How We Calculate CO₂ Savings

The Problem with Server-Based Converters

Most online file converters follow a three-step process: upload your file to a remote server, process it in a data centre, and download the result back to you. Each step consumes network bandwidth and server electricity — and therefore produces CO₂ emissions.

The Research

According to research by Emerge Interactive, transferring 1 GB of data over the internet produces approximately 3 kg of CO₂. This figure includes the energy used by network infrastructure, data centres, and cooling systems.

Our Calculation

WebConverter processes everything locally in your browser — no upload, no download, no server processing. When you convert a file, we track the size of the data that would have been transferred to a server-based converter:

• Upload: The original file you drop into the converter
• Download: The converted result you would have received back

We apply the formula:

CO₂ saved = bytes processed × 3 kg / 1,000,000,000

This gives us a conservative estimate of the CO₂ that was not emitted because your files never left your device.

Your Counter

The green CO₂ badge you see on every page reads from your browser's local storage. It accumulates across all your conversions — images, audio, PDFs — giving you a running total of the carbon emissions you've personally avoided.

Is This Exact?

No estimate is perfect. The actual CO₂ per gigabyte varies by region, network type, and data-centre efficiency. Our figure of 3 kg/GB is a widely cited average. The real savings may be higher or lower — but the principle stands: processing files locally eliminates network and server energy entirely.