# San Diego Class A Office Market

> San Diego Class A office rents around $56/sqft/yr, with 18.4% vacancy and 12 months of typical rent-free on a 10-year term.

**Canonical URL:** https://classa.info/cities/san-diego
**Page type:** city
**Last updated:** 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
**License:** CC BY 4.0 with attribution to Class A Atlas (https://classa.info).

## TL;DR
- UTC / Torrey Pines is the deepest life sciences and biotech submarket in California.
- Defense and intelligence tenancy underwrites long-duration leases (federal anchors).
- Downtown trophy product is comparatively soft — Class A trades at $48-$54/sqft.
- Naval and Marine adjacency drives long-term defense tenant demand.

## Key facts
- **city**: San Diego
- **country**: United States
- **region**: Americas
- **classARentLocal**: $56/sqft/yr
- **classARentUsd**: $56/sqft/yr
- **vacancyPct**: 18.4%
- **typicalLeaseYears**: 10
- **typicalRentFreeMonths**: 12
- **submarkets**: 5
- **corporateTaxPct**: 27.9%
- **talentIndex**: 86

## FAQ
### How tight is UTC / Torrey Pines?
Direct vacancy in life sciences product is sub-7% as of Q1 2026. Lab-ready inventory is structurally tight.

### What is the defense tenancy concentration?
Material. Northrop Grumman, General Atomics, Booz Allen, and a deep cluster of defense contractors anchor Class A demand around Sorrento Mesa and Kearny Mesa.

### Is downtown San Diego recovering?
Slowly. The Campus at Horton reposition is the single largest downtown leasing event of the cycle. Broader recovery requires sustained demand diversification.

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Citation: Source: Class A Atlas (https://classa.info/cities/san-diego), updated 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z.