Compare Your Footprint — Carbon Intelligence Platform

Every carbon accounting software provider in the UK has published a comparison article ranking itself first. Positive Planet ranks itself number one in its own top 10. Seedling puts itself at the top of its own top 15. EcoHedge’s comparison page leads with EcoHedge. At a certain point, these stop being comparisons and start being advertisements.

This piece takes a different approach. It names what each platform does well, where it falls short, and which type of business it suits. CYF is included, with the same candour applied to everyone else.

What to evaluate in carbon accounting software

Before comparing platforms, establish what matters for your business. Five criteria separate useful tools from expensive dashboards:

UK framework alignment. Does the tool use DESNZ/DEFRA conversion factors by default? Does it support SECR report formatting? Is it building toward UK SRS data fields? A tool designed for US or EU markets and adapted for the UK will have gaps.

Scope 3 capability. Most SMEs start with Scope 1 and 2. But supply chain data requests increasingly require Scope 3 estimates. Check whether the tool handles Scope 3 categories relevant to your business — purchased goods, business travel, employee commuting, waste.

Benchmarking. Can you compare your emissions against peers? Year-on-year tracking against your own baseline is useful but limited — factor changes alone can move the number 15% without any operational change. Peer comparison controls for this.

Consultant and multi-client support. If you work with a sustainability consultant, or if you are a consultant managing multiple clients, the platform needs multi-account architecture. Single-user tools create bottlenecks.

Pricing transparency. Several platforms require a sales call before revealing pricing. In a market where SMEs are often evaluating whether to start at all, price opacity is a barrier.