In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the global workforce, including higher-education professionals, experienced substantial changes in their working conditions. Responding to the crisis, universities swiftly adapted their operational modes, thus inevitably impacting the work–life balance (WLB) of their staff. This study examines the WLB factors and their outcomes for higher-education staff, among both teaching and non-teaching staff, in Hong Kong and Thailand, during the initial stages of the pandemic through the lens of the job demands and resources model (JD-R model). The results of 1800 questionnaires completed by respondents from government-funded universities in both locations revealed a significant difference in the WLB between the two cases, with the Hong Kong respondents reporting lower levels of WLB compared with their Thai counterparts. The Hong Kong teaching staff exhibited a higher utilization of family-friendly policies (FFPs), whereas the non-teaching staff reported significantly lower levels of both policy utilization and overall WLB. The results also revealed significant differences in terms of how work, family, and personal-resource and demand factors were correlated to the WLB outcomes. This study advocates for tailored adjustments in university policies, basing the policies on the specific staff category and emphasizing the need for targeted support. In the Hong Kong context, attention should be directed toward enhancing WLB and FFP utilization among non-teaching staff. In contrast, in Thailand, a focus on refining the policies to better support the WLB of teaching staff is recommended. Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.