Remote work is now part of everyday working life in the U.S.—from occasional days to full-time roles. About 17% of people worked remotely at least some of the time in 2021, and many employers expanded tools and security to support it. In the rest of this page, we’ll connect remote work with productivity, focus, and quality-of-life trade-offs, including commuting, loneliness, and office-market shifts.
Key Takeaways
- 17% of people in the U.S. worked remotely at least some of the time in 2021
- 9.5% of U.S. workers worked from home at least one day per week in 2021
- 60% of workers who can work remotely did so in 2020 in the U.S.
- Remote workers were 2.5x more likely to report increased productivity than decreased productivity in 2020
- 77% of remote workers reported they were more productive while working from home
- 34% of remote workers said they have more focus than in-office work
- Remote workers are 3.5x more likely to experience loneliness at least sometimes
- 49% of remote workers reported loneliness at least some of the time
- 84% of organizations increased their use of collaboration tools during remote work
- 61% of remote workers say they prefer remote work at least some of the time
- 23% prefer to work remotely full-time
- 56% say flexible hours are an important benefit of remote work
- Remote work has been linked to reduced office vacancy rates in some cities by about 10% (relative)
- Commercial office rents declined about 20% in 2020 in major U.S. markets
- In the U.S., average office vacancy reached 10.8% in Q4 2020
Remote work boosted productivity and flexibility for many Americans in 2020 while contributing to higher loneliness.
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01 · Category
Workforce & Adoption30 stats
01
17% of people in the U.S. worked remotely at least some of the time in 2021
02
9.5% of U.S. workers worked from home at least one day per week in 2021
03
60% of workers who can work remotely did so in 2020 in the U.S.
04
In the U.S., 53% of employed adults report they could work from home at least some of the time
05
In the U.S., 71% of workers in jobs that can be done remotely are able to work from home
06
In 2022, 11.9% of employees in the U.S. worked remotely
07
Remote work usage in the U.S. peaked at 43% of full-time workers during COVID-19 in April 2020
08
In the U.S., 22% of workers worked remotely full-time in 2021
09
In the U.S., 7% of workers worked remotely part-time in 2021
10
27% of workers worldwide worked remotely at least some of the time in 2021
11
12% of organizations worldwide had fully remote employees in 2021
12
58% of employers worldwide report using hybrid work in 2021
13
74% of organizations believe remote/hybrid work will become more common
14
55% of employees want to continue working remotely after COVID-19
15
35% of workers would rather be remote permanently
16
52% of remote-capable workers in the U.S. were working at least some days remotely in 2020
17
19% of remote-capable workers in the U.S. were working remotely full time in 2020
18
2 in 5 U.S. workers (40%) report they could work from home
19
30% of the U.S. workforce can be fully remote
20
33% of U.S. employers expect remote work to persist in some form
21
16% of managers worked remotely at least once per week in 2020
22
24% of knowledge workers report working remotely
23
41% of U.S. employees report they have the option to work remotely
24
16% of U.S. employees are fully remote
25
25% of U.S. employees are hybrid
26
39% of U.S. employees work from home at least one day per week
27
In the UK, 51% of employees would like to work remotely more often
28
In Canada, 53% of employed persons worked from home in 2021 (at least temporarily)
29
In Germany, 25% of employees worked from home at least sometimes in 2021
30
In Australia, 43% of employed people worked from home at least sometimes in 2021
Interpretation
Workforce & Adoption Interpretation
The workforce adoption signal is clear: although only 17% of U.S. people worked remotely at least some of the time in 2021 and 11.9% of U.S. employees did so in 2022, a much larger share of workers have the option, with 53% of employed adults saying they could work from home and 71% of workers in remote-capable jobs able to do so.
report visual · Projection
Remote-tagged job postings are rising (U.S.)
Remote-tagged job postings increased from 2021 to 2023, rising steadily each year and reaching the highest level in 2023.
8 % of job postings tagged remote
Start
+27.48%
CAGR · 2y
13 % of job postings tagged remote
Projected
20212023
source-verifiedbls.gov2023
02 · Category
Productivity & Work Outcomes30 stats
01
Remote workers were 2.5x more likely to report increased productivity than decreased productivity in 2020
02
77% of remote workers reported they were more productive while working from home
03
34% of remote workers said they have more focus than in-office work
04
54% of remote workers say their work is easier without commuting
05
72% of managers say remote/hybrid work helps employees focus
06
43% of workers report they feel less distracted working remotely
07
52% of employees say they are more productive at home than at the office
08
60% of respondents said they can work more flexible hours with remote work
09
41% of employees reported they missed in-person collaboration while working remotely
10
45% of employees say remote work reduces burnout
11
23% of employees say remote work increases burnout
12
33% of remote workers said they are more satisfied with their work-life balance
13
49% of remote workers said they feel lonely at least some of the time
14
28% of remote workers reported lack of social interaction as a challenge
15
29% of remote workers said they struggle with time management
16
38% of remote workers said they prefer asynchronous communication
17
65% of remote workers said they have improved communication
18
31% said meetings decreased
19
24% said meetings increased
20
42% of respondents said they learned new ways to collaborate
21
21% of respondents said collaboration was worse
22
28% of remote workers said they have fewer distractions than in-office
23
22% of remote workers said they had more distractions
24
63% of managers said remote work improved access to talent
25
31% said remote work improved cost control
26
45% said remote work improved performance management
27
41% said remote work made it harder to manage performance
28
13% of employees reported reduced workload during remote work
29
24% reported increased workload
30
59% reported workload stayed the same
Interpretation
Productivity & Work Outcomes Interpretation
In the Productivity and Work Outcomes category, remote work appears to be boosting performance overall, with 77% of workers reporting higher productivity and a 2.5x greater likelihood of increased than decreased productivity in 2020.
03 · Category
Technology, Infrastructure & Security30 stats
01
Remote workers are 3.5x more likely to experience loneliness at least sometimes
02
49% of remote workers reported loneliness at least some of the time
03
84% of organizations increased their use of collaboration tools during remote work
04
61% of organizations reported increased demand for VPN access
05
52% of IT leaders said security risks increased with remote work
06
45% of IT leaders said they had to update security policies after shift to remote work
07
73% of companies adopted MFA for remote access during the pandemic
08
55% of IT teams enabled single sign-on (SSO) for remote users
09
36% of organizations increased endpoint protection purchases for remote work
10
17% of organizations reported they had not implemented adequate security for remote access as of 2021
11
In 2020, 37% of organizations experienced a remote-work related security incident
12
Phishing was involved in 85% of confirmed security breaches in 2021 (DBIR)
13
Credential theft was a common cause with remote access patterns in DBIR 2022
14
Ransomware incidents increased by 105% in 2021 vs 2020 (global)
15
62% of organizations in 2021 were hit by ransomware at least once
16
56% of IT decision makers said they’re concerned remote work increases risk of data breaches
17
76% of employees used personal devices for work tasks in remote settings (BYOD prevalence)
18
33% of organizations restrict BYOD using mobile device management policies
19
90% of organizations use some form of secure access service edge (SASE) or equivalent capability
20
61% of organizations have adopted Zero Trust for remote access
21
22% of organizations do not plan to implement Zero Trust in the next 12 months
22
48% of organizations experienced unauthorized access attempts tied to remote work tools
23
30% of organizations said cloud apps were a significant source of remote-work risk
24
58% of remote employees reported using video conferencing daily
25
46% used team chat daily
26
53% used shared documents daily
27
41% of workers reported that VPN outages are a top inconvenience for remote work
28
27% said video call platform issues disrupt work
29
32% said their company provides an approved list of tools for collaboration
30
24% of remote workers use a wired connection at home (vs Wi-Fi)
Interpretation
Technology, Infrastructure & Security Interpretation
As remote work accelerated, 61% of organizations saw increased demand for VPN access and 52% of IT leaders reported heightened security risks, showing how the shift is directly reshaping technology and infrastructure needs for Remote Workers.
More related reading
04 · Category
Employee Experience, Wellbeing & Culture30 stats
01
61% of remote workers say they prefer remote work at least some of the time
02
23% prefer to work remotely full-time
03
56% say flexible hours are an important benefit of remote work
04
42% say reduced commuting is a key benefit
05
33% say spending more time with family is a key benefit
06
30% say fewer office distractions are a key benefit
07
28% of remote workers report difficulty separating work and home life
08
57% of remote workers say their work-life balance improved
09
44% say their mental health improved with remote work
10
16% say mental health worsened
11
23% of remote workers report increased stress
12
42% report improved work-life balance
13
37% report better energy after work
14
30% report missing mentorship
15
41% report missing in-person collaboration
16
45% report improved communication
17
49% of employees feel they have less connection with colleagues remotely
18
38% say remote work makes it harder to build relationships
19
52% say coworker communication has improved with remote tools
20
66% report taking breaks more often when remote
21
22% report fewer breaks when remote
22
58% say they are satisfied with remote work overall
23
19% say they are dissatisfied
24
42% of remote workers say the biggest challenge is social isolation
25
29% cite difficulty collaborating
26
23% cite difficulty managing time
27
35% cite communication gaps as a challenge
28
30% cite increased screen time
29
27% cite home distractions
30
32% cite poor work equipment
Interpretation
Employee Experience, Wellbeing & Culture Interpretation
For the Employee Experience, Wellbeing & Culture angle, the biggest signal is that a majority of remote workers value day to day life improvements, with 61% preferring remote work at least some of the time and 56% pointing to flexible hours as an important benefit.
05 · Category
Economics, Costs & Labor Market Effects30 stats
01
Remote work has been linked to reduced office vacancy rates in some cities by about 10% (relative)
02
Commercial office rents declined about 20% in 2020 in major U.S. markets
03
In the U.S., average office vacancy reached 10.8% in Q4 2020
04
In the U.S., office vacancy reached 17% in early 2021 (estimate)
05
In the U.K., office occupancy fell about 40% in 2020 compared to 2019
06
In France, business travel decreased by about 60% during 2020
07
Global business travel declined 65% in 2020 (WTO estimate)
08
In 2020, global airline passengers fell by 65% year-over-year
09
Remote work reduced commuter spending on transportation; one estimate shows about $1,000less per worker annually on average in the U.S.
10
Households saved on average about $700annually from reduced commuting costs in the U.S. (estimate)
11
U.S. employees spent 25% less on commuting-related expenses after remote work adoption
12
In a US study, time saved from remote work averages 4-5 hours per week
13
In OECD data, work-from-home share rose from under 10% pre-pandemic to over 30% during 2020 for high-income countries
14
In OECD, remote work prevalence varies from <5% to >40% depending on country and sector during 2020
15
In the U.S., home internet spending increased by about 5% in 2020 for remote workers (BLS/consumer spending analysis)
16
In the U.S., utility spending increased by 7% for households working from home
17
Remote workers may have increased energy use at home by about 1.2% overall in the U.S. (EIA analysis)
18
E-commerce sales in the U.S. rose about 13% in 2020, supporting demand shifts during remote work
19
Restaurant revenues fell 26% in 2020 in the U.S., consistent with reduced in-person work
20
U.S. office-related construction spending declined about 8% in 2020
21
U.S. commercial vacancy costs increased by 15% in 2020 (market analysis)
22
In 2020, remote work reduced traffic congestion: average travel time decreased by 20% in major U.S. cities (measurement study)
23
Remote work reduced CO2 emissions from commuting by 10-30% in many regions during early pandemic (estimate)
24
IEA reports global energy-related CO2 emissions fell by 8% in 2020
25
In 2020, total CO2 emissions decreased by 6.4 Gt (global)
26
Remote work reduced commuting costs for workers: average commuting time decreased about 30% during 2020 (report)
27
Remote work adoption contributed to higher demand for home improvement: U.S. home improvement spending grew 3.4% in 2020
28
Housing demand shifted; home prices increased by 15% in some U.S. metros during 2020 (Case-Shiller)
29
In the U.S., employment in “professional services” supported remote work: professional employment grew 4% from 2019 to 2021
30
In the U.S., employment in “leisure and hospitality” fell about 15% in 2020
Interpretation
Economics, Costs & Labor Market Effects Interpretation
Across Economics, Costs & Labor Market Effects, the data suggests remote work materially reshaped commercial real estate demand, with office vacancy climbing to about 10.8% in Q4 2020 and an estimated 17% in early 2021 in the U.S., alongside roughly a 20% rent decline in 2020 and a 40% drop in U.K. occupancy compared with 2019.
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Henrik Dahl. (2026, February 13). Remote Workers Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/remote-workers-statistics
MLA
Henrik Dahl. "Remote Workers Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/remote-workers-statistics.
Chicago
Henrik Dahl. 2026. "Remote Workers Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/remote-workers-statistics.
Sources & references
68 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level