Hey earth muffins! While massive companies like Google are by no means sustainable or eco-friendly, there are sometimes small parts of them that are. For Google specificially, they offer ways to search for eco hotels and a Google maps eco feature to reduce your impact when driving. Did you know they also offer a tool to check carbon emissions when flying? This search function on Google Flights allows you to see estimated emissions and even sort by low emission flights. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to use the awesome feature!
How to Check the Emissions of Flights
On Google Flights, type in your “to” and “from” destinations as well as the dates you will be traveling. Hit enter and a list of flights will pop up. To see the carbon emissions estimate for each flight, hit the down arrow to the far right. Once the drop down is shown, the arrow will turn into an up arrow. In the extra information, you can now see the estimated carbon emission!
How to Sort by Carbon Emissions
If you want to select a flight with the least amount of carbon emissions, search for a flight like before. Above the very first result, there is a “Sort by” button. Click on this and change it from the “Best Flights” default to “CO2 emissions”. Now the flights with the least emissions will be at the top of your search!
How to Only See Low Emission Flights
Like the above, search for a flight as usual. Right below the search bar (where you put in your destination) there is the option to add filters. Click on “Emissions” and select “Low emissions only”. Now your results will only show flights that have lower than typical emissions for the route you are taking. Please note: you might not get any flights after selecting this filter… If that happens, I suggest sorting by carbon emissions (see above) and selecting the flight with the lowest estimate!
Final Thoughts
I think these features of Google Flights are pretty awesome to check out when booking any airfare! I have a couple of upcoming trips planned for graduations/family vacations, so I will definitely be using the carbon emission functions when buying my tickets. Are you planning any trips this spring/summer? Comment below and let me know how you stay sustainable while traveling!
Love,
Jenna ♥
