Carbon Footprint Calculator
Estimate your annual carbon footprint from the choices that matter most — driving, flying, home energy and diet. A rough figure to show where your emissions come from and where cutting back makes the biggest difference.
How to use this calculator
- Enter your yearly car distance and total flight hours.
- Enter your home electricity and gas use in kWh (from bills).
- Pick your diet. The breakdown shows where your emissions concentrate.
Formula used
Each activity uses a typical emission factor: ~0.17 kg/km driving, ~90 kg per flight hour, ~0.30 kg/kWh electricity (grid-dependent), ~0.20 kg/kWh gas, plus a diet baseline. These are averages — real factors vary by country and vehicle.
Example calculation
12,000 km driving (2.0 t), 6 flight hours (0.5 t), 3,000 kWh electricity (0.9 t), 12,000 kWh gas (2.4 t), average diet (2.5 t) → ~8.4 tonnes/year.
Above the ~4.7 t global average — with heating and diet the biggest slices to target here.
Where your emissions come from
A carbon footprint totals the greenhouse gases your lifestyle causes, and the value of estimating it is seeing the proportions — because effort spent on tiny sources while ignoring big ones achieves little. For most people in wealthy countries, a handful of categories dominate: flying (astonishingly carbon-intensive per hour), car travel, home heating, and diet, especially red meat and dairy. Recycling and turning off lights matter far less than any of these.
The figures here use typical emission factors and so are approximate — your actual electricity footprint depends heavily on how your country generates power (a kWh in coal-heavy grids emits several times more than in renewable-heavy ones), and cars vary widely. But the breakdown reliably points to your biggest levers. The global average is around 4.7 tonnes per person and climate targets imply a sustainable level near 2 tonnes, so seeing your number against those benchmarks puts the scale of change in perspective.
Why use this calculator?
- See which activities dominate your footprint, so you target the big ones.
- Compare against global average and sustainable-target benchmarks.
- A quick estimate from just a few household figures.
Frequently asked questions
What is the average carbon footprint?
The global average is around 4.7 tonnes CO₂ per person per year, but it varies enormously — over 15 tonnes in some wealthy countries, under 1 in the poorest. Climate targets imply a sustainable level of roughly 2 tonnes per person.
What has the biggest impact on my carbon footprint?
Usually flights, car travel, home heating and diet (especially red meat and dairy). These dwarf smaller actions like recycling. Cutting a long-haul flight, driving less, improving home insulation or eating less red meat move the needle most.
How accurate is this estimate?
It's a rough guide using average emission factors. Your real footprint depends on your country's electricity mix, your specific car, flight distances and habits. Use it to understand proportions and priorities rather than as an exact figure.