One of the most interesting findings from the survey is that, contrary to popular belief, freelancers are the minority – not majority – of the U.S. coworking population responding to this survey. Only 44% are freelancers or solopreneurs, while roughly 55% of respondents own or work for a company with employees.
Of those working for a company, 18% are entrepreneurs with employees and about 35% are company employees. This data shows that coworking facilities are becoming a popular place for starting and operating new businesses.
The survey also indicates that 8% of coworkers work for companies with more than 100 employees. Larger companies are starting to experiment with coworking, and this data reflects growing corporate awareness of coworking as a work option. This is consistent with previous research done by Emergent Research.
In the United States, coworkers tend to be young and male. Forty-one percent of coworkers are under the age of 30, and 78% fall under age 40. Only 8% of coworkers are over the age of 50. About 2 out of 3 coworkers are male.
Yet while the average age of members is relatively low, their education levels are quite high. Seventy-five percent of coworkers have completed at least a Bachelors degree. This is a much higher level of education than the general U.S. population (27%), or even U.S. small business owners (50%).
Just like your neighborhood coffee shop, coworking facilities are filled with locals. Over 30% of coworkers either walk or bike to their coworking facility, and less than half (44%) drive.
Satisfaction seems guaranteed for coworkers in the United States. Almost all U.S. coworkers agree that their coworking experience has been positive. Ninety-one percent of coworkers are either very satisfied (57%) or satisfied (34%) with their overall experience, and 85% plan on staying in their current workspace for at least another year.
So what sorts of jobs do U.S. coworkers have? That answer is easy: Tech. The broad field of technology accounts for over half of U.S. coworkers responding to this survey. By segment, 44% of coworkers are Web Developers/Designers, 13% work in Public Relations and Marketing, and the other 43% are from a mix of professions including artists, entrepreneurs, journalists, and consultants.
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Author: Carl King is a research assistant at Emergent Research. He manages data collection and analysis for Emergent Research’s annual census of U.S. coworking facilities.
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All articles on the Global Coworking Survey:
Start: Why coworkers like their coworking spaces
Part 2: The Coworker's Profile
Part 4: Female coworkers vs. male coworkers
Part 6: MacOS vs. Windows - Firefox vs. Chrome
Part 7: Small Town vs. Big City Coworking
