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ITOKI CORPORATION (Headquarters: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Koji Minato) conducted the "National Office Worker Awareness Survey 2026" through its Central Research workers, targeting 4,650 full-time employees aged 20-59 who primarily commute to the office across eight regions nationwide (Hokkaido, Tohoku, Tokyo Metropolitan Area, Kanto-Shinetsu, Chubu, Kansai, Chugoku-Shikoku, and Kyushu). As work style options expand and the way people commute to the office is re-evaluated, this survey broadly investigated the realities related to the "quality of commuting to the office," including frequency of commuting, work style, desired work environment, experiences gained at work, and intention to continue working, broken down by region and generation.
Furthermore, when analyzing intentions to continue working, intentions to recommend the workplace, and perceived productivity based on evaluations of workplace experience (ease of work, sense of growth and meaning, and connection with the organization), significant differences were observed in intentions and perceived productivity between those with high and low evaluations of their workplace experience. Differences were also observed in what employees seek in terms of work style and workplace environment, depending on region and generation.
*These survey results show correlations and trends, and do not definitively establish causal relationships.
Detailed survey results can be downloaded from the page below.
[Survey Data] Nationwide Office workers Awareness Survey 2026 [1582KB]

• [Feeling lonely despite not being isolated] Approximately 20% of people in their 20s agree with both "being able to work without feeling isolated" and "sometimes feeling lonely."
- There is a gap of approximately 6.5 times between those who want to continue working and those who don't, when comparing their sense of growth and meaning in their work.
- The number of "hybrid work arrangements centered around going to the office" in the Tokyo metropolitan area is more than twice that of the other seven regions, and "long commutes" are also the highest among the eight regions.
- Perceived productivity ranks highest in the Kansai region among 8 regions, and the meaning of work and workplace recommendations also reach the highest levels.
In Kyushu, approximately one in four people prioritize a "psychologically safe working environment," the highest percentage among the eight regions (18.8% nationwide).
The most frequently cited role expected from the office (select up to 3) was "concentration" (52.9%), followed by "consultation and collaboration" (42.4%).

31.3% of people in their 20s agreed that they "sometimes feel lonely." Furthermore, 19.8% of all people in their 20s agreed with both "being able to work without feeling isolated" and "sometimes feeling lonely." This figure was 7.2% for those in their 50s. It seems that feeling "able to work without feeling isolated" and not feeling lonely are not necessarily the same thing. In addition to opportunities to interact with people face-to-face, it can be a clue to how easy it is to talk to someone and how one can interact with others in the workplace.

We surveyed 4,114 people who work in the office five or more days a week, examining the relationship between three aspects of their work experience—ease of work, sense of growth and meaning, and connection with the organization—and their intention to continue working.
Among those who rated "growth and sense of meaning" highly, 88.4% answered that they "want to continue working at this workplace," compared to only 13.5% among those who rated it lower, a difference of approximately 6.5 times. In the other two categories, "ease of work" was 82.3% versus 18.1%, and "connection with the organization" was 83.0% versus 17.5%, showing differences of more than four times.
Furthermore, looking at the workplace conditions behind this difference, among the 10 items related to the workplace environment and work methods, the biggest difference in workplace experience scores between high-scoring and low-scoring individuals was in "decision-making at an appropriate speed" (3.79 points / 2.54 points) and "support from superiors" (3.76 points / 2.60 points). It seems necessary to consider both the workplace and the systems in place for carrying out work there.

*This comparison shows the relationship between work experience and intention to continue working, and does not indicate that work experience changed intentions.
*The work experience scores are calculated by assigning points from 5 for "strongly agree" to 1 for "strongly disagree" for each of the three work experience activities (11 items as noted in Figure 2), and then averaging the average scores for each activity (out of 5 points). Those with high scores are those who answered "somewhat agree" or "strongly agree" to the items, while those with low scores are those who answered "somewhat disagree" or "strongly disagree."

In the Tokyo metropolitan area, 20.0% of people work a hybrid work style, primarily commuting to the office, higher than the 4.8-9.7% in the other seven regions. Furthermore, 35.8% of people in the Tokyo metropolitan area commute for 60 minutes or more each way, higher than the national average of 22.0%.
On the other hand, the percentage of people who prioritize a "commutable environment" was similar across the Tokyo metropolitan area (44.0%), Kansai (42.9%), and the other six regions (40.6%). While there were regional differences in commuting time, the difference in the percentage of people who prioritize a "commutable environment" was only 3.4 percentage points.
*The Greater Tokyo Area is defined in this survey by work location and refers to Saitama Prefecture, Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Yamanashi Prefecture. Chiba Prefecture is included in the Kanto-Shinetsu region.

In the Kansai region, 44.1% of respondents agreed that they were working productively, compared to 37.9% nationwide. In Kansai, 45.1% (38.8% nationwide) also agreed that they felt it was easy to find meaning and value in their work, and 30.8% (26.8% nationwide) agreed that they would recommend their company's office and work style to others, indicating that multiple perceptions are aligned in the same direction.
This result provides an opportunity to consider what people working in the Kansai region are gaining from their workplaces. However, what was measured here was the individual's perception and intention, and it does not compare actual performance or productivity across regions.
*Each region has approximately 550-600 responses. The difference between Kansai and the other seven regions in the percentage of people who "work productively" was statistically significant, even after adjusting for age, gender, company size, industry, and job position.

When asked to choose only one type of workplace environment they would like to work in in the future, 24.9% of people in Kyushu and 18.8% nationwide prioritized "a psychologically safe and secure working environment." This figure also exceeded 20% in Tohoku (22.8%) and Chugoku/Shikoku (22.0%).
Nationwide, 62.0% of those who selected "a psychologically secure work environment" when asked to list up to three important factors also chose it as their most important factor. This suggests that it is a high-priority condition for those who selected it. This is a result of asking about the conditions desired in a future workplace, and does not represent an evaluation of the sense of security in current workplaces by region.
*Each region has approximately 550-600 responses. The difference between Kyushu and the other seven regions was statistically significant even after adjusting for age, gender, company size, industry, and job title.

When asked to select up to three roles they expect the office to play in the future, the most common answer was "a place to concentrate on work" at 52.9%, followed by "a place to consult and collaborate with colleagues and superiors" at 42.4%. In another question, when asked to select up to three workplace environments they would like to work in in the future, 49.5% chose "an environment that makes it easy to concentrate on work."
Offices are expected to be both a place where people gather and a place where individuals can work independently. It's important to have both a place to concentrate and a place to consult with others when needed, depending on the task.

Looking at the results by age group, the percentage of people who cited "concentration" was 45.7% for those in their 20s, 50.5% for those in their 30s, 56.6% for those in their 40s, and 57.4% for those in their 50s, making it the most common role across all age groups (Figure 7). The difference between this and the second most common role, "consultation and collaboration," was 8.1 percentage points for those in their 20s (45.7%/37.6%) and 13.2 percentage points for those in their 50s (57.4%/44.2%), with the difference being smaller for those in their 20s. Also, those in their 20s were more likely than those in their 50s to cite "a place to gain new knowledge and inspiration" (24.0%, compared to 19.1% for those in their 50s) and "no particular role expected from the office" (17.4%, compared to 13.5% for those in their 50s), indicating a difference in expected roles. Even when comparing based on job title, years of service, company size, etc., the trend of a higher percentage of those in their 40s and 50s citing "concentration" remained unchanged.

▼Hiroaki Ninoyu Profile

Hiroaki Ninoyu, Executive Officer, Central Research Institute ITOKI CORPORATION

Joined Itoki in 1990. Through practical design and planning work, she has been involved in creating diverse spaces, including offices and public facilities. Starting from that experience, she expanded her field to work style research, and is currently conducting research mainly on "the relationship between office environment and corporate performance." From both practical and research perspectives, she is exploring the future of offices and work styles that support the performance of employees and organizations.

*This survey represents individual responses at a single point in time. Statements such as "I want to continue working" and "I am working productively" are intentions and feelings, and do not reflect actual turnover rates or performance. The listed correlations do not indicate causality. The regions are based on the eight categories used in the survey and do not represent results by prefecture.

The results presented in this release are based on the same response data as in the survey materials.
[Survey Data] Nationwide Office workers Awareness Survey 2026 [1582KB]