A fully remote job is harder to come by these days.
Entirely out-of-the-office employment listed on the job site ZipRecruiter peaked last year at almost 14% of all posts, up from only 4% before the pandemic, according to internal data shared with Bloomberg. So far this year, the share of fully remote jobs advertised on the platform has dropped to less than 11%.
While the share of fully remote jobs has fallen, that’s not necessarily because companies have required their staff to return to the office en masse. According to ZipRecruiter’s chief economist Julia Pollak, much of the pullback has instead been driven by hiring slowdowns in sectors like tech and finance where remote work is more common.
But even as the availability of full-time work-from-home opportunities shrinks, demand has remained fierce. LinkedIn data shows that paid remote jobs attracted almost half of all applications on the platform in May, despite making up a far smaller share of listings. Whether it’s to travel the world or for caregiving, health or lifestyle reasons, many workers now value location flexibility above all else. Job ads for fully remote roles routinely get more than twice as many applications as in-person jobs, according to Pollak. “There’s an imbalance in the labor market,” she said. “Workers are chasing a small number of jobs.”
Many of the jobs that ZipRecruiter identifies as the most likely to be fully remote aren’t the most remunerative — many pay less than $50,000 annually on average. That may be because employers face lower wage growth pressure if they can recruit from across the country, especially in regions where the cost of living is relatively low. Surveys have also shown that many people who want to work remotely full-time are willing to accept less pay to do so.
Another potential challenge job seekers face: Many listings are not clear about the degree of remote work the new gig will entail. “Maybe that’s because employers want to maintain strategic flexibility,” Pollak said. “They don’t know if they’re going to require employees to come back in person — or close office space when leases end. There’s ambiguity within organizations, which makes it quite difficult for job seekers.”
That also means it’s difficult for ZipRecruiter to classify listings with absolute certainty. The platform takes into account both how the job was categorized by the employer as well as how it’s described to determine whether it’s fully remote. While this system may not be perfect, it gives those on the hunt for a fully WFH role the best idea of where to look. Here’s a list of the top 20 job categories with the highest rates of fully remote work according to ZipRecruiter:
Pollak says anything with “research” in the title has a good shot at being fully remote, along with customer support, data entry and assistant roles. Jobs that involve writing and content creation are also a good bet.
Some gigs that are advertised as remote, though, such as certain jobs in the insurance industry, may require a substantial amount of driving.
The bottom line: If taking home a big paycheck is a top priority, an old-fashioned office job may be the best way to go. But fully remote jobs are still out there, especially for anyone willing to compromise on pay.
