The rapid adoption of remote work following the COVID-19 pandemic has created new challenges for understanding how workplace settings influence employee stress management and mental well-being. While research exists on coping strategies and work stress separately, limited empirical research directly compares transactional stress and coping responses between remote workers and in-office workers in post-COVID environments. This study examined the relationships between workplace setting (remote vs. in-office), coping strategies, work stress, and mental well-being among full-time employees in the banking and finance industry. The research aimed to identify differences in emotion-focused, problem-focused, and dysfunctional coping strategies between work modalities and their impact on work stress and mental health outcomes. A cross-sectional survey design was employed with 105 participants (52 remote workers, 53 in-office workers) recruited through Qualtrics from the US banking and finance industry. Quantitative measures included the Brief COPE scale for coping strategies, work stress assessments (single-item and four-item scales), and the General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12) for mental well-being. Qualitative data were collected through two open-ended questions examining stressful work events and actual coping behaviors. Contrary to hypotheses, both remote and in-office workers demonstrated predominant use of problem-focused coping strategies rather than emotion-focused approaches. No statistically significant differences were found between work modalities in dysfunctional coping strategies, work stress levels, or mental well-being outcomes. However, qualitative findings revealed a disconnect between self-reported coping strategies and actual coping behaviors, with participants primarily engaging in emotion-focused activities when describing real-time stress management. Common workplace stressors included workload issues, task complexity, and deadline pressures, with personal life factors significantly influencing work stress across both modalities. The study challenges assumptions about remote work leading to poorer coping strategies or mental health outcomes. Both remote and in-office workers utilize similar coping strategies. The discrepancy between quantitative self-reports and qualitative descriptions of actual coping behaviors suggests a gap between perceived and practiced stress management strategies. These findings have implications for organizational support systems and highlight the need for interventions that address the universal stressors affecting all workers regardless of location.