I Thought Working From Home Would Save Me Money, I Was Wrong

When my boss announced in December 2025 that some departments would begin working from home to help the company cut operational costs, most of us celebrated.

At the time, I was working as a social media officer for a digital media company in Westlands. The company had been struggling with rising expenses, and management believed remote work would reduce costs and also align with global trends of remote working.

For employees like me, it sounded like a blessing. In my mind, I had already calculated the savings.

I was earning around Ksh60,000 net and living in Jamhuri while working in Westlands. I was trying to follow the 50:30:20 budgeting rule, meaning I aimed to save around Ksh12,000 every month.

One of my biggest daily expenses was transport. I spent about Ksh200 commuting between home and Westlands every day. In a month, that was close to Ksh5,000 gone immediately.

So when the work-from-home arrangement started, I genuinely thought I had found extra money. I even imagined increasing my monthly savings.

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At first, it actually felt that way. The first month was exciting. Suddenly, the transport expense disappeared.

But slowly, new costs started replacing the old ones. The first shock was electricity.

Before working remotely, I barely noticed how long my tokens lasted. But now, with my laptop running all day, WiFi constantly connected, lights on, devices charging, and sometimes a fan running during hot afternoons, my electricity bill jumped from Ksh1,500 to Ksh2,500.

Then came internet costs. At first, I thought my normal Ksh3,000 Wi-Fi package was enough. I quickly realised it wasn’t. Uploading videos, downloading content, attending meetings, and managing social media platforms all day consumed a lot more data than I expected.

Within the first month, I upgraded my package to Ksh6,300. The worst part was that blackouts forced me to buy extra mobile bundles whenever the internet went down. 

Then came the comfort expenses. Working from my small house quickly became uncomfortable. I convinced myself I needed a proper desk set because my back hurt. That alone cost me Ksh10,000.

Food also became a hidden expense. Ironically, being home all day made me spend more on food. Before remote work, I would leave home early, eat a heavy breakfast, then have supper in the evening.

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Now, the kitchen was always available. I started snacking between tasks. Sometimes boredom alone would send me to the fridge. Gas usage increased. Bread and milk started disappearing faster.

Individually, the expenses looked small. Together, they stretched my monthly budget by more than Ksh3,000. In the end, I realised I was spending more than the Ksh5,000 transport fare I had hoped to save.

There were even months when I found myself eating into the Ksh12,000 savings target I had initially planned for.

I also became less disciplined with boundaries. At the office, work had a clear ending. At home, work followed me everywhere. Because my laptop was always nearby, I found myself replying to messages late into the night. Sometimes I even worked weekends without noticing.

By the end of April this year, I sat down and reviewed my finances honestly. Yes, I had saved some money on transport. But I was also spending more on electricity, internet, food, and home office items.

The biggest lesson for me was realising that working from home is not automatically cheaper. In many cases, it simply transfers some office costs from the employer to the employee.

Today, I no longer romanticise remote work the way I once did. Sometimes, the office was quietly subsidising more of my life than I realised.