The Top 14 Benefits of Working Remotely

The future of remote work is here.

As more companies weigh their options for remote work models, business leaders may asking themselves, What are the benefits of remote work, exactly? 

90% of those already working remotely plan to continue with their company, simply due to the fact that they’re allowed to work-from-home. 

Not only do employees reap a multitude of benefits from the convenience of working in their own space, but employers can save a lot of time and money switching to either a remote-first or remote-friendly work model. 

In this article, we’ll highlight the top 14 benefits of working remotely. 

14 benefits or working remotely 

1. Lower carbon footprint 

One of the most noticeable benefits of remote work is reducing your business's carbon footprint. 

When fewer employees are commuting to work everyday, there are less greenhouse gas emissions, which helps with everything from global warming to general air quality because employees aren’t using their cars or public transportation to get to work everyday. 

For employers, not having an in-office space where your business is consuming unnecessary electricity and supplies will also significantly reduce a carbon footprint. 

2. Reduced operating costs

If you have a completely remote business, you won’t need to pay for a headquarters or any office space. 

Going completely remote may not be an option for every company, so a  hybrid-remote work model can be a great option, too. 

You can choose to lease a smaller space for employees that need to go into the office to meet clients, but don’t need to show up to work everyday. Co-working spaces, like WeWork, are also good options. 

Eliminating an office space helps reduce costs for: 

• Heat 

• Power

• Office equipment 

• Commercial insurance

• Supplies

3. Cheaper transportation costs

By eliminating commute time, you’re making it easier for your employees to save money. 

Paying for gas and meals throughout the day when you go into an office adds up quickly. Cooking at home is one of the easiest ways to save money. Remote employees can save anywhere from $2,000-$10,000 every year.

Empowering your employees to work remotely also shows their financial well-being matters to your company. This leads to a higher retention rate and interest from top talent in your field. 

4. More diverse teams 

When you hire an in-office team, you’re limited to those who live in or around you. 

However, with a remote-friendly company, your can recruit top talent from outside your city and gain a stronger foothold in the global marketplace.

Diverse teams give new insights into your business and products that may have been overlooked by only hiring in one city or country. Hiring with diversity in mind opens your business up to broader clientele and gives your company more options to fill open positions. 

5. Better recruiting & retention

Millennials and Gen-Z want flexibility, with the option for remote work in their employment. 84% of millennials and 64% of Gen Z'ers report that when researching a potential place of employment, having some sort of remote work model available is a deciding factor.

6. More flexibility 

Remote-first and completely WFH businesses give their employees the opportunity to travel or become digital nomads. Many countries like Costa Rica and Spain have begun offering digital nomad visas that allow remote workers to live in their country for a year without the hassle of obtaining a traditional work permit. 

For people who need to move for their partner's work for for family reasons, remote work can enable your team members to keep their job without any major disruptions. Before remote work, most employees would be forced to resign from their current roles to make the transition possible for their partner or family member.

7. Quieter work environment 

For many people, including myself, working in an office setting or around a lot of other people can be distracting. Personally speaking, I’m not able to focus on my work because of the background chatter of working around others. Many other people feel the same way.

A quieter worker environment ensures that your employees can focus on their tasks without the distraction of outside noise. This alone increases productivity and allows your employees to complete more tasks throughout the day. 

8. Work/life balance

Working from home gives employees a better handle on their work/life balance. 

Instead of spending two hours a day commuting, that extra time can be spent with family or catching up on rest. Being at home also means that you can take care of basic household errands on your breaks.

9. Focus on wellness

Remote work can help boost employee's wellness, especially in terms of exercise. You might encourage your employees to take a yoga class in the morning or hit the gym during their lunch break.

10. Increased productivity 

Although remote work can decrease some team members' output, with proper management and guidance, you can alleviate these problems and actually increase productivity.  

With less interruptions, noise, unnecessary meetings, you’ll find that employees are able to focus on their given tasks without feeling burnout. 

It may sound counterintuitive, but giving your employees the ability to work remotely allows them to focus on what matters: their job. 

11. Improved employee health 

Working from home can improve overall employee health and reduce the chance of contracting illnesses. Why? Working in a cramped office setting puts you up close and personal with anyone who comes to work sick with illnesses like Covid-19 and the flu.

12. Earn more money

On average, remote workers earn about 23.7% more than non-remote employees. Remote work already reduces the cost of commute and cost of living for employees, so with these higher salaries, remote workers are set up significantly better than in-office workers for financial sustainability.  

13. Less focus on office politics

Working in an office can lead to cliques and office gossip. 

While management may fall prey to proximity bias and give employees they have a personal relationship with favorable treatment over those they don’t interact with everyday, if you engage your remote employees, you’ll give everyone the same chance for career growth.  

14: Encourages self-sufficiency and communication skills

If you’re working with a distributed team across different time zones, you may not always have someone there to guide you through a project or task, which encourages self-sufficiency and problem-solving. 

Working remotely forces your team members to reach out if a problem arises and communicate exactly what they need.

Why companies partner with Via

Companies of all sizes want to hire remote employees around the world, but don’t know how to navigate sticky situations like offboarding, terminations, and severance for their international teams. Via makes hiring talent around the world and building your global team seamless. With our easy-to-use platform and payment tools, Via helps you manage local HR processes for direct employment such as work visas & permits, employee data privacy compliance, benefits, global payroll solutions, background checks, and other legal products. Our team of local labor lawyers and on-the-ground experts ensure that your company remains compliant while expanding abroad. As your employer-of-record/entity abroad, Via assumes responsibility for employment liability, so that you can focus on what matters: recruiting and managing your team. 

With Via’s transparent pricing, you can pay full-time employees or contractors across borders with no hidden set-up fees, no foreign exchange or transaction fees, and no minimums–start with 1 employee and scale up at your own pace.