I tried 3 coworking spaces in Toronto, here's how they compare

Earlier this year I had the opportunity to work from Toronto, Canada's most populous city. Needing a space to focus on work and take calls, I decided to look into the options. There's four major players in Toronto:

• WeWork - the foremost international player in this field, with 6 offices across downtown
• Spaces - another major international player, owned by the International Workplace Group, with around 8 offices in downtown
• Workhaus - the Canadian owned and operated workspace, with 9 offices in downtown
• Staples Studio - built into and operated by two Staples locations in downtown

All prices include all applicable sales taxes

They mostly work in the same way - offering day passes but focusing on offering monthly subscriptions to individuals and short term private space leases to businesses. The prices I paid were pretty varied: with a promo code, I bought WeWork's "All Access Plus" plan with access to all of Toronto's offices for £269 a month (roughly C$441 at the time); Spaces cost C$261.45 (£159) a month; Workhaus cost $350 a month however I was offered a reduced C$250 (£152) for the first month after a tour, and finally Staples offered a similarly priced C$249/month subscription.

To be clear, WeWork offer a reduced price C$249/mo tier for their All Access product, but despite the name this only includes hotdesk access at one location in Toronto - namely their University & King location.

With the exception of Spaces, all of these businesses also offer one-off day passes. WeWork On Demand cost between C$40 - C$60 (£24 - £36) per pass, Workhaus offer C$35 (£22) day passes at some of their locations and Staples C$28 per pass.

But do you get more by spending more? Let's look at each service in detail.

WeWork - The "name brand" option

WeWork was the first service I tried. I was immediately struck by how much effort was made by WeWork in designing a space that was both fun and easy to focus and lock in. The office - located on the top floor of the Hudson's Bay department store - comprises of open hotdesking spaces, diner-style booths, long tables, meeting rooms of all sizes, phone booths and "quiet working areas". Every surface and space feels high quality and thought out.

WeWork provides facilities for its patrons, including coffee, tea and kombucha on tap. None of those are my taste, but the filtered ice cold water certainly was. Every location I visited was kept clean to an extremely high standard and offered fantastic views of Toronto, power sockets a-plentiful, and floor-to-ceiling toilet doors which is apparently a rare commodity in Toronto (and North America as a whole?)

Overall, I'd say that WeWork is a great option for coworking spaces in Toronto if you're looking for a reliable, high end space and you don't have a restrictive budget. It's not a bad option but it's certainly the costliest.

Spaces - The "mixed bag" option

Spaces makes use of its relationship with sibling brand Regus to offer a large number of locations. However the locations that aren't dedicated to Spaces don't make for the loveliest of workspaces:

To be fair to them, I'm basing this review on the Spaces-branded locations, of which there are eight. Just like WeWork, they are fitted out well and with thought however with a more subtle, basic design. Unlike WeWork though, I never found myself at a Spaces location with more than three other workers. Make of that what you will. The facilities provided are also a bit more basic, with no free drinks or designated quiet areas (though again, this isn't particularly an issue in my experience!)

Overall, despite Spaces costing significantly less than WeWork, you're getting the majority of the functionality that WeWork provides with a similar amount of coverage across downtown. Just don't expect to be wowed by the interior, or to find your next start-up co-founder there. And probably don't bother with most Regus locations.

Workhaus - The "entrepreneur's friend" option

This is probably the option you haven't heard of before. I certainly hadn't. Workhaus has built up its real estate from its humble office above a pub in 2014, to 9 locations in downtown and 3 others across Canada. Its focus on being a backbone for Canadian businesses from entrepreneurs to big businesses is refreshing and definitely evident in the layout and services provided.

You can tell walking into a Workhaus that it's a smaller operation. In place of the sterile signage is handwritten notes and decorations I'd find at my grandma's house. It's quaint and homely yet still somewhere I felt comfortable working at. Workhaus offers a Slack community for its members, as well as regular casual catch-ups, and "member spotlights" on their blog. They're dedicated to their community in a way I haven't seen from any other service, which I think comes from their Canadian heritage and smaller scale.

Overall, Workhaus is a great option for those looking for more than just somewhere to sit and work. But it's also great for that. Whether that's worth paying more than most of the competition is up to you (unless you get a great deal like I did.)

Staples Studio - The "wallet friendly" option

Before you ask, "Wait, isn't Staples a stationery store?" - yep, it's the same place. Essentially Staples Studio is a sectioned off area at the back of the shop with some desks. But it works! You can see the space at University & Dundas is a kitchen slash reception area, a presentation hall, a few private offices and a desk hall. It feels almost like I'm back at school doing exams.

Despite the initial gross-out, I had a fine time here. Staples focuses on the basics, with a convenient location (just 'round the corner from Nathan Phillips Square) and a great price to match. The staff were friendly (well, it was one guy, but still) and the sound isolation between the store and the working space was decent. There's also a Mos Mos Coffee right by the entrance which was very welcoming! The manager of the store, who is also from what I could tell the sole employee running the place, certainly puts effort into the space.

Overall, if all you're looking for is a space away from the noise to focus on work, Staples Studio is a decent option. You really do get what you pay for, but it could be a lot worse.

Conclusion

If I had to pick one of these options to work at regularly, it would absolutely be Workhaus. Not only are you supporting a local business, it's also in my experience the best option for business. Its atmosphere and the friendliness of everyone I met there, along with the unique stylings of their locations, make this an easy decision. However, if you're on a budget, there's really nothing wrong with Staples Studio.