---
title: "San Francisco office lease norms"
description: "Lease structure, term length, concessions, and the unwritten rules of leasing Class A office in San Francisco."
canonical: https://classa.info/cities/san-francisco/leasing-conventions
pageType: city-topic
lastUpdated: 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
license: "CC BY 4.0 with attribution to Class A Atlas (https://classa.info)."
---

> Modified-gross with operating-expense escalations over a base year.

## TL;DR

- Typical lease length: 7 years.
- Typical rent-free: 22 months.
- Vacancy: 31.5%; trend rising.
- Modified-gross with operating-expense escalations over a base year.

# San Francisco office lease norms

**Modified-gross with operating-expense escalations over a [base year](/glossary/base-year).**

## TL;DR

- Typical lease length: 7 years.
- Typical rent-free: 22 months.
- Vacancy: 31.5%; trend rising.
- Modified-gross with operating-expense escalations over a base year.

## Structure

Modified-gross with operating-expense escalations over a base year. Rent-free of 18-30 months on a 10-year term is current market for trophy assets in lease-up. TI of $150-$220/sqft is achievable. Termination options at year 5 are increasingly negotiable.

## Negotiating levers

Free rent and TI remain the most negotiable line items; landlords prefer concessions to face-rent cuts because they preserve [headline rent](/glossary/headline-rent) and implied valuation. Always model [effective rent](/glossary/effective-rent) (face minus PV of concessions).

## Key facts

| city | San Francisco|
| country | United States|
| region | Americas|
| classARentLocal | $78/sqft/yr|
| classARentUsd | $78/sqft/yr|
| vacancy | 31.5%|
| typicalLeaseYears | 7|
| typicalRentFreeMonths | 22|
| submarkets | 6|
| primeYieldPct | 6.5%|

## Frequently asked questions

****What's a typical lease term in San Francisco?****
: 7 years for institutional [Class A](/glossary/class-a). Shorter terms are achievable on smaller floor plates with stronger covenants.

****How is rent quoted in San Francisco?****
: In USD/sqft/year. We also publish a USD-normalised view ($78/sqft/yr) for cross-market comparison.

## Editorial provenance

Reviewed by [**Miriam Hollander**](/about/authors/miriam-hollander) — Lead market analyst. Last updated 2026-04-15. See our [methodology](/about/methodology) and [editorial standards](/about/editorial-standards).

### Primary sources for this page

- [CBRE Marketview reports](https://www.cbre.com/insights) — CBRE
- [JLL Office Insight](https://www.jll.com/en/trends-and-insights) — JLL
- [Cushman & Wakefield Marketbeat](https://www.cushmanwakefield.com/en/insights) — Cushman & Wakefield
- [Savills World Research](https://www.savills.com/research_articles/) — Savills
- [Colliers Global Office Outlook](https://www.colliers.com/en/research) — Colliers

[Full sources index](/about/sources) · [Submit a correction](/about/corrections)

## Related topics

- [**Class A Lease Negotiation**](/topics/class-a-lease-negotiation) — How to negotiate a Class A office lease — the playbook from LOI to signed deal.
- [**APAC Lease Conventions**](/topics/apac-lease-conventions) — How APAC office lease conventions differ from US/UK — and how to translate before signing.

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