--- title: "Beijing vs Guangzhou: Class A office comparison" description: "Side-by-side Class A office comparison for Beijing and Guangzhou — rent, vacancy, talent, tax, lease norms, transit, and top submarkets." canonical: https://classa.info/compare/beijing-vs-guangzhou pageType: comparison lastUpdated: 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z license: "CC BY 4.0 with attribution to Class A Atlas (https://classa.info)." --- > Beijing ($50/sqft, 18.5% vacancy) and Guangzhou ($37/sqft, 19.6% vacancy) compete on different axes: Beijing on talent depth and Guangzhou on rent and tax. ## TL;DR - Class A rent: Beijing $50/sqft vs Guangzhou $37/sqft. - Vacancy: Beijing 18.5% vs Guangzhou 19.6%. - Talent index: Beijing 90 vs Guangzhou 84. - Corporate tax: Beijing 25% vs Guangzhou 25%. - Premium flex/seat/month: Beijing $580 vs Guangzhou $460. # Beijing vs Guangzhou: Class A office comparison **Beijing ($50/sqft, 18.5% vacancy) and Guangzhou ($37/sqft, 19.6% vacancy) compete on different axes: Beijing on talent depth and Guangzhou on rent and tax.** ## TL;DR - [Class A](/glossary/class-a) rent: Beijing $50/sqft vs Guangzhou $37/sqft. - Vacancy: Beijing 18.5% vs Guangzhou 19.6%. - Talent index: Beijing 90 vs Guangzhou 84. - Corporate tax: Beijing 25% vs Guangzhou 25%. - [Premium flex](/topics/lease-vs-flex)/seat/month: Beijing $580 vs Guangzhou $460. ## Market data side-by-side | Metric | Beijing | Guangzhou| | Region | APAC | APAC| | Country | China | China| | Class A rent (USD/sqft/yr) | $50 | $37| | Class A rent (local) | 320 CNY | 240 CNY| | Vacancy | 18.5% | 19.6%| | Trend | softening | softening| | Prime yield | 5.6% | 5.5%| | Premium flex / seat / month (USD) | $580 | $460| | Submarkets covered | 5 | 5| | Corporate tax | 25% | 25%| ## Lease norms | Metric | Beijing | Guangzhou| | Typical term | 5 yrs | 5 yrs| | Typical rent-free | 8 mos | 8 mos| | Lease norms | Net leases. 5-7 year terms standard. Free rent of 6-12 months and TI of CNY 1,000-2,000/sqm typical on a 5-year Class A deal. | Net leases. 5-7 year terms standard. Free rent of 6-12 months and TI of CNY 1,000-1,800/sqm typical on a 5-year deal.| | Tax note | 25% standard Chinese corporate income tax. 15% reduced rate for High and New Technology Enterprises (HNTE). Beijing offers tech-sector subsidies in Zhongguancun and the Beijing Free Trade Zone. | 25% standard Chinese corporate income tax. HNTE (15%) and Nansha New Area incentives available.| ## Talent | Metric | Beijing | Guangzhou| | Talent index (0–100) | 90 | 84| | Talent note | Deepest tech, finance, and government affairs talent in China. Strong feed from Tsinghua, Peking University, Renmin University, and a deep network of T-1 universities. Mandarin-only operating environment for most domestic tenants. | Deep automotive, trade, and consumer goods talent. Strong feed from Sun Yat-sen University, South China University of Technology, and Jinan University. Cantonese and Mandarin operating environment.| ## Transit & commute **Beijing:** Beijing Subway (27+ lines, the world's largest by length). Beijing Capital Airport (PEK) and Daxing Airport (PKX) both rail-served. CBD walking access from multiple subway interchanges. **Guangzhou:** Guangzhou Metro (16+ lines, the world's third-largest by length). Guangzhou Baiyun Airport (CAN) rail-served. High-speed rail to Hong Kong (~50 minutes) and Shenzhen (~30 minutes). ## Top submarkets — Beijing - [**CBD (Guomao)**](/cities/beijing/cbd-guomao) — [trophy tier](/topics/trophy-asset-selection) · ¥380/sqm/mo · ≈ $58.9 PSF/yr USD - [**Financial Street**](/cities/beijing/financial-street) — trophy tier · ¥360/sqm/mo · ≈ $55.8 PSF/yr USD - [**Zhongguancun**](/cities/beijing/zhongguancun) — trophy tier · ¥280/sqm/mo · ≈ $43.4 PSF/yr USD ## Top submarkets — Guangzhou - [**Zhujiang New Town**](/cities/guangzhou/zhujiang-new-town) — trophy tier · ¥290/sqm/mo · ≈ $44.9 PSF/yr USD - [**Pazhou**](/cities/guangzhou/pazhou) — trophy tier · ¥240/sqm/mo · ≈ $37.2 PSF/yr USD - [**Tianhe North**](/cities/guangzhou/tianhe-north) — prime tier · ¥200/sqm/mo · ≈ $31 PSF/yr USD ## Decision criteria ### Pick by cost Guangzhou is the cheaper Class A market on a USD basis. ### Pick by talent depth Beijing has the deeper talent index (90/100 vs 84/100). ### Pick by tax Tax data not available for comparison. ### Pick by lease optionality Beijing typical term is 5 years with 8 months free; Guangzhou runs 5 years with 8 months free. ### Pick by transit Beijing: Beijing Subway (27+ lines, the world's largest by length). Beijing Capital Airport (PEK) and Daxing Airport (PKX) both rail-served. CBD walking access from multiple subway interchanges. Guangzhou: Guangzhou Metro (16+ lines, the world's third-largest by length). Guangzhou Baiyun Airport (CAN) rail-served. High-speed rail to Hong Kong (~50 minutes) and Shenzhen (~30 minutes). ## Run a 4-city comparison Score Beijing, Guangzhou and up to two more markets side-by-side on Class A rent, vacancy, talent, corporate tax, and premium flex pricing — all in USD. [**Run a 4-city comparison →**](/tools/city-comparator) ## Frequently asked questions ****Is Class A office cheaper in Beijing or Guangzhou?**** : Guangzhou is cheaper on a USD basis: $37/sqft vs $50/sqft. ****Which has better talent depth, Beijing or Guangzhou?**** : Beijing indexes higher on talent depth (90 vs 84). ****Which has more sublease availability, Beijing or Guangzhou?**** : Guangzhou carries higher vacancy (19.6% vs 18.5%) and therefore typically more [sublease](/topics/sublease-strategy)">sublease overhang. ****What lease term should I expect in Beijing vs Guangzhou?**** : Beijing typical term is 5 years with 8 months rent-free; Guangzhou typical term is 5 years with 8 months rent-free. ****How does transit and commuter access compare?**** : Beijing: Beijing Subway (27+ lines, the world's largest by length). Beijing Capital Airport (PEK) and Daxing Airport (PKX) both rail-served. CBD walking access from multiple subway interchanges. Guangzhou: Guangzhou Metro (16+ lines, the world's third-largest by length). Guangzhou Baiyun Airport (CAN) rail-served. High-speed rail to Hong Kong (~50 minutes) and Shenzhen (~30 minutes). ## Editorial provenance Reviewed by [**Kenji Watanabe**](/about/authors/kenji-watanabe) — APAC contributing editor. 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) --- Citation: Source: Class A Atlas (https://classa.info/compare/beijing-vs-guangzhou), updated 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z.