Whether you're back in the office may depend on where you live
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Nationwide office foot traffic hit the highest point since July 2019 last month, a new analysis finds.
Why it matters: Office occupancy keeps creeping up — though growth has slowed, and may never fully return to pre-pandemic levels.
Driving the news: U.S. office visits rose to 72.2% of July 2019 levels in July 2024, according to new data from Placer.ai, a startup that tracks and analyzes foot traffic from mobile devices.
Yes, but: There's still a wide disparity between cities.
- Miami and New York office visits are over or close to 90% of July 2019 levels, while San Francisco has barely breached 50%.
The bottom line: Year-over-year foot traffic grew in all 11 cities highlighted in the report, which represent a wide variety of America's biggest metros — "further evidence that the office recovery remains very much underway," writes author Lila Margalit.
Go deeper: Remote work is becoming less available (if you're not a CEO)
