Teleworking Cuts Carbon Emissions Only When Done Right

Teleworking—whether it’s working from home, a coworking hub, or other offsite “third places”—can cut carbon emissions by eliminating daily commutes. But a new study suggests the story is more complicated: the climate benefit can be cancelled out by the extra emissions required to power and maintain work-related space and technology at home.

In research published July 15, 2026 in the open-access journal PLOS Climate, Jana Z’Rotz of Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Switzerland, and colleagues modeled how different teleworking patterns affect CO₂-equivalent (CO₂eq) emissions. The study focuses on the tradeoff between commuting-related emissions and the footprint of housing space and information and communications technology (ICT).

To estimate these effects, the team used an online survey fielded in late 2024 to Swiss participants. More than 1,000 respondents reported teleworking within the previous month. The researchers then calculated emissions linked to commuting frequency, the use of home office areas, and the ICT intensity associated with remote work.

As expected, respondents who teleworked more often generally produced fewer commuting emissions. However, the study found that this reduction was largely offset by emissions from increased utility use and space-related energy demands in the home workspace.

The offset became especially pronounced when teleworkers used a separate home office room rather than sharing space. In that case, additional housing-area and ICT demands rose enough to erase much of the commute-related climate advantage.

Overall, the findings indicate that teleworking does not automatically reduce work-linked emissions across the board. Instead, the climate outcome depends on how remote work is organized, including whether work is concentrated in a dedicated room and how much technology-driven energy use increases.

The authors suggest practical pathways to improve the environmental impact. They point toward strategies such as making at-home workspaces more compact or enabling multi-person remote arrangements that can reduce per-person space and equipment requirements.

Still, the study has limits. It used simplified emission estimates and lacked a direct control group of non-teleworkers. The authors therefore call for future research with broader datasets and more rigorous comparisons.

“Among teleworkers, a higher number of teleworking days and having a separate home office room are positively associated with CO₂eq emissions related to housing space and [information and communication technology],” the researchers conclude.

Keywords

Teleworking; commuting; housing emissions; ICT use; CO₂eq; PLOS Climate