Have you joined the global move to remote work? Are you among the millions worldwide who no longer go into the office every weekday? The move to remote work is well-documented. However, you may be surprised to discover the size, popularity, and impact of the global drive toward remote work. We’ve taken an in-depth look at the numbers.

Remote Work Explained

Remote work, also known as telecommuting, is a growing trend where employees work outside traditional office environments. According to global remote work statistics, workers can choose their location—whether at home, in a co-working space, or even abroad—provided they have reliable internet access. This flexibility has redefined productivity and work-life balance for millions.

Indeed, many remote workers have changed their living locations and moved out to the suburbs. This movement has impacted real estate values in some of the world’s biggest cities, with properties in suburban areas rising faster than before the pandemic.

Remote workers use digital communication software, like video conferencing, collaboration software, and instant messaging, to communicate with fellow workers.

According to the Buffer State of Remote Work Report, most remote workers work from home, with 82% having a home office. Only 5% use co-working spaces and 2% use coffee shops.

Work Location	Percentage of Remote Workers (Buffer Report)
Home Office	82%
Co-working Space	5%
Coffee Shop	2%

Remote workers use digital communication, like video conferencing, collaboration software, and instant messaging, to communicate with fellow workers. Sometimes never meeting face-to-face.

The Inevitable Move to Remote Work

Remote work has been trending upward for several years, growing by 216% between 2005 and 2019, according to a report by Global Workplace Analytics.

Remote work grew by 216% between 2005 and 2019

Improved technologies and communications drove the initial move, but it took a global pandemic to revolutionize the movement and accelerate the inevitable.

Who can forget the shock when suddenly, offices across the globe closed for business? People who had never worked from home had to set up home offices. Small workspaces popped up in bedrooms, kitchens, and lounges across the world. Many of us stumbled through the first weeks, changing schedules, adjusting working methods, and finding our feet with collaboration and meeting tools.

Still, as time passed, many people preferred the new working arrangements. As the coronavirus threat waned, many remote workers reported improved work-life balance. They appreciated the time saved on the daily commute to and from the office and the money saved on transportation. There were advantages for employers, too, as infrastructural costs declined.

The demand for office space dropped as more companies converted to remote or hybrid work models. Businesses started to reduce office size when renewing leases. Commercial rental costs came down, and landlords had to offer more to attract lessees.

Remote work also affected residential properties as remote workers moved from expensive urban areas into more comfortable, cheaper homes in the suburbs. Buyers wanted dedicated office spaces in their new homes.

Remote Work Takes off

During the peak of the pandemic, remote work surged, with 69% of the US workforce working from home. Even in 2023, 30% of employees continue to work remotely—six times higher than pre-pandemic levels.

This shift aligns with global trends highlighted by remote work statistics, including a growing preference for hybrid models and improved work-life balance among employees.

30% of the workforce are still working remotely

Employers faced resistance when encouraging or demanding that workers return to work as the Covid threat receded. Remote work persisted. The American Society of Employers (ASE) reports that by March 2023, 30% of the workforce was still working remotely, six times the remote rate in January 2019, when it was only 4.7%.

Economic Benefits

Economic savings are a significant driver behind the rise of remote work. Remote work statistics show that businesses can save up to $700 billion annually by reducing expenses like office rent, utilities, and absenteeism. This equates to over $11,000 per employee. Additionally, productivity gains—amounting to $270 billion in saved hours—highlight how companies can thrive with hybrid and remote models.

The table below shows businesses would save up to $500 billion on rental, utilities, absenteeism, productivity, and turnover. That’s more than $11,000 per worker each year. There is also a productivity increase.

Savings Area	Estimated Annual Savings
Business Overheads (rent, utilities, etc.)	$500 billion
Productivity Gains (5 million hours saved)	$270 billion
Savings for the business per Worker	$11,000 annually
Employee Cost Savings (commuting, etc.)	$2,000 – $7,000 annually

How Covid-19 Reshaped Remote Work

Nicholas Bloom, a Stanford University economist, called the shift to remote working the most significant labour market change since the Second World War. It all started with government stay-at-home orders.

Many employees who had set up offices during the pandemic wanted to continue working remotely.

56% said they could do at least some of their work remotely.
82% said they preferred to work remotely at least once a week.
Of those, 19% said they wanted to work remotely full-time.
Only 8% of the respondents preferred full-time office work.
If they had to return to the office full-time, 46% would find other jobs, and 35% would change jobs to work full-time from home.

82% of workers prefer to work remotely

The Pew Research Centre reported in March 2023 that the number of permanent remote jobs in the US was slowly coming from 55% of all workers who could work remotely in 2020 to 35% in 2023; many now do hybrid work, with 59% working from home for three days or more weekly and 41% for two days or less.

The Pew Research study, titled “Covid-19 pandemic continues to reshape remote work in America,” compared information collected in October 2020 and again in January 2022 to find the following statistics.

In October 2020, 36% of respondents did not want to work from their offices. The situation had changed to 61% by 2022.
By March 2023, 35% of employees were working remotely 100% of the time, a 46% drop from January 2022 and well below the 55% mark in March 2020.
41% of remote workers had hybrid work agreements.

Remote Work Frequency (Pew Research 2023)

Work Arrangement	Percentage
Remote 3+ days/week	59%
Remote 2 days or less	41%

Global Workplace Analytics recorded the results of over 7,000 studies, research papers, and articles. The researchers discovered that:

66% of people would prefer to work from home;
Of these, 36% said they would work from home over a pay increase.
37% said they would take a 10% cut to work from home.
80% consider remote work a benefit.
Remote workers save two to three weeks annually on transport.
They save between $2,000 and $7,000 on transportation and other work costs.

37% said they would take a 10% pay cut to work from home

The Current State of Remote Work

According to Owl Labs 2024 Report on Hybrid work

Work Arrangement	Percentage of Workforce (2024)
Full-time Office	62%
Hybrid Work	27%
Fully Remote	11%

62% of employees work in the office, slightly lower than the 66% of workers who worked in the office full-time in 2023.
27% do hybrid work

These workers claim they spent, on average, $42 per day to come into the office.

22% would expect an increase for a return to full-time office work.
40% would look for new employment if they could not continue working under hybrid conditions.
11% worked 100% remotely.

A quarter of the workers reported that their employers had changed their hybrid working policies during 2023.

85% of the workers said that their work commute took 45 minutes of the day each way.
46% of the employees said their companies had changed or increased remote tracking.
86% believed that employees should be compelled to disclose work tracking devices.

Half of the employees felt that there was no real need for them to work full-time but that the company wanted to fill seats in the offices.

Days Spent in the Office

Listed below are the days hybrid workers spend in the office according to the Owl Report

Remote Worker Preferences

Employees want to work from home.

70% of workers find remote meetings less stressful than in-person meetings.
74% say working from home improves their mental health.
38% would take a 5% pay cut to work remotely.
50% would quit if forced to work in the office full-time.

A Salary.com study found that 83% would leave their employer if paid less for remote work.

Gender & Age Trends

46% of women choose remote work vs. 39% of men. This may not be surprising since women are often more invested in home and childcare.
A Hubble survey of 1,000 workers found that Boomers and Millennials (people over 41 years of age) favour remote work. Younger employees prefer to work in the office. The reasons are complex and could include factors like older people being more settled with more organized workspaces. Yet, it contradicts the Tracking Happiness stats, which found that millennials were happiest when working fewer days.
Gen Z prefers office work more than other age groups. These people are new to the workplace and may miss learning from older colleagues.
Gen Z identified home distractions (76%) and after-hours work (76%) as key challenges.
Gen X and Boomers cite long lunch breaks (83%) and frequent breaks (88%) as top distractions.

An IntelliSurvey report suggested that Gen X and Boomers, who are significantly more likely to apply for remote work (27% and 42%, respectively), may have worked remotely before the pandemic. The report suggested that younger people might miss the office interaction and may have been thrown into remote work when the pandemic struck.

Workplace Behaviour

44% of workers have “coffee badged” – checking in briefly before leaving to work remotely.
47% of coffee badgers are managers.
72% of remote and hybrid workers are less likely to take sick days.
16% of managers felt that hybrid workers were less productive.
62% thought they were more productive.

These figures differed slightly from the employees’ point of view:

56% believe remote work is more productive.
10% believe that they are less productive when working remotely.

Remote Worker Compensation

Research into remote worker compensation has returned some surprising results:

By 2022, 72% of companies had not formulated pay policies for remote workers, and 92% had no hybrid work policies.
Some employers, like Google, said they would consider adjusting salaries based on geographic location for new hires. Others said skill levels rather than location should determine the compensation paid.
Owl Labs reports that 16% of companies globally are fully remote.
44% do not permit remote or hybrid work.
A 2024 salary survey analyzing 15,800 job listings in 15 of the largest cities in the US found that remote workers earned 9.76%, or $8,553 more, than full-time workers with remote-capable jobs.
Office managers working remotely earned 31.71% more than office-bound managers.
In Baltimore, the city with the highest wage differential, remote workers earn 39.16 more than office workers.
Hybrid workers earn slightly less than full-time workers at $140.
There were only five cities where employees in office-based jobs earned more than remote employees, and only six roles earned more.

Who Works Remotely

According to research published by the NIH National Library of Medicine, remote workers:

“privileged, well-paid occupations.”
They are wealthier and earn more than workers on-site.
They are older, white people who are better educated and healthier.
More women 42% than men 35% work at home

Remote Work Advantages

Remote work is a positive experience for most people. The Buffer 2023 State of Remote Work reports that

98% of the 3000 respondents who took their survey would like to work remotely at least some time in the rest of their careers.
91% viewed remote work positively.
Only 1% were unhappy with their experience.

Flexibility

Flexibility was the most significant benefit for the Buffer respondents, who reported the following (see the graphic):

Time flexibility 22%
Living location flexibility19%
Work location flexibility is 13%.
Only 12% selected “commute time savings” as the most significant benefit of remote work.

33% of the Owl Labs 2023 respondents sought benefits such as flexible hours and working location.
The Gartner 2021 Digital Workforce Experience Survey of 10,000 remote workers found that 43% of respondents claimed that working-hour flexibility made them more productive. 30% attributed the improvement to reduced commute time.
26% of the respondents said they were less productive. Most attributed the drop to technology problems.

Work-Life Balance

According to the Pew Report:

71% of respondents found a better life-work balance, though 12% felt the opposite. Parents of children younger than 18 (76% among parents of young children vs. 69% among others) most appreciated this aspect of the job.
The Office for National Statistics in the UK found that 78% of the respondents reported an improved life-work balance.
Tracking Happiness found that fully remote workers are 20% happier than full-time workers, with an increase of 3% for every remote day worked in their survey of more than 12,455 people. The increase was even more marked among Millennials, whose happiness increased by 4% with each additional remote day worked.

Unsurprisingly, happiness decreased with the time the respondents spent commuting to and from work. Commutes averaged 40 minutes in one direction. In a US survey, 82% of employees claimed they gained mental health benefits from working remotely.

Transport Savings

Though utility costs increase, remote workers save significant amounts on transportation and parking. Fewer vehicles on the road also save the environment through lower emissions and reduced vehicle wear and tear. The economic benefits also extend to transport infrastructure.

The National Bureau of Economic Research reports that remote workers save an average of 72 minutes on their daily commute.
The ASE article supports this number, reporting that remote workers save 70 minutes daily on average on their commute.
Remote workers spend 40% of the time saved working, 11% caregiving, and 34% use the time to relax.
Remote employees save an estimated $600 and $6000 annually.

Environmental Savings

Global Workplace Analytics estimates greenhouse gas emission reductions of 54 million tons if 39% of the workforce works from home 50% of the time.
Commuters would save $20 billion in fuel and millions on road maintenance as commutes save 119 billion miles each year.
Accident costs would decrease by $10 million, and 90,000 people would be spared death and injury annually from road accidents.

Remote Work Disadvantages

Despite its benefits, remote work has notable downsides for many employees. Remote work statistics reveal that isolation, lack of mentorship, and proximity bias are common challenges. For instance, 23% of remote workers cite loneliness as their primary concern, while 38% feel they miss out on valuable mentorship opportunities.

Employee Isolation

Working alone, remote workers often report feeling isolated from fellow employees.

23% of the Buffer respondents mentioned loneliness as their primary concern with remote work since they had no reason to leave home.
According to the Pew Research Report, isolation is the biggest downside of remote work. Up to 41% of those who work in the office felt that it helped them connect with fellow workers. Could this be the reason remote work appears to lead to higher rates of depression?
A University of Maryland, Baltimore study found that 40% of remote workers and 38% of hybrid workers reported depressive symptoms significantly higher than office workers at 35%.

Proximity Bias

Proximity bias is a situation where managers and supervisors form stronger relationships with their subordinates, who may, as a result, glean better opportunities at work.

The 2023 Owl Lab findings reported that 48% of the workforce are concerned that absence from the office may silence their voices to the extent that those who frequently work in the office may have better opportunities at work.
68% of the managers felt remote workers may not receive constructive criticism, which could impact their career development.

Other Disadvantages

Mentorship: 38% of Buffer office respondents enjoyed mentorship opportunities, compared to only 10% working from home.
Meeting Deadlines: 28% said meeting deadlines are more manageable when working in the office, and 27% believed it helped with the work-life balance.
Distractions: 32% of workers complained about non-work distractions.
Technical Issues: Remote workers must deal with their own technical issues, like dropped connectivity and computer glitches.
Lack of Communication: In a 2021 Hubstaff survey,
- 46% of respondents said communication was the biggest obstacle to remote work.
- 36% said not knowing what other team members were doing was a problem.
- 41% said that they needed team interaction to stay motivated.
Blurred home/work boundaries: Remote workers often work longer hours, and the boundaries between home time and work may be blurred.
- 47% of US remote workers said separating personal and work lives is often difficult.
- Workers often feel pressured to check messages and emails after hours.

The Benefits of Remote Work for Employers

It’s not just the employees who may benefit from remote work. Employers also enjoy substantial benefits.

Employer Benefit	Estimated Impact
Annual savings per employee	$10,000
Reduced absenteeism	$1,800 per employee
Increased productivity	35-40% higher output

Cost Savings

Businesses save on infrastructure expenses, including lower rentals, utilities, and cleaning costs.

The average saving per employee, reported by Global Workplace Analytics, is $11,000 annually. Many companies have started shared desk arrangements to accommodate employees who come into the office on fewer than five days weekly.

Access to the Global Talent Pool

Recruiters have a larger pool of talent from which to choose since remote workers can come from anywhere across the globe.

Employee Satisfaction and Productivity

Employees enjoy work-life balance, and many are willing to take a pay cut to work remotely.

Many companies (Global Workplace Analytics quotes Best Buys, British Telecom, and Dow) claim that remote workers are 35% to 40% more productive.
33% of employers participating in the research claimed that remote workers were more productive.
AT&T contended that teleworkers worked, on average, five more hours than office workers. However, AT&T recently demanded a full-time return to work for the entire workforce.
Giant Corporations like American Express, Compaq, and JD Edwards also noted improved remote worker productivity from remote employees of 43%, 15-45%, and 20%-25%, respectively.

Reduced Absenteeism

Employees are less likely to take time off when unwell and return to work faster following medical problems.

According to the Global Workplace Analytics report, 78% of full-time employees call in sick when they are well and need time to resolve family issues.
Absenteeism costs employers $1,800 per employee per year. Therefore, employers can save significant money on sick days by allowing hybrid or remote work.

Disadvantages of Remote Work for Employers

Judging from the number of employers, like Amazon and JP Morgan, which have recently issued a return-to-work mandate, there must be downsides to remote work for employers. These include:

Difficulty Managing Remote Workers

Managers may find it difficult to track and manage employee performance, and offering feedback is challenging. This could result in poor communication and reduced productivity, as employees may feel less accountable. Some managers still don’t trust that employees will give their tasks undivided attention, though these trust issues are declining.

Data Security

Data security has become an increasing problem. Cybercrimes and data theft regularly make global headlines.

Remote workers access data globally, and hackers pose a greater risk without a secure surface. For many years, companies have allowed employees to work from home. Now, remote work is a growing trend. Businesses are migrating to cloud computing to keep pace with this trend. By 2022, 60% of companies store their data in the cloud. This places the data at greater risk, so companies must reassess the risk of data and compliance breaches.

The Lookout State of Remote Work Security survey shows:

92% of remote workers use their own tablets or smartphones for work-related tasks, and 46% save the information on their personal devices.
43% of remote workers use their own devices for work.
45% of workers reuse their passwords between business and personal accounts.
60% send emails between work and personal accounts.

Data Security Risks for Businesses

Remote and hybrid work introduces many cyber-risks. These include:

Personal Device Use: Personal devices are often less secure than business devices. They may contain old software versions, making them easier for criminals to access.
Public Networks: Remote workers often use public networks in restaurants and coffee shops. This could open your system to unauthorized access by unscrupulous people.
Device Theft: The workers’ home security is often not as good as that enjoyed on business premises. Devices can be lost or stolen in transit or remote work locations, giving others physical access to business devices and their data.
Multiple Network Access: Remote work opens your system to other networks, some of which may not be secure. When workers access your data, it could migrate across networks and become available to others.

The Future of Remote Work

Digital work is a growing phenomenon:

The World Economic Forum expects digital remote work to grow globally to 90 million positions by 2030 from 73 million in 2024.
Five million additional positions are in the mid-wage bracket, and 15 million are in the higher-wage bracket. Lower-wage jobs will remain at current levels.

Many jobs may go to lower-income countries, helping to improve global wealth. The increased remote work will assist employers in developed countries to fill skills gaps and employ younger people in countries with more youthful populations.

Digitization will grow along with the jobs. Digitization services will also grow as more people work remotely and businesses migrate to cloud services.

The remote digital services market will grow from $16.56 billion in 2021 to $109 billion in 2030, a CAGR of 23.4% over the period.

According to the Polaris Marketing Research report, security concerns have constrained growth in this area. The need for more widespread secured access will drive growth in this industry, along with remote access to fix technical issues remotely and offer remote education and training.

The table below summarizes.

Remote Work is Here to Stay

Remote work is here to stay, and employers who don’t embrace the trend may battle to find the required skills. They may also pay a wage dividend as workers become more entrenched in flexible hours and relocate to less costly, more desirable locations far from the urban sprawl.

References

Advertised Salaries Report 2025
American Society of Employers: Quick Hits March 2023
Buffer | State of Remote Work 2023. Buffer: All-you-need Social Media Toolkit for Small Businesses.
CoStar: AT&T abandons hybrid work in push to get employees back for complete five-day week
Financial Executives Daily: 4 Considerations to Weigh Location-Based Pay in a More Remote Work World, February 2022
Gartner 2021 Digital Workforce Experience Survey: The Real Future of Work
Global Commercial Property Monitor: Q4 2024
Global Workforce Analytics: Latest Work-at-Home/ Telecommuting/ Remote Work Statistics
Global Workplace Analytics: The Costs and Benefits of Hybrid Work
Harvard Business Review: Remote Managers Are Having Trust Issues
Hubble: Gen Z and Millennials are Much More Pro-Office than Gen X and Baby Boomers
IntelliSurvey: How Different Generations Feel About Remote Work: A Study
National Library of Medicine: Remote work transition amidst COVID-19: Impacts on presenteeism, absenteeism, and worker well-being—A scoping review
Office for National Statistics: Is hybrid working here to stay?
Owl Labs State of Hybrid Work 2024
Owl Labs State of Remote Work 2021
Pew Research Centre – “Covid-19 Pandemic Continues to Reshape Remote Work in America” (2023)
PMC National Library of Medicine: Working from Home: Before and After the Pandemic
Polaris Marketing Research: Remote Workplace Services Market Share, Size, Trends, Industry Analysis Report, By Components; By Organization Size (Large Enterprises, SMEs); By Deployment (On-Premises, Cloud); By Verticals; By Region; Segment Forecast, 2022-2030
PR Newswire.com: In New Salary.com Survey, 83% of Employees Say They’d Leave their Job If Compensated Less for Working Remotely
Tech.co: Half of Workers Would Quit If Hybrid Working Removed
The World Economic Forum: More and more jobs can be done from anywhere. What does that mean for workers? Jan 2024
Tracking Happiness: Remote Work is Linked to Happiness: Study of 12,455 Respondents
University of Maryland, Baltimore: A Potential Downside to Remote Work? Higher Rates of Depression

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