Remote working grabbed the American worker and workplace when the COVID-19 virus pandemic took hold in 2020.
Despite a lessening of the pandemic, and a return to work by many companies, remote working four years later remains a popular and sought-after style of employment.
A new study by Agency directory DesignRush has revealed that one Southwest Florida city — Punta Gorda — is the fifth best metro area in America for remote working.
DesignRush analyzed housing costs, percentages of remote workers, broadband connections, and commute times using U.S. Census Bureau and Federal Communications Commission data to find which metro areas are best for remote working.
“Remote working has become increasingly viable in recent years due to a combination of faster and more reliable internet connections, changing societal priorities, the changing nature of work, and in some cases necessity, such as during the pandemic,." Gianluca Ferruggia, General Manager at DesignRush, said. “Many workers now prefer to work from home due to the better work-life balance it can provide, plus it can allow workers to take advantage of higher average salaries that might be paid in other areas than the areas in which they live.
Ferruggia added that businesses also benefit from the increased desirability of remote working, as it allows them the widest talent pool to choose the best candidates for a job.
"This could be done by hiring workers for remote roles or by outsourcing projects to digital contractors when a full hire might not make financial sense," he said. “This increased importance for remote working options prompted this study to find the best metro areas for remote working, with Boulder, Colorado, coming out on top.”
Metros were ranked by remote working suitability index, with a maximum score of 100 and a minimum score of 0. It combines data on the percentage of people who work from home, the monthly expenditures on phone services, the percentage of people with a broadband internet subscription, the average monthly housing cost, the average travel time to work, and the average monthly fiber connection cost.
1. Boulder – Colorado
Boulder, Colorado, is the metro area best suited for remote working in America, with a remote working suitability index of 77.5 out of 100.
Boulder’s high suitability comes from a high percentage of workers working from home at 20.8%, 114% above the national average of 9.7%, high percentage of households with a broadband subscription at 93.3%, 6.3 percentage points above the national average of 87%, and cheap access to fiber internet with greater than 300 megabits per second download speed at a statewide average of $71.88 for urban internet connections, 22% below the national average.
Boulder loses marks for remote working suitability for its high monthly cost of housing, at an average monthly cost of $1709.50, 42% above the national average of $1203.50 per month.
Despite this, Boulder still comes out on top because of its strong broadband infrastructure, allowing it to have the nation's highest percentage of remote workers.
2. Raleigh-Cary – North Carolina
The Raleigh-Cary metro area in North Carolina is the second best suited for remote working, with a remote working suitability index of 73.4.
The Raleigh-Cary metro area scores highly due to a high percentage of people working from home at 16.8%, 73% above the national average. It also has a higher-than-average percentage of households with broadband connections at 91.6%, although the average cost for high-speed fiber is 2% above the national average at $94.99 monthly.
Relatively high housing costs at an average of $1304 per month see the Raleigh-Cary metro area lose the most from its score.
3. Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown – Texas
The Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown metro area is the third best suited for remote working in America, with a remote working suitability index of 71.2.
A high percentage of remote workers, at 16.8%, and a high percentage of households with a broadband subscription, at 91.8%, add the most to the suitability.
High housing costs, at an average of $1503 per month, 25% above the national average of $1203.50 per month, reduce the Austin metro area’s remote working suitability.
4. Bend – Oregon
With a remote working suitability index of 70.9, Bend, Oregon, is the fourth most suitable metro area for remote working in America. High numbers of people working remotely at 15%, and there is cheap fiber internet at an average cost of $64.99, with Oregon being the state found to have the second cheapest 300mbps download speed fiber plan on average at $64.99 per month, 30% cheaper than the national average of $92.73 per month.
Bend loses most points for its relatively high housing costs, with the average housing costs at $1419.50 per month, 18% above the national average.
5. Punta Gorda – Florida
Punta Gorda, Florida, is the fifth best-suited metro in America for remote working, with a remote working suitability index of 70.5. Punta Gorda scores well for the percentage of people working from home, at 12%, and average housing cost, at an average monthly cost of $908.50, 25% below the national average of $1203.50 per month. Florida also has relatively cheap fiber internet, at an average of $76.89 for fiber plans with at least 300mbps download speeds.
6. Corvallis – Oregon
Corvallis, Oregon, is sixth, with a remote working suitability index of 70.5. A high percentage of people working from home, at 13.3% and 24% above the national average of 9.7%, and a cheap average monthly cost for a 300mbps download speed fiber plan at $64.99, 30% below the national average monthly cost of $92.73, see Corvallis score well. Housing costs are nearly the same as the national average of $1203.50 per month, too, at an average of $1206.50 per month in Corvallis.
7. Fort Collins – Colorado
Fort Collins, Colorado, is seventh, with a remote working suitability index of 70.4. Cheap fiber internet in Colorado, at an average of $71.88 for 300mbps download speed fiber plans, and a high percentage of remote workers, at 15.4%, see Fort Collins score well.
Average housing costs are 19% above the national average at $1434 per month, which lower Fort Collins’s score.
8. Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro – Oregon-Washington
In eighth is the Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro metro area, which covers areas in Oregon and Washington, with a remote working suitability index of 69.9.
A high percentage of remote workers at 14.4% significantly raises the metro area’s score, further aided by the cheap average cost of 300mbps download speed fiber internet plans in Oregon of $64.99 per month.
The metro area’s score is significantly decreased by the relatively expensive cost of housing there, at an average monthly cost of $1513.50, 26% above the national average.
9. Durham-Chapel Hill – North Carolina-South Carolina
With a remote working suitability index of 69.7, the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area, covering North Carolina and South Carolina, comes ninth for the best metro areas in America to work remotely. A high percentage of remote workers, at 14.5%, scores the metro area high, and average housing costs are 2% below the national average of $1203.50 per month at $1174.50.
10. Ithaca – New York
Ithaca rounds out the top 10 with a remote working suitability index of 69.2. Ithaca scores well for the percentage of remote workers at 14.5%, 74% above the national average of 9.7%, and has relatively cheap average monthly costs for a fiber connection with 300mbps download speed at $79.99, 14% below the national average monthly cost of $92.73.
Ithaca’s average commute time is relatively low at 20 minutes six seconds, five minutes 42 seconds, or 25% below the national average of 26 minutes 48 seconds. This reduces how relatively advantageous remote working is compared to commuting in this metro area.
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