How we rate virtual offices

Price matters when choosing a virtual office, but it does not tell you how good a particular address is, who runs it or which companies are already registered there. That is why we show our own rating alongside each offer. It is based mainly on public data and aims to help you quickly spot where things look fine and where a closer look would be worthwhile.

We assess two different things for every offer. The address score reflects the risk profile of the address itself based on public registers. The offer score adds information about the provider, such as whether we have checked them in more detail and whether they actually own the property where the office is offered.

Two providers at the same address can therefore have different overall ratings. The address score is the same, but the individual provider and offer may affect the final result.

Every assessed address starts at 100 points. We deduct points when the data shows risk signals. We mainly consider how many companies are registered there, how many are unreliable VAT payers, how many have other problems, and what share of all companies at the address those problematic entities represent.

A large number of companies does not automatically make an address bad. A higher concentration is normal for virtual offices. But figures far above the usual level, or an unusually high concentration of problematic entities, start to affect the score.

A percentage or a count on its own can be misleading. If four companies are registered at an address and one has problems, the share is 25%. That sounds dramatic, but it is only one case. At an address with thousands of companies, the percentage may be relatively low while the absolute number is still substantial.

We therefore use both measures. The count prevents a large address from looking safe just because the percentage is low. The share helps reveal addresses where problematic companies make up an unusually large part of the total.

We also track unreliable VAT payers separately. A higher concentration may be relevant when choosing an address, so it affects the score and can trigger a separate notice.

This does not mean that using such an address automatically leads to a tax office inspection. It is a risk signal based on the mix of companies registered there. We explain this metric in more detail in our article on tax office inspection risk for virtual offices.

The address is only part of the picture. We also consider the provider and their relationship to the property. If we know the provider does not own it, we reduce the offer score. They depend on an agreement with the owner and have less control over the stability of that location.

A Verified Partner has been checked beyond the information available in public registers. We look at details about the company, how the service actually works, the facilities offered and other information relevant to a particular offer.

This status reflects a more thorough check and less uncertainty in the data behind our rating. A provider without it is not automatically worse. We simply do not have the same level of additional verified information about them.

An important rule of our methodology is that we do not treat an unknown value as either good or bad. If our public-register data is incomplete, an address does not automatically get 100 points. We do not show a score until we have enough information to calculate one.

The same applies elsewhere. If we do not know whether a provider owns the property, we do not apply a penalty. If reception or a meeting room has not been confirmed, we do not show the corresponding badge. Not verified is not the same as not provided.

A number is not always the easiest thing to read, so we also use colours. Green means the value does not negatively affect the score, yellow flags a milder deviation and red flags a more significant risk factor.

Badges have a higher threshold than point deductions. They do not appear for every small deviation. They highlight situations worth a closer look, such as many problematic companies or a higher concentration of unreliable VAT payers.

Positive badges such as Reception, Meeting room, Office and Verified Partner work the same way. We show them only when the information has been confirmed.

The rating is not meant to decide for you or claim that one address is automatically good and another bad. It turns a larger set of data into something easier to compare and highlights differences you would otherwise have to look up across several registers and sources.

Alongside the score, consider the price, included services, location, property ownership and the provider’s terms. Our aim is to give you useful, verifiable information for your comparison, not to make the decision for you.