Foot traffic data from major US cities supports the proposition that companies are adjusting to a more permanent view of hybrid work, according to a new analysis from Placer.ai.

The company's data reveals that the office recovery hasn't been consistent across metros: while visits to offices in San Francisco, New York City, and Chicago are still significantly below pre-pandemic levels, year-over-three-year office visits in San Francisco were down by -67.8%, compared to 40.6% and 45.7%, respectively, in New York and Chicago.

Placer.ai's Bracha Arnold says San Francisco's pandemic-era population decrease may be partially to blame and could explain why the metro is showing a slower office market recovery.  On the flip side, foot traffic to New York and Chicago office buildings "seems to be slowly but surely bouncing back—and major companies are betting that offices in the city will continue their comeback," Arnold writes, noting that Google and Facebook recently snapped up space in New York City, while Google is poised to finalize an office expansion project in Chicago.