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JLL India data released this month show the 3PL segment has remained the largest occupier of warehousing space since 2021, accounting for 28 percent to 42 percent of gross absorption during those years. The cumulative take-up surpassed 110 million square feet through the first half of 2026, including 11.1 million square feet in the opening six months of the year. Yogesh Shevade, managing director of industrial and logistics for JLL India, said, “India’s 3PL sector consistently captures the highest share of gross warehousing demand, thus establishing itself as one of the market’s most consistent growth engines. This is about India’s manufacturing and logistics sector becoming globally competitive through strategic infrastructure investment that supports automation, sustainability, and technology integration.”
The JLL assessment found that Grade A facilities represented 50 percent of 3PL absorption in 2021 before rising to 57 percent in 2025 and settling at 53 percent in the first half of 2026. Average transaction sizes for the segment expanded 25 percent from 100000 square feet in 2021 to 125000 square feet in 2025, with Grade A deals averaging 145000 square feet that year. These shifts reflect 3PL operators consolidating operations into larger, higher-quality spaces, the report indicated.
According to the JLL report titled Beyond the Box, overall 3PL facility rents rose at a 3.9 percent compound annual growth rate between 2021 and 2025 to reach 21 Indian rupees per square foot. Grade A rents grew faster at 4.9 percent annually to 23 rupees per square foot in 2025 before climbing an additional 7.7 percent year-on-year to 23.7 rupees in the first half of 2026. The premium for modern facilities supports occupier requirements for infrastructure enabling automation and sustainability, Shevade added.
A separate Knight Frank Research report on the India warehousing market placed 3PL uptake at 27 percent of total transacted area in 2025, down from 30 percent the year before but still the leading category. Knight Frank researchers noted that 3PL specialists continue to play an anchor role across the industrial landscape even as e-commerce demand recovered with a 56 percent year-on-year rise in space take-up. The two assessments together illustrate the segment’s structural importance in India’s logistics transformation.
Data from Vestian Research indicated that warehousing absorption across India moderated to 38.7 million square feet in 2025 after several years of strong growth linked to post-pandemic expansion in e-commerce and manufacturing. 3PL operators along with engineering and manufacturing firms drove the bulk of transactions that year, Vestian figures show. The firm forecast that full-year absorption for 2026 could surpass 45 million square feet as companies resume expansion plans.
Colliers India separately reported that 3PL players accounted for about 32 percent of total leasing in 2025. The advisory firm noted that engineering and e-commerce occupiers also scaled requirements significantly that year. Delhi NCR and Chennai led regional absorption with more than 8 million square feet each, according to Colliers data.
