Aldermore's latest Savings Tracker1 reveals that home workers each save an extra £59 every week, or £3,068 a year, by making the transition to working from home at least some of the time since the pandemic.
More than four out of 10 (44%) people are now working from home, either full-time or part-time following the pandemic. Brits who are working from home pocket an extra £18 on average every week by saving on travel expenses specifically, which is helping, in part, to ease the financial burden of rising living costs.
Home workers are also saving money on food by being able to raid their kitchen fridge rather than buying breakfast and lunches outside the home, setting aside an extra £13 a week, and a further £7.50 just on teas and coffees.
Home workers also find they are socialising less as a result, saving an average £7.50 a week by not attending work drinks, events or socialising with colleagues – and £13 is saved by not going out as much after work during the week.
In total, these cost-cutting measures are saving people who are working from home in the UK an average of £880m a week – if this continued at the same rate throughout the year, this would amount to over £455bn a year.
Despite the cost benefits of working from home, research also demonstrates the upsides of a hybrid approach. Some of the benefits include driving a greater sense of culture and purpose, encouraging more natural collaboration, and according to one study, the opportunity to make more lasting friendships2.
Using the average weekly saving of £880m, this would be sufficient to afford the following:
Younger people are saving a greater amount by cutting back on costs associated with office work, with home workers in their 20s saving even more than average (£85 compared to £59 saved by all home workers overall).
Taking a closer look at where home workers in their 20s are making the biggest savings, this group is saving nearly double the amount of other home workers overall by skipping on buying beverages (£13 vs £7.50). Home workers in their 20s are also savings twice the amount by not attending work drinks, events or socialising after work (£18 vs £7.50).
Ewan Edwards, Director of Savings at Aldermore, comments: “With financial pressures tightening our purse strings, people who are able to work from home are making some significant savings. Those benefiting should think about how they can set aside some of those savings for their future.
“The numbers show that getting into the habit of making small changes when it comes to spending can have a noticeable impact on your finances. Whether it’s making a packed lunch when you’re in the office or cutting back on socialising after work – all these changes can help and play their part in reducing financial pressures.
“Remember, as interest rates climb to some of the best rates we’ve seen in years, it’s important to review your savings accounts and shop around to ensure you’re getting the best deal possible.”
**Ends**
1The figures are sourced from a nationally representative survey conducted by Opinium Research with a sample of 4,000 with UK adults from 22nd December and 6th January 2023. Averages mentioned in the release refer to the median average.
2https://www.jobsage.com/blog/coworker-friendships-survey/
3Using an average salary of £33,384: https://www.nurses.co.uk/blog/a-quick-overview-of-nurses--salaries-in-the-uk/. 880 million / 33,384.
4880 million / total yearly wage bill of just over £201m: https://www.capology.com/club/manchester-united/salaries/.
5Based on Elon Musk’s purchase price of $44bn or £36.67bn / £880m.
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