What inputs do I need?

Enter drinks per day, days per year, and your % of orders in reusables. You can edit single-use cup footprint (g CO₂ per cup), washing CO₂ per use, and reusable cup manufacturing CO₂ with lifetime uses.

We estimate cups avoided per year and the net CO₂ saved vs a single-use baseline, accounting for washing and a small per-use share of manufacturing. We also show the break-even number of uses where a reusable outperforms single-use.

Are the default factors exact?

No. Defaults are awareness-level placeholders from common ranges. Real footprints vary by cup size, materials, energy mix, and washing setup. Edit the factors to match your source.

Reusable Cup Impact — Cups & CO₂ Saved Per Year

Friendly estimates for planning and awareness. Private by design — runs locally in your browser.

Use & Factors

Drinks served per day Days per year Reusable uptake (%)

Footprint Assumptions (editable)

Single-use cup CO₂, incl. lid/sleeve (g CO₂e / cup) Washing CO₂ per reusable use (g CO₂e / use) Reusable cup manufacturing CO₂ (g CO₂e / cup)

Reusable cup lifetime (uses) Loss/breakage write-off (%) Optional: % of reusable uses that truly displace single-use

Advanced (optional)

Round results to (decimal places) Show per-drink results

Manufacturing is spread over lifetime uses (plus any loss %). Washing is counted for each reusable use. All factors are editable.

Friendly estimate only. Real impacts vary by cup size/materials, energy mix, washing setup, and return rates.

Results

How This Reusable Cup Calculator Works

We estimate annual drinks, the share served in reusables, and compare a single-use baseline to a reusable scenario. Single-use adds g CO₂e per cup. Reusable adds washing per use plus a small manufacturing per-use share (manufacturing ÷ lifetime).

Annual drinks: drinks/day × days/year
Reusable uses: annual drinks × uptake% × displacement%
Baseline CO₂: annual drinks × single-use g/cup
Reusable CO₂: (reusable uses × (wash + manufacture/lifetime)) + (remaining single-use × single-use g/cup)
Savings: baseline − reusable
Break-even uses: manufacturing ÷ (single-use − wash) (if wash ≥ single-use, break-even isn’t reached)

Tip: Try 20–40 g CO₂e for a typical paper cup + lid; washing often 2–8 g/use depending on energy mix and efficiency.

FAQs

Do reusables always win?

Almost always after a small number of uses. If washing emissions are unusually high and single-use is very low, break-even may take longer—this tool shows the break-even point.

What about water use or litter?

This tool focuses on CO₂e and cup counts. Water, waste, and litter benefits are real but context-specific.

What if not every reusable use displaces a single-use?

Use the “displacement %” to be conservative—e.g., 80% means some reusables would have been dine-in mugs anyway.