Men and women did not respond to commuting in the same way, the data show
Employees who work primarily from home experience significant mental health improvements compared with those who commute, according to research published in Social Science & Medicine.
The study, conducted by researchers from the University of Melbourne and other institutions, examined data from more than 16,900 employees between 2002 and 2019. The researchers found that working 50% to 75% of hours from home produced the largest mental health benefits, particularly among women with existing mental health concerns.
“WFH arrangements have large positive effects on women’s mental health, provided that the WFH component is large enough,” the researchers wrote in the January 2026 publication.
The study found that commuting time adversely affected men’s mental health, with a 10-minute increase in one-way commuting time linked to a 0.01 standard deviation decline in mental health scores among men with poorer mental health. Women’s mental health showed no significant effect from longer commuting times.
Researchers noted that average one-way commuting times during the study period were 27.2 minutes for women and 30.5 minutes for men, higher than comparable figures in the United Kingdom.
The mental health benefits of working from home appeared to be independent of reduced commuting time, suggesting remote work provides value beyond eliminating travel. The study found that working 50% to 75% from home increased mental health scores by 0.2 standard deviations among women in the lower range of the mental health distribution.
Lead researcher Ferdi Botha and colleagues used panel data models with fixed effects to isolate the impacts of commuting and working arrangements from other life changes. The analysis excluded the COVID-19 pandemic period to avoid confounding factors.
“Our findings highlight the importance of targeted interventions and support for individuals who are dealing with mental health problems,” the researchers wrote.
The study comes as employers continue to navigate post-pandemic workplace policies. About 36.3% of employees worked from home in 2024, according to recent data.
The Committee for Economic Development of Australia reported in April 2025 that working from home saves the average worker more than AU$5,000 a year in commuting costs.
The researchers used the Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5), derived from the Short-Form Health Survey, to measure mental health outcomes. They controlled for factors including age, marital status, household income, education level, and job satisfaction.
The study found that more substantial working-from-home arrangements mainly benefited people with pre-existing mental health concerns, suggesting workplace flexibility could serve as a targeted support measure for vulnerable workers.
