Digital Carbon Quick Reference

Use this tool

During technical planning or architecture discussions
When reviewing code, infrastructure, or design choices
To guide decisions in backlog refinement or sprint planning

You'll get

A quick way to spot high‑impact technical decisions
Lower‑impact alternatives to consider before building
Shared language for discussing technical sustainability

Setup

Getting started

Identify which area of the table below applies to your current work.
Check the high‑impact column for any practices you might be using.
See if a low‑impact alternative could achieve the same outcome.
Capture any changes or follow‑ups in your backlog.

Reference

Reference table

Area	Higher impact practices	Lower impact alternatives
Images and media	Large uncompressed images; auto‑playing videos; loading assets not immediately visible	Use modern formats like WebP/AVIF; compress appropriately; lazy‑load below‑the‑fold assets
JavaScript and CSS	Large bundles; unused code; heavy animation libraries	Code‑split; tree‑shake; minify; use CSS animations; remove unused dependencies
APIs and data	Multiple calls for related data; frequent polling; sending unnecessary data	Batch requests; use GraphQL or selective endpoints; event‑driven updates; cache responses
Backend and infrastructure	Always‑on environments; over‑provisioned servers; redundant storage	Auto‑scale; shut down non‑production when idle; use content delivery networks (CDNs); enable caching
Content	Large auto‑playing hero videos; high‑resolution images for all devices	Use responsive images; provide user control over heavy content; consider static alternatives

Guidance

Tips

Use this table as a conversation starter rather than a checklist.
Lower‑impact options should be tested for usability and performance as well as efficiency.
Pair with Impact Scan to catch regressions over time.
Check for trade‑offs; confirm that efficiency gains do not reduce functionality, accessibility, or resilience.

In practice

Example

A news site replaced its auto‑playing homepage video with a static image on mobile. This reduced the page weight noticeably, improved load times, and cut hosting costs, according to the team.

Output

A set of concrete, actionable changes to reduce the carbon footprint of your product.

Measurement & Validation

Track changes in bundle size, page weight, or API call volume after optimisations. Optional: Estimate energy impact using a tool like Website Carbon Calculator or CO₂.js for a representative page or transaction.

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