Carbon Footprint Calculator

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What is your carbon footprint?

Take a few minutes to find out with EPA's Household Carbon Footprint Calculator.

 
Please enter a valid number of people.
Please enter a valid five-digit ZIP Code.
We could not find your ZIP code in our database. Please try again, or you may continue using the calculator with a default value. Using the default will give you average estimates.

About

  • Many of our daily activities - such as using electricity, driving a car, or disposing of waste - cause greenhouse gas emissions. Together these emissions make up a household's carbon footprint.
  • The calculator estimates your footprint in three areas: home energy, transportation and waste. Everyone's carbon footprint is different depending on their location, habits, and personal choices.
  • For an explanation of the calculator's assumptions and sources, see the Assumptions and References page.

How To

  • You can get a quick, rough estimate of your carbon footprint by using U.S. average values. They are provided (along with other useful information) in the "tool tips" throughout the calculator.
  • For a more accurate estimate, use your own numbers. Gather your utility bills (electricity, natural gas, fuel oil, propane) to calculate your average use over a year. You can find your car's rated fuel efficiency at fueleconomy.gov, or you can calculate your car's actual efficiency.

Download

  • To work offline or see the formulas behind the calculator, you can download it as a spreadsheet. Calculator in Excel (xlsm) (1.94 MB)
My planned actions are equal to: X

Saving

0 gallons of gas

Planting

0 trees

Recycling

0 tons of waste
 
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Home Energy

Home Energy

 
 
Transportation

Transportation

 
 
Waste

Waste

 
 

Home Energy

Your Current Emissions from Home Energy

Heating What is your household's primary heating source?
Utility Enter your average monthly bill or other data for each source of energy your household uses.
  Click the icons,   below for each U.S. average
  • If you enter your monthly consumption in thousands of cubic feet, you'll get a more accurate estimate. If you enter dollars, our calculations assume that you pay $15.23/thousand cubic feet.

    $28/month is about average in the United States for a household of one person.

    2,730 pounds of CO2 is about average for a household of one person over a year.
    0 lbs.
  • If you enter your average kilowatt-hours, you'll get a more accurate estimate. If you enter dollars, our calculations assume that you pay 16.09 cents/kWh.

    $56/month is about average in the United States for a household of one person.

    3,513 pounds of CO2 is about average for a household of one person over a year.
    Your local utility or other electricity supplier may offer green power as an option. If you purchase some or all of your electricity as green power, enter the percentage here. For a definition of green power, visit https://www.epa.gov/green-power-markets/what-green-power.
    0 lbs.
  • If you enter your average monthly fuel oil use in gallons, you'll get a more accurate estimate. If you enter dollars, our calculations assume that you pay $4.27/gallon.

    $72/month is about average in the United States for a household of one person.

    4,596 pounds of CO2 is about average for a household of one person over a year.
    0 lbs.
  • If you enter your monthly propane use in gallons, you'll get a more accurate estimate. If you enter dollars, our calculations assume that you pay $2.56/gallon.

    $33/month is about average in the United States for a household of one person.

    1,955 pounds of CO2 is about average for a household of one person over a year.
    0 lbs.

Estimated pounds of CO2/year

Reduce Your Emissions To complete the calculator, please make a selection in all fields or enter a zero to indicate you will not take the action.

 
 Heating & Cooling   Estimated Annual Savings
Free
 ℉ A programmable thermostat can automate turning up the A/C for you. To learn more, visit the Department of Energy's Programmable Thermostats page.You can only calculate savings for your A/C thermostat if you have input your current electricity usage in the section above.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
Free
 ℉ A programmable thermostat can automate turning down the heat for you. To learn more, visit the Department of Energy's Programmable Thermostats page.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
 
 Lighting   Estimated Annual Savings
$
$0
0 lbs of CO2
 
 Power Source & Settings   Estimated Annual Savings
Free
$0
0 lbs of CO2
$
 On average, green power costs roughly 2 cents per kWh more than conventional power.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
 
 Washing & Drying   Estimated Annual Savings
Free
 
$0
0 lbs of CO2
Free
$0
0 lbs of CO2
 
 ENERGY STAR Products   Estimated Annual Savings
  Replace the following products with ENERGY STAR models Check out ENERGY STAR's product listings for more information.
$$
$0
0 lbs of CO2
$$$
Note: Only applicable if your Primary Heating Source is Natural Gas or Fuel Oil.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
$$$
$0
0 lbs of CO2

Your Current Emissions from Transportation 8,472 pounds of CO2 emissions is about average for one vehicle over a year.

 
 Vehicles   Estimated CO2 Emissions
     
 
 Current Maintenance   Estimated Annual Savings
$
 Visit fueleconomy.gov's Keeping Your Car in Shape page for more information.    
 
 Vehicle 1    
  208 miles/week (10,816 miles/year) is about average in the United States, per vehicle.    
  If you don't know your car's fuel economy, you can look it up at www.fueleconomy.gov. The national average is 24.8 miles per gallon.  
0 lbs of CO2
 
 Vehicle 2    
  208 miles/week (10,816 miles/year) is about average in the United States, per vehicle.    
  If you don't know your car's fuel economy, you can look it up at www.fueleconomy.gov. The national average is 24.8 miles per gallon.  
0 lbs of CO2
 
 Vehicle 3    
  208 miles/week (10,816 miles/year) is about average in the United States, per vehicle.    
  If you don't know your car's fuel economy, you can look it up at www.fueleconomy.gov. The national average is 24.8 miles per gallon.  
0 lbs of CO2
 
 Vehicle 4    
  208 miles/week (10,816 miles/year) is about average in the United States, per vehicle.    
  If you don't know your car's fuel economy, you can look it up at www.fueleconomy.gov. The national average is 24.8 miles per gallon.  
0 lbs of CO2
 
 Vehicle 5    
  208 miles/week (10,816 miles/year) is about average in the United States, per vehicle.    
  If you don't know your car's fuel economy, you can look it up at www.fueleconomy.gov. The national average is 24.8 miles per gallon.  
0 lbs of CO2

Reduce Your Emissions To complete the calculator, please make a selection in all fields or enter a zero to indicate you will not take the action.

 
 Maintenance   Estimated Annual Savings
$
 Visit fueleconomy.gov's Keeping Your Car in Shape page for more information.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
 
 Vehicle 1  
Free
 If you don't know your car's fuel economy, you can look it up at www.fueleconomy.gov. The national average is 24.8 miles per gallon.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
$$$
 To compare the fuel economy of different vehicles, visit the fueleconomy.gov site.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
 
 Vehicle 2:  
Free
 If you don't know your car's fuel economy, you can look it up at www.fueleconomy.gov. The national average is 24.8 miles per gallon.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
$$$
 To compare the fuel economy of different vehicles, visit the fueleconomy.gov site.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
 
 Vehicle 3:  
Free
 If you don't know your car's fuel economy, you can look it up at www.fueleconomy.gov. The national average is 24.8 miles per gallon.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
$$$
 To compare the fuel economy of different vehicles, visit the fueleconomy.gov site.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
 
 Vehicle 4:  
Free
 If you don't know your car's fuel economy, you can look it up at www.fueleconomy.gov. The national average is 24.8 miles per gallon.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
$$$
 To compare the fuel economy of different vehicles, visit the fueleconomy.gov site.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
 
 Vehicle 5:  
Free
 If you don't know your car's fuel economy, you can look it up at www.fueleconomy.gov. The national average is 24.8 miles per gallon.
$0
0 lbs of CO2
$$$
 To compare the fuel economy of different vehicles, visit the fueleconomy.gov site.
$0
0 lbs of CO2

Your Current Emissions from Waste

 
 Waste Estimated CO2 Emissions
  Average waste emissions for a household of [#] people: 822 pounds of CO2 equivalent per year is about average for a household of 1 person. Your waste-related emissions are calculated based on the number of people in your household.   lbs
  Which of the following products do you currently recycle in your household?  
Free
    0 lbs
  Your total waste emissions after recycling: 0 lbs

Reduce Your Emissions

 
Start recycling the materials you don't currently recycle Recycling is only one way to reduce your emissions from waste. View Your Report for more you can do.
You recycle all common household products. Keep up the good work! Visit Climate Change and Waste for more you can do.
 Estimated Annual Savings
$
    0 lbs
Error Messages
  • Please select your Primary Heating Source first.
  • You must have an entry for Monthly "+heatSource+" bill.
  • You must have an entry for Monthly Electricity bill.
  • Please enter your an average monthly bill for your Primary Heating Source first.
  • Please complete Current Maintenance first.
  • Please complete the entries above first. Maintenance.
  • Because Maintenance Savings depends on this figure please enter a number and redo Maintenance to view revised Estimated Annual Savings.
  • Please complete the Vehicle entries above first. (Reduce)
  • Please try again or use a different ZIP code.

Your Carbon Footprint

Annual CO2 emissions (lbs.) Even though it's a gas, CO2 is measured in units of mass such as pounds, kilograms, and tons. Below are some useful comparisons to put CO2 emissions in context*: 100 lb of CO2 = emissions from burning 5 gallons of gasoline; 500 lb of CO2 = emissions from burning 244 pounds of coal; 1,000 lb of CO2 = emissions from burning 1.1 barrels of oil

*Equivalents are from EPA's Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator
Your Current Total:
0
New Total After
Your Planned Actions:
0
U.S. Average*:
0
*for a household of 0 people in Zip Code 00000
Start Over
 
Make a selection in all calculator sections and fields to improve your results.
 

Congratulations! You have completed all the calculator sections.

Your Household Carbon Footprint

 
Print/Save
View Your Annual Estimated CO2 Emissions (lbs) from...
 
 
 
Your CO2 Emissions are lower than the U.S. average.
Keep up the good work!
 
Your Current Total
 
 
 
0
New Total After Your Planned Actions
 
 
 
0
U.S. Average
 
 
 
0

Your Planned Actions Are Equal to:

  • Saving

    0 gallons of gas
  • Or

  • Planting

    0 trees
  • Or

  • Recycling

    0 tons of waste

Let friends know what you're doing to reduce CO2 emissions

Small Actions Add Up

people contribute

If 100 of your friends took these actions, over 5 years their households would avoid [#] pounds of emissions, equivalent to the emissions from burning [#] gallons of gasoline.

If you take all of the new actions you've selected: Dollar Savings CO2 Reduction
Turn down heating thermostat on winter nights by 0℉ $0 0 lbs.
Turn up A/C thermostat in summer by 0℉ $0 0 lbs.
Replace 0 incandescent light bulbs with ENERGY STAR lights $0 0 lbs.
Enable the power management features on your computer $0 0 lbs.
Wash your clothes in cold water $0 0 lbs.
Use clothes line or drying rack instead of dryer for 0 of your laundry $0 0 lbs.
Replace your refrigerator with ENERGY STAR models $0 0 lbs.
Replace your furnace or boiler with ENERGY STAR models $0 0 lbs.
Replace your window with ENERGY STAR models $0 0 lbs.
Use Green Power for 0% of your electricity Using Green Power may not save money, but it avoids harmful emissions and reduces your carbon footprint. 0 lbs.
Perform regular maintenance on your vehicles $0 0 lbs.
Reduce the number of miles you drive on Vehicle 1 $0 0 lbs.
Replace Vehicle 1 with one that gets MPG $0 0 lbs.
Reduce the number of miles you drive on Vehicle 2 $0 0 lbs.
Replace Vehicle 2 with one that gets MPG $0 0 lbs.
Reduce the number of miles you drive on Vehicle 3 $0 0 lbs.
Replace Vehicle 3 with one that gets MPG $0 0 lbs.
Reduce the number of miles you drive on Vehicle 4 $0 0 lbs.
Replace Vehicle 4 with one that gets MPG $0 0 lbs.
Reduce the number of miles you drive on Vehicle 5 $0 0 lbs.
Replace Vehicle 5 with one that gets MPG $0 0 lbs.
Recycle Recycling might not save you money (unless you can redeem your bottles), but it's easy and definitely saves resources. Fun fact: recycling just one can saves enough energy to watch TV for three hours! 0 lbs.
Your Estimated Totals: $ lbs.
By taking all of the actions you are already doing: Dollar Savings CO2 Reduction
Turn down heating thermostat on winter nights by 0 ℉ test $0 0 lbs.
Turn up A/C thermostat in summer by 0 ℉ $0 0 lbs.
Replace 0 incandescent light bulds with ENERGY STAR lights $0 0 lbs.
Enable the power management features on your computer $0 0 lbs.
Wash your clothes in cold water $0 0 lbs.
Use clothes line or drying rack instead of dryer for 0 of your laundry $0 0 lbs.
Replace your refrigerator with ENERGY STAR models $0 0 lbs.
Replace your furnace or boiler with ENERGY STAR models $0 0 lbs.
Replace your window with ENERGY STAR models $0 0 lbs.
Perform regular maintenance on your vehicles $0 0 lbs.
Reduce the number of miles you drive on Vehicle 1 $0 0 lbs.
Replace Vehicle 1 with one that gets MPG $0 0 lbs.
Reduce the number of miles you drive on Vehicle 2 $0 0 lbs.
Replace Vehicle 2 with one that gets MPG $0 0 lbs.
Reduce the number of miles you drive on Vehicle 3 $0 0 lbs.
Replace Vehicle 3 with one that gets MPG $0 0 lbs.
Reduce the number of miles you drive on Vehicle 4 $0 0 lbs.
Replace Vehicle 4 with one that gets MPG $0 0 lbs.
Reduce the number of miles you drive on Vehicle 5 $0 0 lbs.
Replace Vehicle 5 with one that gets MPG $0 0 lbs.
Recycle Recycling might not save you money (unless you can redeem your bottles), but it's easy and definitely saves resources. Fun fact: recycling just one can saves enough energy to watch TV for three hours! 0 lbs.
Use Green Power for 0% of your electricity Using Green Power may not save money, but it avoids harmful emissions and reduces your carbon footprint. 0 lbs.
Your Estimated Totals: $ lbs.
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Last updated on December 23, 2024