SECR
Scope 1 and 2, plus transport fuel the company pays for (unquoted companies and LLPs).
Sch 7 Part 7ACarbon emissions software · a buyer’s guide by scope
Carbon emissions software: choosing a tool by the scopes you must cover
Carbon emissions software measures a company’s Scope 1, 2 and 3 greenhouse gas emissions and turns them into the figures its reports ask for.
The scopes your UK duties reach decide what the tool must do, so this guide starts there, then lists 60 carbon accounting vendors in their own words.
For how one inventory feeds each report, gas by gas, see carbon emissions reporting software.
Your scopes
Which scopes must carbon emissions software cover? It depends on the duty
The GHG Protocol Corporate Standard requires Scope 1 and 2 and treats Scope 3 as optional, but UK duties add to that.
SECR reaches transport fuel for unquoted companies, PPN 006 names five Scope 3 categories, and UK SRS S2 asks for all of Scope 3 on a comply-or-explain basis.
So a buyer with only SECR needs strong Scope 1 and 2 and an expense-claims feed; a listed company needs supplier data too.
Your duty
PPN 006
Scope 1, 2 and five named Scope 3 categories.
Technical standardUK SRS S2
Scope 1, 2 and 3, location-based Scope 2; first-year Scope 3 relief.
UK SRS S2No duty
Whatever the customer asks; often Scope 1 and 2 from a year of bills.
One company, run through
What does a fleet-heavy distributor need? A labelled case
Harbour Distribution Ltd is an illustrative unquoted company with 400 employees and £60 million turnover, so it is in SECR.
Its emissions are mostly diesel, so its tool must take fuel-card files and expense claims well before it needs anything for suppliers.
If it bids for central government work above the PPN 006 threshold, subcontracted haulage becomes a Scope 3 category it must report.
The right shortlist for Harbour is chosen on fleet data, not on supplier portals.
Harbour Distribution Ltd (illustrative)Explore
Harbour Distribution Ltd (illustrative)
Scope 1
Diesel for 80 owned vans: the biggest line, from fuel cards.
Harbour Distribution Ltd (illustrative)
Scope 2
Electricity at two depots, location-based from bills.
Harbour Distribution Ltd (illustrative)
Transport fuel
Reimbursed mileage in staff cars belongs in its SECR transport limb.
Harbour Distribution Ltd (illustrative)
Scope 3
Subcontracted hauliers: not a SECR line, but a PPN 006 category if it bids.
The factor year
Which emission factors does the software apply? The set for the activity year
For UK reporting the usual set is the DESNZ conversion factors, published once a year; the 2026 set appeared on 11 June 2026.
The methodology paper says each set is for activity falling entirely or mostly within its year, so a tool picks by the year of the bill, not the year of the report.
Use the calculator beside this text to see which set a given period needs.
Same kWh, two factor sets
2025 factor set · 0.17700 kgCO2e/kWh17.7 tCO2e
2026 factor set · 0.13096 kgCO2e/kWh13.1 tCO2e
A company that changed nothing sees 26.0% less on this line because the factor moved.
DESNZ attributes most of the fall to grid decarbonisation and 6 to 7 percentage points to methodology.
Factors: DESNZ 2026 methodology paper, Table 9 · 2026 major changes report.
Generated electricity is Scope 2; transmission and distribution losses are Scope 3.
With losses selected, the illustration uses the printed consumed total in DESNZ Table 9, spanning both scopes. It is not your SECR figure; nothing is stored or sent.
60 vendors
Which platforms say they do it? Carbon accounting vendors, in their own words
60 vendors · carbon accounting
“Altruistiq helps companies with complex value chains go faster and further on sustainability”
“Intelligent AI that measures, reduces, and reports Scope 1–3 and LCA emissions in line with CDP, SBTi, CSRD, and CBAM requirements”
“Benchmark Gensuite is a unified EHS management software platform built on a single architecture—connecting safety, environmental compliance, and operational risk across every site”
“Our software provides companies and financial institutions with precise accounting of the emissions caused by making, shipping and using critical commodities and products around the globe”
“Measure, reduce, and report your Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions”
“The professional benchmarking and reporting platform built for sustainability consultants, SMEs, and the platforms that serve them”
“Coolset gives supply chain and ESG teams the structure, automation and guidance to meet complex compliance requirements like EUDR, PPWR and CSRD, and manage Scope 1-3 emissions”
“One AI-enabled EHS software platform to drive performance across employee health, safety, quality, environmental, and sustainability”
“Cozero helps enterprises steer decarbonization with the same rigor as financial performance, from data collection to investment decisions and regulatory disclosure”
“Dcycle is an ESG software platform founded in 2020 that helps companies collect, manage, and govern sustainability and non-financial data”
Diginex describes carbon accounting, sustainability reporting, supply chain, human rights monitoring and ESG investor intelligence for asset managers, banks and companies.
Diligent’s carbon accounting page describes a solution that “automatically collates your data and produces up to 80 different pre-configured audit-ready reports”.
Ecologi describes itself as a B Corp-certified climate action platform.
EcoOnline sells software to manage EHS and compliance.
“The Emitwise platform is now part of Green Project, where the team continues to build and deliver end-to-end decarbonization solutions”
“Enablon is Wolters Kluwer’s integrated software platform for environment, health and safety, PSM, and enterprise oversight, with ESG capabilities embedded as part of a broader risk approach”
“Collect, analyze, and report sustainability, financial, and risk KPIs with 10+ software modules – individually or in line with official standards”
“Manage safety, compliance, ESG, sustainability and operational risk from a platform built to keep programs reliable across sites, teams and operational change”
“The climate management platform built on AI, backed by dedicated sustainability experts”
“Measure, report, and reduce your company's emissions on one audit-ready sustainability management platform”
IBM describes Envizi as a “compliance ready solution for ESG data”.
“Ideagen Carbon Accounting is an AI-powered solution designed to address complex multi-region ESG reporting challenges in carbon accounting”
“Bring safety, environment, and quality workflows into one connected platform”
IsoMetrix sells software to “manage their environmental, health, safety, sustainability, and social risks”.
“Makersite’s Product Lifecycle Intelligence software brings together your cost, environment, compliance, and risk data in one place”
“Manglai is a platform to manage all of your environmental impact”
“Measurabl makes subjective sustainability data objective”
Microsoft Sustainability Manager
“Track and reduce your environmental impact using data and AI”
A carbon management platform that, in Novisto’s words, “simplifies the collection, calculation, and reporting of corporate carbon footprints”.
“Net Zero Now exists to provide a simple, credible and affordable route to Net Zero for SMEs and to celebrate and promote those that achieve this vitally important goal”
“Normative is a carbon accounting platform that helps companies calculate, report, and reduce Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions using 349,000 verified emission factors”
“Novata is a sustainability data management platform built for private market investors, deal teams, banks, and companies that need a scalable way to collect, manage, and act on sustainability data”
“One digital solution for sustainability planning, data management, reporting, analysis and action - built for enterprise”
“Our platform empowers organizations to accurately measure and manage scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions with direct and actionable information”
Oracle Fusion Cloud Sustainability
“Oracle Fusion Cloud Sustainability is a new offering to capture environmental, social, and governance data for any kind of activity that has a sustainability impact”
“osapiens is the AI platform for compliance and supplier intelligence to help companies manage risk and become more resilient”
Persefoni describes software and AI tools to manage an organisation’s “sustainability data, disclosures, and performance”.
“Your certified software for reliable emissions intelligence to measure, report and reduce your carbon footprint”
“We guide businesses in understanding their emissions, empower them to develop carbon reduction plans, and supporting them on their journey to net zero”
Position Green describes “a sustainability reporting and management platform that combines powerful software with expert advisory services”.
“Pulsora is an AI-powered sustainability and carbon management platform that automates data collection, measurement, and reporting workflows for sustainability teams”
“Digitally handle occupational safety, quality, sustainability, and environmental management”
“It leverages the full power of the Salesforce ecosystem by pulling an organization’s sustainability data into one place and creating actionable insights to guide strategic decisions”
“Measure your full carbon footprint, build your net zero strategy and develop in-house expertise with a single partner”
SAP Sustainability Footprint Management
“Decarbonize your value chain and calculate your corporate and product carbon footprint at scale with ERP-centric, AI-enabled carbon management”
“Seedling is an all-in-one carbon accounting and Net Zero planning platform for businesses of up to 2000 FTEs”
ServiceNow Operational Sustainability Management
“ServiceNow Operational Sustainability Management helps organizations manage, visualize, and report on sustainability efforts and risks across environmental, social, and governance (ESG) programs”
“SimaPro is life cycle assessment software that helps organizations measure, analyze, and reduce environmental impacts using robust datasets, scientific methods, and transparent modeling”
SINAI describes “audit-grade Scope 1–3 accounting, automated compliance reporting, complete supply chain visibility” and decarbonisation planning for global enterprises.
“Small99 Hero creates a pathway to net zero for you based on your industry, outlining how long your Net Zero journey will take and how much it will cost”
“Sphera unifies risk, safety and sustainability into a single enterprise-wide view — connecting intelligence across operations, products and supply chains”
“Sweep's AI turns sustainability data into measurable business performance”
“Manage sustainability metrics intelligently in medium-sized businesses - through automated processes, AI-powered carbon accounting, and audit-proof ESG reports”
“Terrascope is an enterprise carbon management and decarbonisation platform for companies with complex supply chains”
“Trace combines AI-powered software with expert advisory support to help organisations meet their mandatory climate and sustainability reporting obligations, efficiently and with confidence”
“Unravel Carbon is the climate platform helping companies with global supply chains make data-driven decisions”
“Carbon accounting is often the first step companies take toward climate disclosure, compliance, and action—and with Watershed, it’s part of your complete enterprise sustainability platform”
Workday (supplier sustainability)
“Turn sustainable sourcing into a competitive advantage with Workday supplier sustainability solutions”
“Workiva Carbon is an end-to-end carbon accounting software solution that enables organizations to measure, manage, collaborate on, and report emissions data”
“Carbon management software with experts built in, so you can move from measurement to action without spreadsheets or one-off consulting projects”
Alphabetical, which ranks nothing.
Each description is the vendor’s own words from its own site, read 11 October 2026 and 30 September–1 October 2026; prices appear only where the vendor publishes one.
No product here has been tested by this site.
A wide range of capable platforms sits in this list, from SME tools with published prices to enterprise suites built for group reporting.
Scope 3 in their own words
Which vendors describe Scope 3? 66 of 73
Three Scope 3 methodsExplore
Three Scope 3 methods
Spend-based
Money spent × an industry average factor; quick and coarse.
Three Scope 3 methods
Average-data
Quantities bought × an average factor per unit.
Three Scope 3 methods
Supplier-specific
The supplier’s own figure, allocated to what you bought.
Order of work
How should you buy carbon emissions software? Four steps
Buy for the scopes you must cover and the feeds your data actually comes from.
DESNZ measured about 94 hours of staff time a year per SECR complier (evaluation), most of it on data, so the feeds decide the saving.
- 1
Scopes
Write down the scopes each duty reaches.
- 2
Data
Name where each scope’s data lives: fuel cards, bills, expenses, ledger, suppliers.
- 3
Shortlist
Vendors whose own pages claim those scopes and feeds.
- 4
Demo
The six questions below, on a real month.
In the demo
What should you ask in a demo? Six tests
Each test comes from a cited provision, so a passing answer is checkable.
This site has tested no products
No vendor has been scored against these questions here.
Carbon emissions demo questions · tick the ones you need
The pass tests are our reading of the cited provisions.
Nothing you tick is stored or sent.
The numbers
What is at stake? The figures that move
SECR population
19,900DESNZ evaluationMean ongoing cost
£7,100Per complier, per yearStaff time
~94 hoursPer complier, per yearFour things move a reported figure without any change in real emissions, and a tool should label each one.
What changes a figureExplore
What changes a figure
Factor year
UK electricity fell about 26% in the 2026 set; 6–7 points of it method.
What changes a figure
Boundary
An acquisition or disposal moves every scope.
What changes a figure
Method
Spend-based to supplier-specific can move Scope 3 a long way.
What changes a figure
Recalculation
No set threshold: the company sets and discloses its own.
For the board
Choose carbon emissions software by the scopes your duties reach and the feeds your data comes from.
The site’s summary of the buying order above.
Takeaways
Carbon emissions software, in five facts
| Fact | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| The GHG Protocol requires Scope 1 and 2 | Every tool must do these well. |
| UK SRS S2 asks for all three scopes | Listed companies need supplier data from 2027. |
| SECR includes transport fuel for unquoted companies | Test the expense-claims feed. |
| Factors are chosen by activity year | Look for the factor year on every line. |
| 66 of 73 vendors describe Scope 3 | Ask the rest in writing. |
Frequently asked
Carbon emissions software, answered
What is carbon emissions software?
Software that measures an organisation’s greenhouse gas emissions — Scope 1 from what it burns or leaks, Scope 2 from the energy it buys, and Scope 3 from its value chain — and turns them into the figures its reports ask for.
Which scopes does carbon emissions software need to cover?
The ones your duties reach.
SECR is Scope 1 and 2 plus transport fuel for unquoted companies; PPN 006 adds five Scope 3 categories; UK SRS S2 asks for all three scopes on a comply-or-explain basis for listed companies from 2027.
What is the best carbon emissions software?
This site has tested no product and names no best.
Choose by the scopes your duties need and test the shortlist on your own fuel, bills and supplier data with the demo questions on this page.
Do all carbon emissions platforms do Scope 3?
Not all say so.
66 of the 73 vendors in this site’s registry describe Scope 3 on their own pages; a missing claim is a question to put in writing, not evidence the product lacks it.
Is carbon emissions software the same as carbon accounting software?
Largely.
Carbon accounting is the calculation; carbon emissions software usually adds data collection, tracking and reporting on top.
The calculation is the same: activity multiplied by a factor for that activity year.
Can carbon emissions software use any emission factors?
For UK reporting, the DESNZ conversion factors for the year the activity took place are the usual set, and UK SRS S2 prescribes none.
A tool should show which set and year it applied to each line.
Do small companies need carbon emissions software?
Often not.
An unquoted company is in SECR only above two of £36m turnover, £18m balance sheet and 250 employees.
Below that, a year of bills and the government factors usually answers a customer’s question.
How long does it take to set up carbon emissions software?
No official figure exists.
The time goes on boundary decisions and collecting a year of activity data; the platform itself is rarely the slow part.
What does it cost to report emissions?
DESNZ measured a mean ongoing SECR cost of £7,100 a year per complier and about 94 hours of internal staff time.
Software is one part of that cost.
Does carbon emissions software reduce emissions?
Not by itself. It measures and reports; reductions come from projects.
The reduction tools are covered on carbon reduction software.
Has this site tested any carbon emissions software?
No. The tests here come from the GHG Protocol, SECR, PPN 006 and UK SRS, each cited, and the vendor list quotes only what vendors say about themselves.
Sources
Primary sources
Every test on this page traces to a source listed here; vendor words are each vendor’s own.
Checked against 17 sources fromGHG Protocol (WRI, WBCSD)GHG ProtocolDepartment for Business and TradeFinancial Conduct Authoritylegislation.gov.ukGOV.UK (Cabinet Office)
- GHG Protocol (WRI, WBCSD)Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard
Scope 1 and 2 required; Scope 3 optional; seven gases as amended.
- GHG ProtocolCorporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Standard
The fifteen categories.
- GHG ProtocolScope 3 Calculation Guidance
Spend-based, average-data and supplier-specific methods.
- GHG ProtocolScope 2 Guidance
Location-based and market-based methods.
- GHG ProtocolRequired gases and GWP values (2013 amendment)
NF3 added; seven gases.
- Department for Business and TradeUK SRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures (PDF)
Scope 1, 2 and 3; location-based Scope 2; Scope 3 relief in the first year.
- Financial Conduct AuthorityPS26/19 — final rules on UK SRS reporting by listed companies
Comply or explain, UKLR 6, 14, 15, 16 and 22, periods from 1 January 2027.
- legislation.gov.ukSI 2008/410, Schedule 7 (SECR)
Scope 1 and 2 lines; transport fuel for unquoted companies.
- legislation.gov.ukSI 2008/410, Schedule 7 Part 7A
The unquoted company and LLP lines.
- legislation.gov.ukSI 2008/410, Schedule 7 ¶20B
The size test.
- GOV.UK (Cabinet Office)PPN 006 technical standard
Scope 1, 2 and five Scope 3 categories for a carbon reduction plan.
- Department for Energy Security and Net ZeroGreenhouse gas reporting: conversion factors 2026
Published 11 June 2026.
- Department for Energy Security and Net Zero2026 conversion factors methodology paper
Choose the set by activity year.
- Department for Energy Security and Net Zero2026 conversion factors: major changes report
Electricity methodology change.
- GHG ProtocolTechnical assistance: recalculating base-year emissions
No set significance threshold.
- GOV.UK (DESNZ)SECR regulations: evaluation
Cost and staff time per complier.
- ISOISO 14064-1
Organisation-level quantification, an alternative to the GHG Protocol.