A virtual office gives your business an address, mail handling and meeting rooms when you need them, without a desk of your own. A private office gives you a furnished, lockable room you work from every day, with the same address and mail handling built in. The question is not which is better, but whether your business needs a place to work yet.
This guide compares the two at Icon Centers' business centers in Los Angeles and Philadelphia: what each includes, how the terms work, what drives the cost, and a quick way to decide. It also covers moving from one to the other, because many businesses start with the first and grow into the second.
The two options in one paragraph each
A virtual office puts your business at one of our center addresses. Mail and packages are received during business hours and, item by item, scanned to you, forwarded or held for pickup. You book a conference room by the hour or the day at member rates when you need to meet in person, and live phone answering with a local number is available as an add-on. Virtual office plans are run and billed by our sister company, Same Day Virtual.
A private office is a furnished office in the center, lockable and yours for the term, with Wi-Fi and utilities in the rate, the kitchen, printing and scanning, mail and package receiving for your company, and, with most offices, a set number of conference-room hours each month.
Side by side
| Virtual office | Private office | |
|---|---|---|
| Business address | Yes, at the center you choose | Yes, your office's address in the center |
| Mail and packages | Received during business hours; scanned, forwarded or held, per item | Received during business hours and held for you at the center |
| A place to work every day | No | Yes: furnished, lockable, Wi-Fi and utilities included |
| Conference rooms | Booked by the hour or the day at member rates | Included hours with most offices; extra time at the member rate |
| Phone answering | Add-on | Add-on |
| Term | Month to month, cancel with one month's notice | Month to month with one month's notice by default; one- and two-year terms earn free months |
| Price | Plans and prices on Same Day Virtual's site | Offices on our specials list start at $900 / month (checked October 12, 2026) |
When a virtual office is enough
- You work from home, on the road or at client sites, and mainly need an address that is not your home for your website, letterhead and correspondence.
- You meet clients occasionally and can plan those meetings ahead, so booking a conference room by the hour covers it.
- You want a presence in Los Angeles or Philadelphia before you hire anyone there.
- Keeping fixed costs low matters more right now than having a door you can close.
One thing to check before you sign up for either option: banks and state filings each set their own rules for which address goes where, and some filings ask for the street address where the business is actually run. Confirm with the bank or the filing office before you use any business-center address for those.
When you need a private office
- You or your team need somewhere quiet to work most days, with your files and equipment left in a lockable room.
- Clients come to you often enough that booking a room each time becomes a chore, or costs more than the hours included with an office.
- You are hiring, and new people need a desk on their first day.
- Calls and video meetings are a large part of your day and home is not a reliable place to take them.
For what comes with the rate, and what does not, read what is included in a private office. For a full comparison with coworking and a conventional lease, see executive suite vs coworking vs a traditional lease.
What drives the cost of each
With a virtual office, the plan you pick is the main cost; meeting-room time and phone answering are added only when you use them. With a private office, the monthly rate depends on the office (interior or window, how many people it seats), the center and the term, and a security deposit may apply depending on the office and term; it is on your quote before you sign.
Parking is set and charged by each building, not by Icon Centers, for both. To see current private-office prices, check the specials page; the lowest-priced office listed there right now is private interior office at 1435 Walnut for $900 / month. For a worked example, see what a private office costs in Center City Philadelphia.
Starting with one and moving to the other
You do not have to get this decision right forever. A virtual office client can move into a private office at the same address when ready, subject to availability, so the address on your website and letterhead does not have to change. Tell us early and we will keep an eye on the next office to free up in your center.
Going the other way works too: because private offices default to month to month with one month's notice, a business that no longer needs a daily workspace can give notice and keep an address and mail handling through a virtual office plan instead.
A quick way to decide
- Count the days a week someone in your business needs a desk away from home. If it is close to zero, start with a virtual office.
- Count the client meetings a month. A few planned meetings fit a virtual office plus booked rooms; frequent or last-minute meetings point to an office with included hours.
- Check what the address has to do: correspondence and your website, or also bank and state filings, whose rules you should confirm first.
- Price both for a year, adding meeting-room time, phone answering and parking where you need them.
- Visit the center. A twenty-minute tour by appointment, Monday to Friday, shows you the offices, the conference rooms and where your guests arrive.
Next step
See virtual office plans at every center, or look at private offices and current specials. If you are unsure, book a tour or call, tell us how you work, and we will point you to the option that fits, including the cheaper one.