27.01.2026

Working week is rebalancing as office attendance spreads beyond midweek

Office attendance patterns are starting to shift beyond the typical post-Covid midweek peak, according to new data from corporate food platform Feedr.

Analysis of workplace catering and employee lunch benefit data from 2025 shows that while Tuesday to Thursday remain the most popular days for office attendance, the start and end of the week are experiencing a steady rise in engagement, supported by more deliberate investment in food and workplace experiences.

Midweek Remains Strong, While the Week Rebalances

Tuesday to Thursday continue to anchor office life, accounting for the clear majority of weekday catering activity and reinforcing their role as the core days for collaboration, meetings and in-person connection.

However, Feedr’s data indicates that office engagement is becoming more evenly distributed across the working week.

Renewed Engagement at the Edges of the Working Week

Alongside sustained midweek demand, Feedr observed renewed activity on Mondays and Fridays in 2025.

Friday orders increased year-on-year, reversing the typical end-of-week drop-off.
Monday and Friday saw the strongest growth in total daily spend, signalling increased employer investment on traditionally quieter days.
Friday saw a 44.89% increase in total spend, while Monday rose by 28.31% - significantly higher than Tuesday (20.08%), Thursday (19.16%) and Wednesday (11.41%).

Together, these shifts suggest that employees are increasingly choosing to attend the office on Mondays and Fridays, as employers make these days more attractive through improved workplace experiences, such as high quality catering, helping to smooth activity across the working week without forcing a return to pre-pandemic patterns.

More Consistent Investment in Workplace Food

Feedr also analysed data from Cloud Canteen, its individual meal plan service where employers provide daily lunch credits that can only be used for meals ordered to the workplace. By increasing the value of these credits, employers are making in-office lunches more appealing to employees, signalling a deliberate investment in improving the office experience to encourage attendance.

In 2025, Feedr recorded a 6.26% year-on-year increase in typical employer-provided credit spend across Cloud Canteen main meals, rising from approximately £10.70 in 2024 to £11.37 in 2025. This points to a consistent increase in employer investment on in-office days, rather than short term or one-off changes.

At the same time, broader ad hoc catering behaviour remained stable year-on-year, with nearly 65% of orders placed more than a week in advance, indicating that companies continue to plan office food deliberately as part of wider workplace and attendance strategies.

Workplace Food Reflects Evolving Employee Expectations

Beyond timing and spend, Feedr’s data highlights a shift towards more thoughtful, experience-led workplace food.

Pop-up food activations increased by 22.2%, reflecting growing appetite for variety and moments of engagement at work.
Seasonal and cultural moments continue to drive the highest demand for corporate catering with Christmas, Black History Month, Pancake Day and Summer Parties leading the way.

This suggests food is increasingly being used to create shared moments and reinforce workplace culture, rather than serving a purely functional role.

“What stood out in 2025 wasn’t how often people came into the office, but how thoughtfully employers invested when they did,” said Katie Fenton, Managing Director of Feedr. “Food has become a strategic tool for connection and culture, helping organisations encourage attendance without losing the flexibility employees value.”

Looking Ahead to 2026

Feedr expects this gradual rebalancing of the working week to continue throughout 2026, as organisations focus on maintaining strong midweek collaboration while encouraging more consistent attendance across the full week through flexible incentives.

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