About 35 percent of employed people in the United States did some or all of their work at home on the days they worked in 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' American Time Use Survey, released June 25, 2026. Those who worked at home spent an average of 5.1 hours of the workday there. A separate BLS release on September 24 found that about 34 percent of wage and salary workers, or 51 million people, worked at home at least occasionally over 2024 and 2025. For that many people, a kitchen table or a spare bedroom is a daily workplace, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration publishes the measurements it uses for setting up a computer workstation.

Who works at home, by the numbers

The time use survey, based on telephone interviews with about 6,100 people age 15 and over during 2025, found women more likely than men to work at home (38 percent versus 31 percent). Among workers 25 and older, 51 percent of those with a bachelor's degree or more worked at home on days they worked, compared with 19 percent of those with a high school diploma and no college. Data collection was suspended from October 1 to November 12, 2025, during the federal government shutdown, and BLS says the effect on the 2025 figures cannot be quantified. In the September release, the most common reasons wage and salary workers gave for working at home were that the job required it (33 percent) and personal preference (31 percent).

What you need

  • An adjustable chair, or a firm chair plus a rolled towel or removable cushion for lower-back support
  • A footrest, a sturdy box or a stack of books, if feet do not reach the floor
  • A monitor riser or a stack of books for a laptop or a low screen, plus a separate keyboard and mouse if the screen is a laptop
  • A tape measure

Step 1: Set the chair to the floor

OSHA's eTool says chair height is right when the whole sole of the foot rests on the floor and the back of the knee sits slightly higher than the seat. If lowering the chair would put the keyboard or monitor too high, a footrest makes up the difference. The front edge of the seat should not press into the back of the knee; on a chair with an adjustable seat pan, slide it until there is clearance while the back stays supported. Lumbar support should sit in the small of the back, and the backrest should recline at least 15 degrees from vertical. On a chair with no lumbar support, OSHA suggests a rolled towel or a removable cushion as a stopgap.

Step 2: Bring the keyboard to the elbows

With the chair set, the keyboard goes at about elbow height, directly in front of the body and close enough that the elbows stay near the sides. OSHA's description of a neutral posture has shoulders relaxed, elbows bent at about 90 to 120 degrees, forearms roughly parallel to the floor and wrists straight, in line with the forearms. Keyboard feet are used only if they keep the wrists straight. The mouse sits right beside the keyboard so the arm does not reach away from the body. A dining table that is too high for this is the usual reason for a keyboard tray.

Step 3: Measure the screen

The monitor goes directly in front, 20 to 40 inches from the eyes; OSHA's guidance is at least 20 inches, with larger text on a small screen rather than leaning in. The top of the screen sits at or slightly below eye level, which puts the center of the screen about 15 to 20 degrees below horizontal. Setting a monitor on top of a computer case usually puts it too high. Tilting the screen back 10 to 20 degrees keeps it roughly perpendicular to the line of sight, though too much tilt can pick up glare from ceiling lights. A laptop screen sitting flat on a desk is usually below that line, so a riser plus a separate keyboard and mouse brings it into range.

Step 4: Check glare and turning

OSHA's tip is to set the monitor perpendicular to a window rather than facing it or backing onto it. The head should not have to turn more than 35 degrees to either side to see the screen. For work done mostly from paper, the paper goes directly in front and the monitor slightly to the side.

Step 5: Sit and check the whole posture

The final check is OSHA's neutral posture from head to feet: head level and facing forward, in line with the torso; shoulders relaxed with upper arms hanging naturally; elbows close to the body; wrists straight; thighs supported and roughly parallel to the floor; feet flat on the floor or a footrest. OSHA's eTool was written for workplaces, and nothing in it is a rule for a home office, but its measurements apply to any desk.

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