Work is work no matter where you do it from, right? Actually, there are significant differences between working from home and working in an office. Let’s compare the two.

Commute

American’s on average, spend at least 27 minutes on their daily commute. And that time is increasing. Over 14 million people spend an hour or more. If you work from home, you can save a lot of time and money. But there are people that enjoy waking up early, getting ready, and separating home from the office. That’s why people work from coffee shops or co-working spaces.

Communication

Employees seem to prefer face-to-face communication. It helps with business planning, strengthens relationships and employee rapport. And that only happens when you’re in office. When you work from home, you have video calls and slack messages. Emails are still emails.

Flexibility

In an office, you have to set a schedule. You start work at a set time. When you work from home, you can tailor the hours to suit your needs. You can start a little later, have a longer lunch, take breaks, as long as you’re getting the work done. But a lot of people struggle to switch off from work when they work from home. In the office, it’s easy because when you step out, you’re done. But at home, there’s no one leaving the workspace to cue the end of the business day.

Environment

In an office, you can’t choose your work environment or setting. You can’t choose who is sitting next to you or where the air conditioner is pointed. At home, you can set up your workspace to suit your individual needs. You can choose a standing desk or even sit outside.

Costs

In an office, the company picks up the cost of power, internet, your chair, stationery, etc. But you spend on commuting, parking, coffee, etc. From home, you pay for the internet connection and utilities, but you save commuting costs, parking costs, time, and more.

Productivity

Office workers get interrupted every 11 minutes and take another 25 to get back on task. At home, there are no disturbances. Remote workers have been proven to be more productive and work longer hours.