Luxury shift drives 17% rise in average apartment sizes across top cities

Premiumisation of housing fuels demand for larger units, with NCR, Chennai and Bengaluru posting the sharpest gains in average apartment sizes over two years

Average apartment sizes across India’s top seven cities have risen 17 per cent over the past two years, indicating premiumisation of residential real estate with a structural shift towards larger homes and luxury housing.

 

Home sizes in the seven tier-1 cities rose to 1,676 square feet in 2025 from 1,420 square feet in 2023, according to data from realty consultancy firm Anarock.

 

Of the top seven cities, the Delhi National Capital Region (NCR) saw the highest average flat size growth in the last two years at 30 per cent, from around 1,890 square feet in 2023 to 2,466 square feet in 2025.

 

This comes at a time when NCR has recorded an increase in the supply of new luxury homes priced over ₹1.5 crore.

 

Around 80 per cent of the 61,775 units launched in NCR in 2025 were luxury units, double the 40 per cent share out of 36,735 units launched in the region in 2023.

 

It was followed by Chennai and Bengaluru, which recorded a 24 per cent and 21 per cent rise in apartment sizes respectively.

 

In terms of absolute square footage, Hyderabad reported the highest apartment size among all seven cities, with units measuring 2,600 square feet in 2025, a 13 per cent increase from 2,299 square feet in 2023.

 

On the other hand, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) recorded the smallest apartment sizes in all of India’s tier-1 markets at 904 square feet, a 12 per cent rise from 810 square feet in 2023.

 

While this increase was attributed to a surge in luxury housing launches in the last few years, analysts indicate that such housing has become a definitive expression of personal success and social mobility, with buyers expecting bigger spaces, superior layouts and upgraded living standards.

 

“Large 3 to 4 BHKs and homes with added study rooms have now become mainstream in many of the top seven cities, and the highly motivated buyers of such units remain unfazed by the higher price tags,” said Anarock Group Chairman Anuj Puri.

 

The trend, he added, either flies squarely in the face of rumours around a cooling residential market or defines where the demand actually exists.

 

A longer-term comparison, however, highlights that apartment sizes across tier-1 markets rose by 45 per cent, from 1,140 square feet to around 1,656 square feet.

 

Noting that the Covid-19 pandemic left a lasting psychological imprint on homebuyers, Puri said that it permanently reshaped preferences towards bigger, better-designed homes that offer enhanced comfort and functionality.

 

“Luxury residential real estate is now less about shelter or investment and more about high-flying lifestyle and social signalling,” he added.