U.S. Energy Information Administration logo
Skip to sub-navigation
‹ Consumption & Efficiency

Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS)

Glossary › FAQS ›

‹ BACK TO ALL 2018 CBECS TABLES

Release date: September 2021
Revised date: September 2022
Table B1. Summary table: total and means of floorspace, number of workers, and hours of operation, 2018
  Number of buildings (thousand) Total
floorspace
(million
square feet)		 Total
workers
(thousand)		 Mean
square feet
per building (thousand)		 Mean
square
feet per worker1		 Mean operating hours per week
All buildings 5,918 96,423 85,796 16.3 1,072 62
Building floorspace (square feet)            
1,001 to 5,000 2,833 8,025 9,717 2.8 676 57
5,001 to 10,000 1,359 10,204 9,085 7.5 982 61
10,001 to 25,000 981 15,838 12,244 16.1 1,225 65
25,001 to 50,000 386 13,957 10,744 36.2 1,279 78
50,001 to 100,000 218 15,302 12,846 70.3 1,165 79
100,001 to 200,000 93 13,003 11,428 140.2 1,123 84
200,001 to 500,000 40 11,776 10,508 293.9 1,109 96
Over 500,000 9 8,317 9,224 947.6 897 115
Principal building activity            
Education 437 13,623 10,370 31.1 1,314 51
Food sales 163 1,006 917 6.2 1,097 110
Food service 286 1,385 2,884 4.8 480 81
Health care 137 4,018 6,656 29.3 604 60
Inpatient 9 2,259 3,597 264.8 628 168
Outpatient 129 1,760 3,059 13.7 575 52
Lodging 207 6,976 2,764 33.7 2,431 165
Mercantile 517 10,781 8,882 20.9 1,214 64
Retail (other than mall) 350 5,193 3,251 14.8 1,597 66
Enclosed and strip malls 167 5,588 5,631 33.5 992 61
Office 970 16,662 32,843 17.2 507 54
Public assembly 488 7,192 3,338 14.7 2,082 51
Public order and safety 81 1,538 1,587 18.9 954 131
Religious worship 439 5,471 1,948 12.5 2,656 28
Service 867 6,240 4,736 7.2 1,243 53
Warehouse and storage 1,004 17,483 7,081 17.4 2,222 71
Other 113 2,435 1,598 21.5 1,360 82
Vacant 208 1,612 Q 7.8 Q 5
Year constructed            
Before 1920 329 3,600 2,731 10.9 1,222 43
1920 to 1945 379 5,646 5,304 14.9 1,023 54
1946 to 1959 517 6,937 5,487 13.4 1,202 53
1960 to 1969 685 10,360 8,481 15.1 1,161 60
1970 to 1979 831 13,061 10,822 15.7 1,171 59
1980 to 1989 794 13,465 14,755 17.0 878 61
1990 to 1999 921 15,535 13,504 16.9 1,087 65
2000 to 2009 924 17,500 15,696 18.9 1,063 67
2010 to 2018 537 10,319 9,017 19.2 1,082 82
Census region and division            
Northeast 793 15,951 15,152 20.1 1,014 64
New England 275 3,749 3,616 13.6 982 75
Middle Atlantic 518 12,202 11,536 23.6 1,024 59
Midwest 1,719 25,932 19,924 15.1 1,225 62
East North Central 1,110 17,561 13,951 15.8 1,195 62
West North Central 609 8,372 5,973 13.7 1,296 60
South 2,143 34,907 30,820 16.3 1,089 60
South Atlantic 1,034 17,923 16,420 17.3 1,060 58
East South Central 347 5,404 3,923 15.6 1,289 59
West South Central 762 11,580 10,477 15.2 1,061 63
West 1,264 19,633 19,900 15.5 935 64
Mountain 484 7,680 8,119 15.9 886 69
Pacific 780 11,952 11,780 15.3 968 61
Climate zoneb            
Cold or very cold 539 7,044 5,445 13.1 1,224 67
Cool 1,727 26,768 22,477 15.5 1,122 62
Mixed mild 1,216 25,096 23,442 20.6 1,024 61
Warm 1,606 25,085 21,301 15.6 1,134 59
Hot or very hot 831 12,429 13,130 15.0 906 66
Number of floors            
1 4,106 43,576 34,034 10.6 1,188 61
2 1,286 23,300 18,268 18.1 1,231 61
3 370 10,516 8,316 28.5 1,233 64
4 to 9 142 13,031 15,293 92.1 837 88
10 or more 16 6,000 9,886 379.9 605 109
Elevators and escalators
(more than one may apply)		            
Any elevators 503 36,501 40,521 72.6 887 79
1 elevator 366 14,215 11,669 38.9 1,197 74
2 to 5 elevators 121 13,316 15,470 110.1 844 92
6 or more elevators 16 8,970 13,382 545.7 666 108
Any escalators 14 3,753 4,345 277.8 851 126
Number of workers (main shift)            
Fewer than 5 3,270 21,065 5,726 6.4 2,898 57
5 to 9 1,116 10,323 7,303 9.2 1,413 62
10 to 19 713 11,348 9,062 15.9 1,252 70
20 to 49 492 16,132 14,185 32.8 1,137 74
50 to 99 201 12,961 12,788 64.5 1,014 73
100 to 249 90 12,442 13,183 138.0 944 82
250 or more 37 12,152 23,548 329.9 516 88
Weekly operating hours            
Fewer than 40 1,370 10,776 5,901 7.9 1,420 14
40 to 48 1,483 18,826 16,706 12.7 1,113 42
49 to 60 1,250 22,845 24,636 18.3 921 54
61 to 84 645 14,727 14,655 22.8 989 74
85 to 167 465 10,038 7,655 21.6 1,270 109
Open continuously 705 19,213 16,243 27.2 1,112 168
Ownership and occupancy            
Nongovernment owned 4,982 74,728 66,568 15.0 1,065 63
Owner occupied 3,249 45,355 37,126 14.0 1,167 62
Leased to tenant(s) 1,581 28,382 29,442 18.0 936 70
Unoccupied 152 990 0 6.5 N 0
Government owned 937 21,695 19,228 23.2 1,096 58
Federal 70 1,946 2,597 27.7 731 81
State 256 6,888 5,746 26.9 1,181 59
Local 610 12,861 10,885 21.1 1,138 55
Party responsible for operation
of energy systems		            
Building owner 4,872 79,282 70,432 16.3 1,069 61
Business owner or tenant 831 12,842 10,637 15.4 1,181 62
Property management 97 1,994 2,311 20.7 839 76
Other 118 2,306 2,415 19.5 903 71
Provider of direct input on energy-
related equipment purchases		            
Building owner 5,127 82,862 73,240 16.2 1,076 61
Business owner or tenant 483 7,585 6,376 15.7 1,152 60
Property management 49 1,072 1,170 22.0 901 76
Other 260 4,904 5,010 18.8 947 71
Number of establishments            
1 4,719 65,391 50,407 13.9 1,237 64
2 to 5 811 16,431 15,937 20.3 1,020 60
6 to 10 135 5,539 7,206 41.0 760 67
11 to 20 63 3,894 5,751 61.6 676 83
More than 20 19 3,999 6,494 207.0 616 76
Currently unoccupied 170 1,168 0 6.9 N 0
Campus or complex activity            
Not part of a campus or complex 3,622 56,609 50,340 15.6 1,087 60
Primary or secondary school 247 5,106 3,681 20.7 1,376 42
College or university 103 3,761 2,700 36.5 1,339 85
Office complex 141 3,823 8,446 27.2 443 64
Retail complex 250 4,573 4,171 18.3 1,062 55
Storage complex 418 5,684 1,933 13.6 2,319 91
Religious campus or complex 253 3,209 1,692 12.7 1,819 30
Health care complex 60 2,838 4,415 47.1 641 80
Lodging or resort complex 102 1,575 758 15.4 1,895 120
Transportation complex 36 774 600 21.6 1,090 93
Government complex 124 1,706 1,676 13.8 936 61
Other 563 6,765 5,383 12.0 1,180 62
Predominant exterior wall material            
Brick, stone, or stucco 2,490 46,134 43,670 18.5 1,024 61
Concrete (block or poured) 935 19,357 14,995 20.7 1,255 65
Concrete panels 137 8,331 8,022 60.6 1,032 63
Siding or shingles 948 5,992 5,220 6.3 1,046 57
Metal panels 1,250 12,198 6,584 9.8 1,577 64
Window glass 19 2,192 4,522 113.5 480 72
Other 139 2,219 2,783 16.0 763 61
Predominant roof material            
Metal surfacing 2,198 20,936 12,924 9.5 1,424 59
Synthetic or rubber 940 31,563 31,789 33.6 980 68
Built-up 708 19,308 19,471 27.3 970 63
Slate or tile shingles 376 3,997 3,748 10.6 991 61
Wooden materials (including
shingles)		 166 1,568 1,496 9.5 939 78
Asphalt, fiberglass, or
other shingles		 1,311 14,058 11,509 10.7 1,176 58
Concrete 83 1,968 1,931 23.6 1,010 88
Other 136 3,026 2,926 22.2 999 61
Roof tilt            
Flat 1,914 54,253 55,710 28.3 953 67
Shallow pitch 2,313 27,609 19,619 11.9 1,296 64
Steeper pitch 1,691 14,561 10,466 8.6 1,282 53
Cool roof characteristics (more than one may apply)            
White/reflective coating or paint 1,285 32,799 31,826 25.5 993 64
White/reflective tiles or shingles 140 2,713 2,557 19.3 1,048 68
Aluminum coating 528 6,149 4,472 11.7 1,284 57
Ballasted roof system 114 6,277 6,872 55.2 903 74
Other cool roof property 35 1,603 2,359 45.3 680 76
Renovations since 2000
(more than one may apply)		            
Any type of renovation 2,032 45,165 44,948 22.2 985 63
Addition or annex 327 10,854 9,532 33.1 1,130 63
Reduction in floorspace 35 1,784 2,369 51.1 753 63
Roof replacement 847 20,862 20,388 24.6 997 62
Interior wall reconfiguration 709 21,283 25,724 30.0 819 59
Window replacement 484 10,977 11,390 22.7 954 63
HVAC equipment upgrade 1,006 27,575 28,643 27.4 948 62
Lighting upgrade 1,012 29,098 30,404 28.7 947 66
Electrical upgrade 565 15,761 17,063 27.9 910 62
Plumbing system upgrade 584 15,537 17,095 26.6 895 65
Insulation upgrade 307 7,980 8,465 26.0 924 62
Fire, safety, or security upgrade 570 19,985 20,865 35.0 949 71
Structural upgrade 147 4,203 5,041 28.6 818 65
Other 43 1,168 1,027 27.3 1,105 81
No renovations 3,530 43,832 34,581 12.4 1,176 59
Buildings constructed 2013 or later 357 7,426 6,268 20.8 1,119 83
Energy sources
(more than one may apply)		            
Electricity 5,613 94,844 85,693 16.9 1,070 62
Natural gas 2,974 67,722 60,519 22.8 1,100 64
Fuel oil 583 21,185 24,121 36.3 866 71
District heat 86 6,745 7,389 78.1 900 79
District chilled water 55 4,288 4,562 77.5 926 74
Propane 676 10,157 6,940 15.0 1,420 61
Wood 105 802 671 7.6 1,112 50
Coal Q Q Q Q Q Q
Solar 99 3,820 3,846 38.6 984 84
Other 79 1,317 1,067 16.7 1,214 74
Space-heating energy sources
(more than one may apply)		            
Electricity 2,563 45,603 45,698 17.8 982 63
Natural gas 2,587 58,042 50,527 22.4 1,129 62
Fuel oil 266 4,134 3,709 15.6 1,086 60
District heat 83 6,547 7,131 79.3 905 80
Propane 431 3,896 2,736 9.0 1,339 51
Wood 85 422 222 4.9 1,646 49
Coal Q Q Q Q Q Q
Solar Q Q Q Q Q Q
Other 40 443 273 11.1 1,624 54
Primary space-heating
energy source		            
Electricity 1,856 27,618 29,054 14.9 932 64
Natural gas 2,344 50,060 42,756 21.4 1,149 61
Fuel oil 222 2,223 1,652 10.0 1,281 62
District heat 78 6,090 6,695 78.0 895 79
Propane 338 2,290 1,692 6.8 1,239 47
Wood Q Q Q Q Q Q
Coal Q Q Q Q Q Q
Solar N N N N N N
Other Q Q Q Q Q Q
Cooling energy sources
(more than one may apply)		            
Electricity 4,584 84,526 79,784 18.4 1,041 63
Natural gas 4 400 307 90.9 1,302 55
District chilled water 55 4,288 4,562 77.5 926 74
Water-heating energy sources
(more than one may apply)		            
Electricity 2,785 47,125 46,374 16.9 1,000 59
Natural gas 1,885 46,652 42,146 24.8 1,093 69
Fuel oil 72 1,807 1,889 25.1 947 87
District heat 38 4,206 4,919 109.6 851 83
Propane 145 1,947 1,855 13.4 1,033 69
Cooking energy sources
(more than one may apply)		            
Electricity 1,216 30,509 29,469 25.1 1,020 74
Natural gas 727 27,705 26,104 38.1 1,060 80
Propane 159 3,101 2,430 19.5 1,255 75
Energy end uses
(more than one may apply)		            
Buildings with space heating 4,901 88,661 82,078 18.1 1,057 61
Buildings with cooling 4,631 87,506 82,835 18.9 1,038 63
Buildings with water heating 4,595 87,717 82,235 19.1 1,050 63
Buildings with cooking 1,738 43,580 41,427 25.1 1,039 74
Buildings with manufacturing 322 6,871 5,035 21.4 1,359 56
Buildings with electricity
generation		 706 29,457 32,409 41.7 900 82
Buildings with lighting 5,509 94,122 85,617 17.1 1,065 61
Percentage of floorspace heated            
Not heated 1,017 7,762 3,718 7.6 1,394 64
1 to 50 693 10,623 6,406 15.3 1,605 56
51 to 99 905 20,174 20,058 22.3 994 62
100 3,303 57,864 55,614 17.5 1,017 62
Percentage of floorspace cooled            
Not cooled 1,288 8,917 2,961 6.9 2,022 57
1 to 50 1,111 19,722 10,727 17.8 1,784 56
51 to 99 998 26,277 26,432 26.3 990 67
100 2,522 41,507 45,675 16.5 890 65
Percentage lit when open            
Zero Q Q Q Q Q Q
1 to 50 1,280 14,172 6,476 11.1 2,082 60
51 to 99 1,784 38,847 37,954 21.8 1,011 64
100 2,272 39,877 41,135 17.6 953 64
Building never open/electricity
not used		 513 2,998 183 5.8 2,908 39
Percentage lit during off hours            
0% 2,054 15,537 10,333 7.6 1,370 48
1 to 50%  3,243 69,761 67,292 21.5 1,017 66
51 to 100% 238 7,237 6,281 30.4 1,085 83
Building always open with
no off hours		 78 2,309 1,788 29.5 1,257 168
Electricity not used 305 1,579 103 5.2 Q 66
Heating equipment
(more than one may apply)		            
Packaged heating units 2,187 48,064 44,373 22.0 1,073 67
Furnaces 1,621 17,272 13,487 10.7 1,217 53
Individual space heaters 1,246 21,122 17,188 16.9 1,208 59
Boilers 703 28,831 28,263 41.0 1,010 71
Heat pumps 673 15,110 14,684 22.4 1,014 67
District heat 83 6,547 7,131 79.3 905 80
Duct reheat 134 7,418 9,848 55.2 747 61
Other 17 821 673 48.7 1,219 87
Cooling equipment
(more than one may apply)		            
Packaged air-conditioning units 2,565 56,290 53,354 21.9 1,044 66
Residential-type central air
conditioners		 1,309 18,270 16,384 14.0 1,087 58
Individual air conditioners 735 13,619 10,038 18.5 1,337 69
Central chillers 202 17,926 21,716 88.8 820 75
Heat pumps 492 11,098 11,637 22.5 934 65
District chilled water 55 4,288 4,562 77.5 926 74
Swamp coolers 85 2,070 2,103 24.5 953 59
Other Q Q Q Q Q Q
HVAC features
(more than one may apply)		            
Economizer cycle 747 34,087 37,137 45.6 912 76
Variable air volume (VAV) system 698 29,268 34,745 42.0 835 70
Dedicated outside air system (DOAS) 249 9,027 9,453 36.3 942 72
Demand controlled ventilation (DCV) 349 10,474 9,818 30.0 1,051 67
Regular HVAC maintenance 3,554 78,015 75,319 22.0 1,019 66
Building automation system (BAS) controls heating/cooling 933 40,462 44,380 43.3 904 69
Internet-connected/smart thermostat 325 5,966 4,778 18.3 1,211 68
Programmable thermostat 1,545 20,882 17,370 13.5 1,182 62
Main equipment replaced since
2000 (more than one may apply)		            
Heating 1,937 32,451 29,569 16.8 1,076 58
Cooling 1,269 23,013 21,847 18.1 1,037 61
Water-heating equipment            
Centralized system 3,538 59,280 52,744 16.8 1,103 64
Distributed system 782 14,307 14,110 18.3 1,000 60
Combination of centralized and
distributed system		 274 14,129 15,380 51.5 912 67
Generation technologies
(more than one may apply)		            
Reciprocating engine generators 580 25,163 28,143 43.4 886 81
Solar panels 94 3,750 3,779 39.9 983 80
Other generation technology 43 2,055 2,213 48.0 920 97
Lighting equipment types
(more than one may apply)		            
Incandescent 1,100 21,081 20,077 19.2 1,019 59
Standard fluorescent 4,019 72,932 67,312 18.1 1,054 60
Compact fluorescent 1,133 33,696 34,888 29.7 951 70
High-intensity discharge (HID) 238 11,356 9,532 47.6 1,171 65
Halogen 552 15,012 15,013 27.2 988 65
LED 2,592 61,847 61,176 23.9 996 68
Other Q Q Q Q Q Q
Refrigeration equipment
(more than one may apply)		            
Any refrigeration 3,850 77,589 73,331 20.2 1,045 64
Walk-in units 706 29,384 29,824 41.6 984 92
Cases or cabinets 837 28,517 29,508 34.1 966 82
Large cold storage areas 69 3,592 2,753 52.1 1,302 102
Commercial ice makers 872 34,672 34,910 39.8 988 82
Residential-type or compact units 3,321 64,735 62,176 19.5 1,028 61
Vending machines 800 42,071 42,256 52.6 992 81
No refrigeration 2,068 18,834 12,465 9.1 1,226 58
Office equipment
(more than one may apply)		            
Desktop computers 3,804 82,012 78,691 21.6 1,037 66
With multiple monitors 1,504 50,844 56,355 33.8 899 65
Laptop computers 2,786 69,375 69,993 24.9 982 64
Dedicated servers 1,400 51,595 56,604 36.8 911 69
Tablets charged in building 1,556 48,778 51,562 31.3 941 68
Large floor-standing office devices2 1,456 54,088 58,144 37.2 929 65
Smaller desktop office devices2 3,560 74,467 71,347 20.9 1,039 65
Interactive whiteboards 262 16,939 18,450 64.7 917 65
Televisions/video displays 2,451 63,618 63,777 26.0 989 71
Point-of-sales devices/cash registers 1,420 33,606 35,979 23.7 933 74
Food preparation or serving areas
in non-food service buildings
(more than one may apply)		            
Snack bar/concession stand/coffee shop 144 10,361 10,567 71.7 980 88
Fast food/small restaurant 160 9,759 10,823 60.9 902 87
Cafeteria/large restaurant 129 14,531 15,160 112.4 958 67
Commercial kitchen/
food preparation area		 284 17,698 15,081 62.3 1,173 88
Small kitchen area 1,018 20,519 18,600 20.2 1,074 70
Separate computer areas
(more than one may apply)		            
Server closet 1,237 48,722 51,926 39.4 936 67
Data center 116 11,383 14,374 98.3 792 88
Computer-based training room 228 16,556 17,081 72.7 969 72
Student or public computer center 236 12,527 9,728 53.1 1,288 64
Window and interior lighting
features (more than one may
apply)		            
Multipaned windows 3,527 72,694 68,818 20.6 1,034 62
Tinted window glass 1,679 44,363 46,894 26.4 930 61
Reflective window glass 497 17,929 20,883 36.1 849 71
External overhangs or awnings 1,513 28,718 26,663 19.0 1,061 61
Skylights or atriums 509 19,815 18,169 38.9 1,074 67
Light scheduling 910 33,552 36,481 36.9 910 71
Occupancy sensors 1,025 44,304 46,637 43.2 942 71
Multi-level lighting or dimming 332 14,424 15,759 43.4 910 63
Daylight harvesting 138 7,244 9,573 52.6 752 69
Plug-load control 58 1,961 2,132 34.1 913 67
Demand responsive lighting 98 2,045 2,002 20.8 1,003 63
Building automation system (BAS) for lighting 317 16,645 18,648 52.5 890 76
Electric vehicle (EV) charging            
Charging stations associated with the building 132 10,165 11,217 77.1 899 86
Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Form EIA-871A of the 2018 Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey
Notes: Because of rounding, data may not sum to totals. The Guide to the 2018 CBECS Tables and CBECS Terminology contain definitions of terms used in these tables and comparisons between previous CBECS tables. You can access both references from http://www.eia.gov/consumption/commercial/data/2018/.
Data are sample survey estimates with RSEs published in a tab on the Excel worksheet for this table.
aBuildings with zero workers are excluded from this column.
bClimate zones are based on ASHRAE Standard 169-2021; see https://www.eia.gov/consumption/commercial/maps.php#defined.
cOffice devices refers to any combination of printers, copiers, scanners, or FAX machines.
Q = Data withheld either because the relative standard error (RSE) was greater than 50% or fewer than 20 buildings in reporting sample.
N = No buildings in reporting sample.