The life sciences sector is growing steadily in New Jersey, according to the latest life sciences market report from Colliers. New Jersey is home to eight of the world’s top 10 biopharmaceutical companies.
New Jersey is strategically important for life sciences because of its position in the Northeast Corridor, with a strong transportation infrastructure, top-tier research universities, and a large, specialized workforce.
The state has the highest density of scientists and engineers per square mile in the U .S . and is ranked second nationally for its pharmaceutical manufacturing workforce. Colliers lists 24,779 people employed in life sciences companies in the Garden State, fifth-most in the country. The sector employs 3,175 people with biomed degrees, seventh highest in the U.S., and 80% of them have graduate degrees.
Colliers says New Jersey also offers cost-effective and move-in-ready lab and biomanufacturing space through a growing inventory of high-quality facilities, including repurposed legacy pharmaceutical campuses.
Notable leasing activity in 2025 included Legend Biotech’s 57,325-square-foot lease in Bridgewater and Portal Innovations’ 30,000-square-foot commitment at the Helix development in New Brunswick.
Construction also drove occupancy gains, including Kenvue’s global headquarters in Summit and Aurobindo Pharma’s 170,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in East Windsor. Vacancy increased slightly to 14.9% from 14.4% — still the fourth-lowest in the nation — with much of the available space concentrated in larger blocks such as the NEST campus in Kenilworth. Colliers believes that vacancy could stabilize as emerging biotech firms drive selective demand.
In terms of funding from the National Institutes of Health, New Jersey received $400 million in fiscal year 2025 and the same amount of funding from venture capital in 2025.
