Introduction
This Carbon Footprint Calculator helps you find out how much carbon dioxide (CO₂) your life makes each year. Carbon is a gas that warms our planet, so knowing your number is a good first step.
You just fill in some easy facts about your home, your travel, your food, and your trash. The tool adds it all up and shows your total footprint. It also splits the number by group, so you can see where most of your carbon comes from.
You can pick actions you plan to take, like using LED lights or eating less meat. The calculator then shows how much carbon you could save. It even compares your footprint to the U.S. average, the world average, and the 2050 goal.
Use this free tool to learn, plan, and cut your carbon. Small changes can make a big difference for the planet.
How to use our Carbon Footprint Calculator
Fill in your home, travel, food, and waste details. The calculator shows your yearly carbon footprint, how you compare to others, and ways to cut it down.
Pick your language from the language menu so the tool reads in the words you know best.
Choose your units to see results in pounds of CO₂ or tons of CO₂e per year.
Enter your household size, which is how many people live in your home.
Type your electricity use in kWh per month. Check your power bill to find this number.
Add your natural gas use in therms per month. Your gas bill shows this.
Enter your heating oil in gallons per year if you use oil to heat your home.
Set the percent of your power that comes from green sources like wind or solar.
Type how many car miles you drive each year.
Enter your car's fuel economy in MPG. Use a higher number for cars that go farther on less gas.
Add your electric vehicle miles per year if you drive an EV.
Type your flight hours per year. This is the total time you spend on planes.
Enter your public transit miles per year, like bus or train trips.
Pick your diet type, from meat-heavy down to vegan.
Set the percent of food you throw away instead of eating.
Enter the percent of food you buy that is local or in season.
Type how many trash bags you toss each week.
Set the percent of your waste that you recycle.
Choose yes or no for whether you compost food scraps.
Enter how much you spend on goods like clothes and gadgets each month.
In the Reduction Actions tab, check the steps you plan to take. The summary shows your new, lower footprint.
Click Calculate to see your results, or click Reset to start over.
What Is a Carbon Footprint?
A carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gases you put into the air. These gases, like carbon dioxide (CO₂), come from things you do every day. They trap heat in the sky and help warm the planet. We measure a carbon footprint in pounds or tons of CO₂ each year.
What Adds to Your Footprint?
Many parts of daily life make carbon emissions. The four biggest are:
- Home Energy: The power and gas you use to light, heat, and cool your home.
- Transportation: Driving cars, riding buses or trains, and flying on planes.
- Food & Diet: What you eat. Meat, like beef, makes more carbon than plants do. Wasted food adds even more.
- Waste & Goods: The trash you throw away and the new things you buy, like clothes and gadgets.
Why It Matters
The average person in the United States makes much more carbon than the world average. Too much carbon causes climate change, which leads to hotter days, bigger storms, and rising seas. Pathways that hold warming to 1.5 °C imply a much smaller footprint per person by 2050.
How You Can Cut Your Footprint
Small changes add up. You can switch to LED light bulbs, lower your heat in winter, or use green power. You can drive less and take the bus or train more. Eating less meat, wasting less food, and recycling more all help too. Each step makes your footprint smaller and keeps the air cleaner for everyone.