Commercial Units to Let in Cardiff
98 properties found within 15 miles
About Commercial Units in Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital of Wales and the country's main commercial centre, with the largest office market in Wales and the bulk of its financial, legal and public-sector employment. The prime pitch has moved to Central Square, the former bus station site beside Cardiff Central station, where BBC Cymru Wales, HMRC, Hugh James and Cardiff University's journalism school have all taken new buildings, and to Callaghan Square just south of the railway, where Lloyds took 113,000 sq ft at 1 John Street in 2024. The older core around St Mary Street, Greyfriars Road and Cathays Park still holds much of the professional and government space, and Cardiff Bay, two miles south of the centre, is home to the Senedd and a cluster of media, leisure and hospitality occupiers.
The city grew as the coal port for the south Wales valleys and has since rebuilt its economy around services. Finance and business services employ around 50,000 people, with Legal & General, Admiral, Zurich, Confused.com and Principality Building Society among the names based here, and Admiral Group, a FTSE 100 insurer with around 15,000 staff worldwide, is headquartered in the city. The public sector is the other pillar: the Welsh Government's civil service is based in the Crown Buildings at Cathays Park, alongside Cardiff University and City Hall. Media is a genuine specialism, with BBC Wales, S4C and ITV Wales all running studios in the city and BBC drama production at Roath Lock in the Bay. Financial services accounted for more than half of all office take-up in 2024, which tells you who is driving demand.
Connections are good for a city on the edge of the country. The M4 runs along the northern boundary with four junctions serving Cardiff: J29 via the A48(M) for the east, J30 at Cardiff Gate, J32 for the A470 and the north, and J33 for the west and the airport. The A48(M) is a two-mile spur from J29 to St Mellons, and the A4232 Peripheral Distributor Road loops 17 miles from J33 round the south of the city to J30, linking the Bay, the docks and the eastern estates. Great Western Railway runs Cardiff Central to London Paddington in a fastest 1 hour 48 minutes, with two trains an hour. Cardiff Airport at Rhoose is 12 miles west, reached from M4 J33 via the A4232 and Culverhouse Cross, and handled just under a million passengers in 2025. The Port of Cardiff, run by Associated British Ports, covers 852 acres less than two and a half miles from the centre.
The office market had a strong run. Take-up reached 581,643 sq ft in 2024, the highest since 2017, and prime rents rose to £28 per sq ft in the third quarter, the first increase since 2016; £30 per sq ft was then achieved at One Central Square and Hodge House in the second quarter of 2025, and agent research expects prime rents to reach £35 per sq ft in 2026 or 2027. Good space is scarce: grade A availability fell to 324,000 sq ft, a 3.8 per cent vacancy rate against 11 per cent for the market as a whole, and the 107,000 sq ft John Street scheme was the only speculative office building under construction in the centre. The next chapter is in the Bay, where Atlantic Wharf, a 30-acre site around the new 15,000-capacity indoor arena, is planned for over 155,000 sq m of mixed-use development including a new Cardiff Council headquarters. The city's population is about 384,000, with 1.5 million people in the wider Cardiff Capital Region.
Business character
Financial services and government set the tone. Admiral Group is the standout private employer, a FTSE 100 insurer headquartered in the city centre, and it sits within a wider cluster that includes Legal & General, Principality Building Society, Confused.com and Zurich, plus the newer digital banks: Starling Bank expanded at Brunel House and Aldermore took 28,000 sq ft at Two Central Square in 2024. Professional firms follow the money, with PwC at One Central Square, Hugh James at Two Central Square and Blake Morgan and Julian Hodge Bank at One Central Square. The public sector is enormous for a city of this size: the Welsh Government at Cathays Park, the Senedd in Cardiff Bay, HMRC's regional hub at Six Central Square, Cardiff Council and NHS Wales, with the University Hospital of Wales at the Heath one of the largest hospitals in the UK. BBC Cymru Wales, S4C and ITV Wales anchor a media and creative sector that spreads into the Bay, and Cardiff University is one of the city's largest employers. Retail accounts for about a fifth of the city's jobs, concentrated on Queen Street, St Mary Street and the arcades. Manufacturing and distribution sit to the east and south around Wentloog, Tremorfa, East Moors and the docks, where National Grid and Shred-It are among the occupiers on Capital Business Park. Other significant employers include Lloyds Banking Group (1 John Street), Cardiff and Vale University Health Board and Associated British Ports (Port of Cardiff).
Transport & connectivity
- Motorway: M4 (Junction M4 J32, 4 miles)
- Nearest rail: Cardiff Central (108 min to London)
- Airport: Cardiff (12 miles)
- Key A-roads: A48, A470, A4232 (Peripheral Distributor Road), A4161, A4119, A4160
Market context
Cardiff is cheaper than Bristol for offices but closing the gap at the top end. Prime rents rose to £28 per sq ft in 2024 and £30 was achieved at One Central Square and Hodge House in 2025, with agent research forecasting £35 per sq ft for the best space in 2026 or 2027; average asking rents across the wider market were around £18.50 per sq ft in 2024. Out-of-town parks at Cardiff Gate and St Mellons let for considerably less. Most of the choice is in small and mid-sized suites. Industrial space is tighter than the office market. Quoting rents in 2026 run from about £3 to £4.50 per sq ft on older estates such as Curran, through £7 to £9 for standard units on Penarth Road and Newport Road, to £12 to £13.50 for new trade counter and small hybrid units. Retail is dominated by St David's, a 1.5 million sq ft centre with 28 million visitors a year, which pulls the prime pitch towards The Hayes and the southern end of Queen Street, and the suburban high streets of Whitchurch, Roath, Canton and Penarth Road are where most independents find space.
Looking to buy? View commercial units for sale in Cardiff →
Commercial Units in Nearby Areas
Commercial Property in Cardiff
How many commercial properties are available to let in Cardiff?
What types of commercial property are available in Cardiff?
What is the price range for commercial property to let in Cardiff?
How do I contact a landlord about a commercial property in Cardiff?
How do I list a commercial property to let in Cardiff on Boxpod?
Got more questions?
