Work hours & pay
Remote work savings calculator
Enter your commute, how many days you work from home and what an office day costs you; see the net time and money saved per month and year.
Count only spending that really stops on remote days; if you still buy lunch at home, lower that field.
How remote work savings are calculated
For each remote day you avoid two commute trips and the money spent on travel, lunch and coffee, but you use more heating, cooling and electricity at home. The calculator adds it up as time saved = minutes each way × 2 × remote days × weeks and money saved = (commute cost + food − home energy) × remote days × weeks. The monthly figures are the yearly ones divided by 12.
Example: a 30-minute commute each way, 3 remote days a week and 46 working weeks saves 180 minutes a week, which is 138 hours a year or 11 h 30 min a month. With $12 of fares and $10 of lunch and coffee avoided, minus $3 of extra energy, each remote day saves $19, so the year comes to $2,622, about $219 a month.
| Remote days a week | Time saved per year | Money saved per year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 46 h | $874 |
| 2 | 92 h | $1,748 |
| 3 | 138 h | $2,622 |
| 4 | 184 h | $3,496 |
| 5 | 230 h | $4,370 |
The table uses the example inputs. Each extra remote day adds the same amount, so the savings scale in a straight line with the number of days.
Getting an honest estimate
The most common mistake is counting spending that does not actually disappear. If you buy groceries for a home lunch, enter only the difference between the café and the home meal. If you pay for a monthly transit pass whatever you do, the commute cost per day may be close to zero for a hybrid schedule, unless you switch to pay-per-ride tickets.
Home energy is easy to forget and varies a lot by season and climate. A rough approach is to compare winter and summer bills with and without remote days, or to estimate the power of a heater or air conditioner times the hours it runs. Some employers pay a home office allowance, and in some countries home working costs are partly tax deductible, which reduces this line further.
The time saved is often worth more than the money. At 138 hours a year, three remote days return more than 17 eight-hour days. Decide in advance what that time goes to, such as sleep, exercise or family, or it tends to be absorbed by longer working hours.
Frequently asked questions
How much do you save by working from home?
Multiply your daily commute cost plus the lunch and coffee you skip, minus extra home energy, by remote days per week and working weeks per year. Three remote days saving $19 each over 46 weeks is $2,622 a year.
Does working from home increase my energy bill?
Usually yes, mainly from heating or air conditioning during the day plus computer and lighting use. Enter that daily extra so the calculator subtracts it from what you save.
How much time does a hybrid schedule save?
Each remote day saves two trips. With a 30-minute commute each way, one remote day a week over 46 weeks saves 46 hours a year, and three days save 138 hours.