How green is your website? Simple ways to shrink your digital footprint

When thinking about carbon footprints, websites are not always the first thing that springs to mind. Every time we load a page, stream a video or send an email, energy is being used behind the scenes and that energy creates carbon emissions.

Tools such as Website Carbon Checker estimate that an average web page can generate around one gram of CO² per view, although the actual figure varies depending on the page, device and energy source.

That might not sound like much, but when a website has thousands of visitors each year, it quickly adds up. Digital activity, from video streaming and emails to cloud storage and online meetings, now accounts for a growing share of global emissions.

The good news is that making your website more sustainable can be straightforward. Small, practical changes can cut carbon, improve performance and even save money. Here are our top tips for making your website more sustainable.

One: The quickest win: start with green hosting

One of the easiest and most effective steps is choosing a green web host. Green hosting providers power their servers using renewable electricity and invest in energy efficiency.

Switching hosting can significantly reduce your website’s carbon footprint without changing how your site looks or works.

Two: Large images, large impact

Large images are one of the biggest contributors to website emissions.

You can reduce their impact by:

1. 1. Compressing images before uploading them
   2. Using the correct image size rather than scaling larger files down
   3. Choosing modern formats such as WEBP where possible

Smaller image files mean faster loading times and less energy used.

Three: Do more with less

Every extra feature, animation or plugin adds weight to a website.

Ask yourself:

1. 1. Does this page need all this content?
   2. Are there old pages that are no longer useful and can be removed?
   3. Can I simplify the layout?
   4. Are there any unused plugins I can remove?

A leaner site is easier to use and easier on the planet.

Four: Think twice before pressing play

Video content is one of the most carbon-intensive types of online content and it’s not going away anytime soon.

Where possible:

1. 1. Avoid auto-play videos
   2. Use dedicated video platforms or optimised streaming services
   3. Host videos externally rather than embedding large files
   4. Offer transcripts or summaries as an alternative

This approach also improves accessibility and gives your website users more choices.

Five: Clean up your digital clutter

Just like physical clutter, digital clutter has a carbon cost. Unused files and duplicated content increase storage requirements and can contribute to unnecessary energy use over time.

Regular digital clear-outs reduce storage needs and keep your site working efficiently. Find more digital cleaning tips in our article, Spring cleaning, the climate friendly way

Six: Cache and cut carbon

Enable page caching so repeat visitors can load pages more efficiently without generating unnecessary server processing.

Page caching is one of the most effective ways to reduce server workload and improve performance.

Seven: Limit your design choices

Limit the number of custom web fonts and font variants loaded on each page. Reduce unnecessary JavaScript and keep site software updated.

Useful tools include Website Carbon Checker, Google PageSpeed Insights and Lighthouse, which can help identify opportunities to improve both performance and sustainability.

What about the Climate Connections website?

We put the Climate Connections website through the Carbon Checker. The results show that our site currently performs worse than some text-based websites, such as the Plymouth City Council website and sits below the global average.

This is largely due to the way we use images, videos and richer content to help explain complex issues, share local stories and reach people who may not otherwise engage with climate topics. That balance between reducing digital carbon and communicating clearly and accessibly is a challenge many organisations face.

That said, this result matters to us. As a website dedicated to Plymouth’s net zero mission, we believe it’s important to be open about our own digital footprint and to keep learning and improving.

We have already taken steps such as using green hosting, optimising images and designing pages to load as efficiently as possible. We work closely with our web developer Square Apple and continue to review how we use video and other high-impact content, explore further optimisation opportunities and look for ways to reduce our digital emissions without losing what makes this site useful and engaging.

Every click counts

There’s always more we can do, and that applies to any website, whether you’re a business, community group or an individual.

Websites may seem small in the grand scheme of things, but Plymouth is home to thousands of organisations and groups. If each one makes a few thoughtful changes to their digital footprint, the collective impact can be significant.

Making your website more sustainable is not about perfection. It’s about taking small, achievable steps, learning as you go and being part of a shared effort to reduce emissions across Plymouth and beyond.