In the present work the influence of the distance of the protonatable site of different ancillary ligands to the metal center on the luminescence quenching of Re I polypyridyl complexes by hydroquinone are evaluated by means of experimental and theoretical studies. In these systems, it is expected the occurrence of proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) reactions upon excitation, which is a key process in solar-to-fuels energy conversion. The series fac-[Re(CO) 3 (2,2-bpy)(L)]PF 6 , L = pyridine, 1,4-pyrazine, 4,4'-bipyridyl, 1,2-bis-(4-pyridyl)ethane were synthesized and the luminescence quenching rate constant (k q ) by hydroquinone in CH 3 CN and 1:1 CH 3 CN/H 2 O were determined by steady-state and lifetime measurements. In bare acetonitrile, the 1,4-pyrazine exhibits the higher k q (3.49 ± 0.02) × 10 9 L mol -1 s -1 among the species investigated, followed by 4,4'-bipyridyl (k q = 2.50 ± 0.02) × 10 9 L mol -1 s -1. In 1:1 CH 3 CN/H 2 O, the k q values for all complexes are very similar evidencing the role of water molecules as proton acceptor following the reductive quenching of the complexes by hydroquinone. In CH 3 CN, the proton release for the solvent is not spontaneous and the higher basicity of the coordinated 1,4-pyrazine and 4,4'-bipyridyl in relation to 1,2-bis-(4-pyridyl)ethane after metal-to-ligand charge transfer (MLCT) excitation contributes to the proton transfer step. These results are corroborated by time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) calculations. Moreover, the low H/D kinetic isotope effect (KIE) in 3:1 CH 3 CN/X 2 O (X = H or D) confirms that the major PCET pathway is the electron transfer followed by proton transfer, but for 1,4-pyrazine and 4,4'-bipyridyl the concerted proton-electron transfer seems to play a role at high hydroquinone concentrations.