Your choice of office space has a large impact on your business. While many of us have been working at home due to the ongoing pandemic, many offices have started to open gradually.
While the work-from-home option might look like an economical option, it definitely lacks a sense of professionalism and the basic amenities you require.
Coworking spaces vs incubators: A happy-medium. Both these spaces seem similar but have a thin difference between them.
It’s crucial to understand this difference and choose the best for you. You can use these spaces as you like to with the premium amenities they offer.
So, here we go explaining coworking spaces vs incubators in detail and hope you make a better decision for your startup as soon as possible.
Coworking Spaces
Coworking Space and startup organisations make the best pair- like peanut butter and bread, well might have understood it. They’re a match made in heaven and have gained importance only in the recent past.
Coworking spaces are those spaces where companies, freelancers, designers come together and work as a community.
These spaces have quite a number of common features in between them. In general, each operator tries to pitch in their own creativity while promising the best of professional experience.
A coworking member is offered different levels of membership: day passes, hot desks, dedicated desks, and private cabins are what you will find everywhere.
Additionally, there is the provision of amenities like speedy internet connection, lounge, car parking, professional housekeeping staff, continuous power backup, and more.
Coworking Spaces are known to offer all-inclusive rates for the long term. The benefits of collaboration, flexibility, community engagement are inviting a lot of small enterprises, freelancers, and startups.
Coworking Spaces offer spaces for rent on hourly, daily, yearly and monthly criteria. There’s no such compulsion to choose a long-term plan. Members are free to select according to their particular needs and preferences.
If you think of coworking spaces vs incubators in terms of flexibility, then a coworking space is more flexible than an incubator. You can come whenever you want and leave as per your comfort.
The aim of such spaces is to offer utmost comfort and convenience at all times. This way you get to concentrate on yourself and your company’s growth potential.
Shared office spaces do not offer to fund to their member companies. They often look for investors who are ready to invest in their multiple projects.
Shared office spaces are high on professionalism, but they might not be upskilled to answer any business-related queries. They are more directed to offering a comfortable environment for their member community.
Incubators
Incubators, on the other hand, are mostly confused with coworking spaces. They are a part and parcel of shared office spaces. Some coworking spaces offer incubator facilities and some incubators offer coworking facilities.
This makes it crucial to know the exact differences which pertain to these two spaces. This knowledge will further help
Coworking spaces concentrate on bringing together like-minded individuals across industries to create, connect and build a community together to place your startup in the right place.
Incubators are actually those organizations that are present to guide startups in their professional growth journey. They help startup organisations that are in the initial stages of building their company.
These startups have the ideas to bring to the market but do not exactly know how and where to start from. They are unaware of the direction to take and steps to convert their business dreams into reality.
Coworking spaces vs incubators in terms of costs: Incubators usually come free or at minimum costs as compared to shared office spaces. Though they come free, take up a certain amount of your company’s equity.
Incubators anticipate startup organizations to show results after some period of time. This is due to the collective efforts and funding rigorously put in them. A devotion of at least 6 to 8 months is required for an incubator program.
Incubators offer funding programs to the startups selected under their programs. On the other hand, shared office spaces do not offer any such funding programs to their member community.
The interests and preferences of incubators lie in connecting startups to a large extent. They are focused on supporting startups to establish a strong base for future operations.
The environment in an incubator is highly professional as compared to shared office spaces. They possess trained staff who are well aware of what a startup is and its specific requirements.
Conclusion
After having a look at the above points, we can say coworking spaces vs incubators, have a minor difference. Thus, we can easily conclude that an incubator is a program mostly attended by young entrepreneurs who are ready to launch their startup ideas.
On the other hand, a coworking space is all related to working in a community with a host of resources. So, make your choice wisely for you and your startup’s future prospects.
