So if you work 50 weeks a year and have to take 5 business trips a year each of which lasts 1 week (say, visiting a client as part of a project), that would be 10%.

In a job description, "10% travel" generally indicates that approximately one out of every ten business days will be spent away from your home office. In practical terms for a full-time employee working roughly 260 days a year, this equates to about 26 travel days annually. This could manifest in several ways: it might mean one overnight trip per month lasting 2-3 days, or it could be one significant week-long trip every quarter. It is important to clarify with the employer whether "travel" includes local day trips to clients (commuting outside your usual office) or strictly refers to overnight stays involving flights and hotels. Often, companies list 10% travel as a "buffer" to ensure employees are willing to attend an occasional conference or annual meeting, even if the role is primarily stationary. However, if the travel is frequent but short-range, it may not feel like much; if it involves international long-haul flights, even 10% can feel quite taxing on your work-life balance.