Who would have even thought to ask that question a few years ago? Certainly not us.
But here's a fact that stopped us in our tracks: if the internet were a country, it would be one of the world's largest carbon emitters. Digital technologies now account for roughly 3.7% of global greenhouse gas emissions—about the same as the aviation industry—and that figure is growing by around 6% each year.
Your website is part of that equation. Every page load, every image, every video streamed—it all requires energy. And while a single website visit might seem negligible, those visits add up quickly.
The good news? There's a lot we can do about it.
The internet runs on electricity (and that electricity comes from somewhere)
Here's how it works: when someone visits your website, data travels from a server to their device. That journey requires electricity—to power the server, cool the data centre, transmit the data through network infrastructure, and render the page on the user's screen.
The heavier and more complex your website is, the more energy is required. A bloated website with massive unoptimised images, redundant code, and unnecessary features doesn't just load slowly—it's actively contributing to carbon emissions with every single visit.
As Wholegrain Digital (the folks behind the Website Carbon Calculator) put it: "The internet may feel clean, but it has a dirty secret."
Online video is the elephant in the server room
If you're wondering where most of that energy goes, look no further than video. According to research from The Shift Project, online video accounts for roughly 60% of global data flows and generates around 300 million tonnes of CO2 per year. That's equivalent to the annual emissions of Spain.
Streaming services, social media videos, autoplay features—they're all energy-intensive. This isn't about never using video (it's a powerful communication tool, after all), but about being more intentional. Do you need that video to autoplay? Could a well-designed image and text convey the same message with a fraction of the environmental cost?
The Shift Project calls this approach "digital sobriety"—being thoughtful about our digital consumption rather than mindlessly defaulting to the most resource-intensive option.
What makes a website sustainable?
A sustainable website is one that's designed and built to minimise energy consumption and environmental impact. This means:
Efficient code — Clean, lean code without unnecessary bloat. Every line of code requires processing power, so we strip away anything that's not pulling its weight.
Optimised images — Images are often the heaviest elements on a page. We use modern formats (like WebP), compress intelligently, and serve appropriately sized images for different devices. No one needs a 5MB hero image on their phone.
Thoughtful design — Sometimes less really is more. A clean, focused design often performs better both environmentally and for users.
Smart hosting — Choosing hosting providers that use renewable energy makes a significant difference.
Fast loading times — Speed and sustainability go hand in hand. A faster website uses less energy and provides a better user experience.
Accessible design — When websites are accessible, people can find what they need quickly without endless scrolling and loading. Less wasted time, less wasted energy.
The beautiful thing? Most of what makes a website sustainable also makes it faster, more accessible, and more user-friendly. It's not a trade-off—it's just better web design.
How we measure website carbon footprints
We use tools like the Website Carbon Calculator to assess the environmental impact of the sites we build. It's remarkably simple—you enter a URL and get an estimate of CO2 emissions per page view, along with how that compares to other websites.
For example, when we launched a recent project for Triple One Care, the results were encouraging:
Cleaner than 89% of web pages tested
Only 0.11g of CO2 per page view
With 10,000 monthly page views, that's 13.55kg of CO2 per year—equivalent to what one tree absorbs annually
Could it be better? Probably. But it's a solid baseline, and importantly, it gives us data to work with.
We also check sites with the Green Web Check to verify they're hosted on renewable energy infrastructure.
Our own website: practising what we preach
Like many web designers, we have a bit of a "cobbler's children have no shoes" situation. Client work always takes priority, and our own site tends to get pushed down the list.
But sustainability gave us the nudge we needed. Our old WordPress site had served us well for years, but it was built on what's now considered legacy technology. When we tested it, it came back cleaner than 78% of websites—not terrible, but we knew we could do better.
Our current Statamic site? Cleaner than 92% of websites tested. Here's what changed:
Old site:
1.394s to first byte
4.495s speed index
834KB total page weight
Current site:
0.220s to first byte
1.000s speed index
284KB total page weight
The home page now loads in less than a quarter of the time and weighs about a third as much. That's not just better for the environment—it's a significantly better experience for visitors, especially those on slower connections or limited data.
Green hosting matters (a lot)
Where your website lives makes a real difference. Data centres consume enormous amounts of electricity—both to run the servers and to keep them cool. If that electricity comes from fossil fuels, your website's carbon footprint grows accordingly.
We host our sites (and our clients' sites) with providers committed to renewable energy. Our current host consistently tests cleaner than 90% of web pages, which tells us they're doing something right.
When choosing hosting, look for providers who:
Use renewable energy or purchase renewable energy credits
Have energy-efficient data centres
Are transparent about their environmental commitments
Optimise server performance (faster servers use less energy)
It's worth noting that "green" hosting isn't necessarily more expensive. In fact, because energy-efficient infrastructure often has lower running costs, it can be competitively priced.
The tools and technologies we use
Part of building sustainable websites is staying current with efficient technologies. Brendyn (our lead developer) is constantly researching better, leaner ways to build. Sometimes it feels like things are changing under our feet, but it always works out for the best—and usually makes everyone's lives simpler.
Modern image formats: WebP and AVIF offer significantly better compression than old JPEG and PNG formats, with no perceptible loss in quality.
Efficient frameworks: We've moved from WordPress to Statamic for most new builds. It's faster, leaner, and gives us more control over exactly what code ships to users.
Smart caching: Storing frequently accessed content closer to users reduces server requests and speeds up loading times.
Content delivery networks (CDNs): Serving content from geographically distributed servers means shorter data transmission distances and lower energy use.
Lazy loading: Images and videos only load when they're about to come into view, rather than all at once when the page loads.
Digital sobriety in practice
The concept of "digital sobriety" isn't about deprivation—it's about intentionality. It's asking "does this serve the user?" before adding features, widgets, or heavy media.
Some questions we ask when building sites:
Does this page need a video background, or would a well-chosen image work just as well?
Are we loading fonts from Google, or can we host them locally to reduce requests?
Do we need this plugin, or can we achieve the same thing with native functionality?
Are we serving massive images to mobile users who'd be fine with smaller versions?
Could this complex animation be achieved with CSS instead of JavaScript?
Often, the sustainable choice is also the simpler, clearer, more effective choice. Funny how that works.
What you can do right now
If you're looking at your existing website and wondering where to start:
Test your site — Run it through the Website Carbon Calculator. It'll give you a baseline and show you where you sit compared to other sites.
Optimise your images — This is often the quickest win. Compress images, use modern formats, and make sure you're not serving huge files where smaller ones would do.
Review your hosting — Is your provider using renewable energy? If not, it might be time for a conversation (or a switch).
Audit your content — Do you have pages no one visits? Old downloads eating up server space? Dead weight adds environmental weight.
Question autoplay — Do your videos really need to start automatically? Most users find it annoying anyway, and it's burning through energy and data.
Consider a redesign — If your site is built on old technology, a rebuild with modern, efficient tools can dramatically reduce its carbon footprint while improving performance.
The bigger picture
Here's the thing: no single website is going to solve climate change. But collectively, the choices we make about how we build and host websites add up.
According to recent data from the Sustainable Web Manifesto, if the web were a country, it would be the 4th largest emitter of greenhouse gases globally. That's staggering. But it also means there's enormous potential for positive change.
When we build leaner, faster, more efficient websites, we're not just reducing emissions—we're creating better experiences for users, improving accessibility, and often reducing costs for our clients. It's genuinely win-win-win.
Our commitment
At Avoca, we're committed to building websites that are good for people and good for the planet. That means:
Hosting on renewable energy infrastructure
Building with efficient, modern technologies
Optimising ruthlessly for performance
Designing with intention rather than excess
Measuring and monitoring our impact
Staying current with sustainable web practices
We're not perfect—no one is—but we're committed to continuous improvement. Every project is an opportunity to do better.
As Hannah Smith from Wholegrain Digital puts it: "The goal isn't to stop using technology. It's to use it more thoughtfully, more efficiently, and with an understanding of its impact."
We couldn't agree more.
Want to know your website's carbon footprint?
Curious about how your site measures up? We're happy to run it through the sustainability calculators and have a chat about what the results mean and where there might be opportunities for improvement.
No obligation, no sales pitch—just a genuine conversation about making the web a little bit greener. Get in touch.
