Seats by the window and seats under the air conditioning both have fans and critics, so ask.

Hot desking and hybrid work

If not everyone is in every day, you may not need a desk per person.

• Count peak days, not averages. If everyone comes in on Tuesdays, plan for Tuesday.
• Create team neighbourhoods: zones where each team sits on its office days, even without fixed desks.
• Keep a few fixed desks for people who need them, like those with special equipment or accessibility needs.
• Publish the plan, so people know where their team sits before they arrive.

Step 4: Share it and keep it current

An office seating chart goes out of date fast as people join, leave and change teams. Keep it somewhere everyone can see it, and update it whenever someone moves.

For meeting rooms and training days, see our guide to event room layouts and the boardroom template.