Warehouse rent per sq ft in Chennai, 2026

Two warehouses of the same size can be ₹10 a sq ft apart. On 30,000 sq ft that's ₹3 lakh a month, ₹36 lakh a year. Most of the gap is the belt and the building, and both are easy to read once you know what to look for.

What Grade A and Grade B space leased for in each belt, per sq ft a month:

Knight Frank, India Warehousing Market Report 2026 (2025's deals). Cushman & Wakefield's June 2026 figures fall in the same ranges: about ₹26 in Sriperumbudur, ₹27 in Irungattukottai and Madhavaram, ₹24 in Periyapalayam.

The median asking rent in each area, from the warehouses S N Enterprises has on lease right now. The table updates whenever a listing changes; each area opens its listings.

Asking rents, on each listing's own area; deals often close a little lower. The city end of the Bengaluru highway (Porur, Vanagaram, Poonamallee, Velappanchavadi) asks ₹30–35 because it's a short drive into the city.

Yes, steadily. Knight Frank's Chennai average went from ₹23.9 a sq ft in 2024 to ₹25.0 in 2025, and ₹25.7 by the middle of 2026, the fastest rise of the eight cities it tracks.

• 2025 was a big year: 8.3 million sq ft leased, up 42% on 2024, and 98% of it Grade A.
• The west took most of it: Sriperumbudur–Oragadam 77%, the north (NH-16 to Periyapalayam) 21%, GST Road 2%.
• Space is getting tight: vacancy was 9.6% at the end of 2025, and leasing slowed in the first half of 2026 (3.0 million sq ft) because few large spaces were left, while rents kept rising.

Grade B runs ₹1–5 a sq ft cheaper in Knight Frank's tables, and 78% of Chennai's stock is now Grade A. The difference is the building:

If you only store and don't rack high, a good Grade B shed near your customers can cost less in rent and in trucking.

• The belt and the last mile. Distance to the highway, the Outer Ring Road and the ports at Ennore and Kattupalli, and room for a 40-ft container to turn.
• Clear height. 9–12 m lets you rack; 6–8 m doesn't.
• Floor load. About 5 t/m² for racking and forklifts; Welspun One quotes 5–7 for Grade A near Chennai.
• Docks and yard. Levelled docks and a yard trucks can wait in.
• Fire safety and paperwork. Sprinklers and a fire NOC; insurers and large clients ask for both.
• Power. Sanctioned load for cold storage or light assembly.
• Size and term. A large space on a long lease negotiates a lower rate; a small godown inside the city costs more a sq ft.

• Deposit: 6–10 months' rent is usual in Chennai; about 10 at the median in SNE's listings.
• GST: 18% on the rent. A registered business claims it back as input tax credit; if the owner isn't registered and you are, you pay it yourself under reverse charge.
• TDS: a business tenant deducts 10% income tax at source on rent above ₹50,000 a month.
• Escalation: about 15% every three years, or 4–5% every year; see lock-in and escalation.
• Registration: stamp duty of 1% of the rent for the term plus the deposit, and a 1% fee capped at ₹40,000; see registering a commercial lease.
• Running costs: ask whether security, housekeeping and common-area power are in the rent or billed on top.

1. Rent at ₹27 a sq ft: ₹8.1 lakh a month.
2. GST at 18%: ₹1,45,800 a month, claimed back if you're registered.
3. Deposit at 10 months: ₹81 lakh up front.
4. Escalation at 5% a year: about ₹8.5 lakh a month in the second year and ₹8.9 lakh in the third.
5. A three-year lease: stamp duty of about ₹3.9 lakh (1% of three years' rent plus the deposit) and the ₹40,000 registration fee.

• West, on NH-48 (Sriperumbudur, Oragadam, Irungattukottai): car and electronics suppliers and the big logistics firms; three-quarters of 2025's leasing.
• North, on NH-16 (Red Hills, Puzhal, Madhavaram, Periyapalayam): distribution into the city and the ports; the cheapest Grade A.
• South, on GST Road (Maraimalai Nagar, Mahindra World City): the southern industrial parks; little stock, so the highest Grade A rents.
• The city end of NH-48 ([Porur](/warehouses/porur), [Poonamallee](/warehouses/poonamallee), [Vanagaram](/warehouses/vanagaram)): last-mile delivery into Chennai; smaller sheds at higher rents.

Where each belt is and the roads that serve it: warehouse and godown hubs around Chennai.