Our breakdown of where your carbon footprint comes from is based on analysis carried out by the Carbon Trust for OVO Group (2019). It showed that 26% of an average person's carbon footprint in the UK comes from energy. In this analysis, the carbon footprint includes the following lifestyle categories: energy, transport, shopping, food and drink and holidays. See table below for each category. This excludes emissions from things that the average person cannot directly control such as supporting the NHS, defence, government bodies, etc.
Lifestyle area |
Total UK average individual carbon emissions (kgCO2e/year) | Contribution to total (%) |
Energy | 1,707 | 26% |
Transport | 2,181 | 33% |
Food and Drink | 981 | 15% |
Shopping | 1,056 | 16% |
Holiday | 658 | 10% |
Total | 6,583 | 100% |
And there you have it! Want to learn more about the climate crisis, and what we can do to fight it? Head this way