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Free tools, a consultant, or doing it yourself
Most suppliers can do a first footprint with free tools. A consultant earns their fee when you need Scope 3 detail, verification or a product footprint. Here is how to decide.
Do I need a consultant to measure my carbon footprint?
Not for Scope 1 and 2, and not for a first Scope 3 estimate. Free calculators built for small businesses cover those, and your customer accepts figures produced that way. A consultant is worth paying for when you need measured Scope 3 across several categories, a figure that will be verified by a third party, a product carbon footprint, or a reduction plan that someone has to be accountable for. Many suppliers use free tools in year one and bring in help in year two once they know what the customer wants.
What are my options and what do they cost?
| Route | Best for | What it costs you | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free tools | A first Scope 1 and 2 figure, a first Scope 3 estimate, a commitment | A few hours of your time, no money | A figure a customer accepts, with your own working behind it |
| Doing it yourself in a spreadsheet | A business that wants to understand and own the numbers | A day or two, plus an afternoon each year to update | A figure you can explain line by line, and the skill in-house |
| Paid software | Several sites, monthly tracking, several customers asking | A subscription, often with a minimum term | Repeatable numbers and reports, less of your time each year |
| A consultant | Measured Scope 3, verification, a product footprint, a reduction plan with a budget behind it | A project fee, typically days of work | A figure built to a standard, a report a verifier can check, and advice on what to cut |
| Building capability in-house | A business where this will be a standing part of someone's job | Training time and a share of a salary | Independence from outside help and faster answers to customers |
The routes are not exclusive. The common path is free tools first, a spreadsheet you own second, and a consultant for the parts a customer asks to see checked.
When are free tools enough?
When the request is for Scope 1 and 2, a commitment and evidence of action, which is most first requests. The SME Climate Hub small business calculator and the US EPA calculator produce a figure your customer can use, and the SME Climate Commitment covers the commitment. If you supply one or two customers and nobody has asked for verification, this is where most suppliers should stop for the first year.
Your customer will accept: a free-tool figure for Scope 1 and 2 in year one. Nobody expects a verified inventory from a small supplier's first attempt.
When is a consultant worth it?
Four situations, in rough order of how often they come up.
- A customer asks for Scope 3 in detail. Measured purchased goods, freight by mode and distance, or your products in use. This takes data you may not hold and judgement about boundaries, and a consultant does it in days rather than the weeks it takes to learn.
- A customer asks for verification. A third party checking your figure against ISO 14064 or a similar standard will want a documented inventory. A consultant builds the documentation the verifier expects.
- A customer asks for a product carbon footprint. This is a different method from a company footprint and needs product and process data. The Lead stage covers it; most suppliers get help the first time.
- You want a reduction plan with numbers. Which actions, in what order, at what cost, for what saving. ClimateMate builds a free plan from real-world case studies and is the place to start; a consultant turns it into a costed project.
Ask a consultant three questions before you hire them: which standard they work to, whether their reports have been through a verifier before, and whether you will own the spreadsheet afterwards. A good one answers all three without hesitation.
In some countries a public body pays for part or all of the help: Japan's SMRJ offers up to three free sessions of help calculating CO2, and France's Diag Décarbon'Action is a subsidised expert-led programme for firms under 500 staff.
Is paid software worth it for a company my size?
It is when more than one customer is asking, when you have several sites, or when someone is spending a day a month on this in a spreadsheet. Below that, the free tools and a spreadsheet are enough. Judge software on whether it produces the figures and documents your customers ask for, not on the length of its feature list, and avoid a long minimum term until you know what your customers will want next year.
What if I want to build the skill in-house?
Start with the free tools, then take a short course. Climate Fit, seven short courses by CISL and BSR on the SME Climate Hub, is free, and the GHG Protocol publishes its standards free. One person who understands the three scopes and the emission factors can keep a small company's footprint current in a few days a year, and can answer a customer's question without waiting for an outside adviser.
Do this week: decide which of the four consultant situations applies to you. If none does, run the free tool and keep the money.
What should I do next?
If you are staying with free tools, a first footprint from your bills and records walks through the calculation. If you are about to pay for help, read moving from estimates to measured data first so you can tell the consultant which categories matter.
Where to get help
- SME Climate Hub Small Business Carbon Calculator: the free route for Scope 1 and 2 and a first Scope 3 estimate. Free, also in French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish and Arabic.
- Climate Fit: seven short courses by CISL and BSR on the SME Climate Hub, for building the skill in-house. Free, course in English with pages also in Spanish, French and Portuguese.
- GHG Protocol Corporate Standard: the standard a consultant should be working to. Free, also in Japanese, French, Portuguese, Chinese, Spanish and Korean.
- ISO 14064-1: a summary of the international standard for an organisation's greenhouse gas inventory, the other standard a consultant may name. Summary free; the standard itself is paid (one-off purchase).
- ClimateMate: a free reduction plan built from real-world case studies, the starting point before paying for a costed one. Free.
In your country
Local calculators, grants and advice for this guide, where we have them. See all countries →
France
- Diag Décarbon'Action (Decarbonisation diagnostic): Bpifrance and ADEME (page on les-aides.fr, CCI portal). Subsidised expert-led programme for firms under 500 staff: first footprint, plan, first actions. In French. Paid, subsidised (firm pays €6,000 excl. VAT).
Germany
- Bundesförderung für Energieberatung im Mittelstand (Federal energy-advice funding for SMEs): IHK Lüneburg-Wolfsburg (BAFA programme). Explains the subsidised SME energy audit and savings plan. In German. Subsidised.
Ireland
- Climate Action Voucher: Enterprise Ireland. Up to €1,800 towards an independent adviser for a first footprint or plan. In English. Grant.
Japan
- カーボンニュートラルに関する支援 (SMRJ carbon neutral support): SMRJ (Organization for Small and Medium Enterprises). Free advice and up to three free sessions of help calculating CO2. In Japanese. Free.
Singapore
- Enterprise Sustainability Programme: Enterprise Singapore. SME sustainability training, playbooks and project support. In English. Subsidised.
UK
- UK Business Climate Hub: free tools: UK Business Climate Hub (UK Government with SME Climate Hub partners). Free carbon calculators and planning tools chosen for UK small businesses. In English. Free.
US
- Industrial Training and Assessment Centers (ITAC): US DOE. No-cost energy and waste assessment for small and mid-sized manufacturers. In English. Free.
- Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP): NIST. National network helping small manufacturers with efficiency projects. In English. Mixed.
- Simplified GHG Emissions Calculator: US EPA. Free spreadsheet calculator for a small or mid-sized organisation's scope 1 and 2, plus some scope 3. In English. Free.
European Union
- Enterprise Europe Network: Sustainability: European Commission (EISMEA). Free local advisers on sustainability plans, finance, reporting and energy saving. In all EU languages. Free.
Looking for another country? See free help by country.
Common questions
Does a small business need a consultant to measure its carbon footprint?
Not for Scope 1 and 2 or a first Scope 3 estimate; free calculators cover those. A consultant is worth it for detailed Scope 3, third-party verification, a product carbon footprint or a costed reduction plan.
How much does a carbon footprint consultant cost a small business?
Typically a project fee for days of work. Ask which standard they use, whether their reports have been verified before, and whether you keep the spreadsheet afterwards.
Are free carbon calculators accurate enough for customers?
Yes for a first Scope 1 and 2 figure. The SME Climate Hub and US EPA calculators use published emission factors and produce a figure customers accept in year one.
When should a small business buy carbon accounting software?
When several customers are asking, you have several sites, or someone spends a day a month on spreadsheets. Judge it on the figures and documents your customers need, and avoid long minimum terms.
Can I learn to do carbon accounting in-house?
Yes. Free tools, the GHG Protocol standards and the SME Climate Hub guidance are enough for one person to keep a small company's footprint current in a few days a year.
Get help
Email suppliersupport@ditchcarbon.com and hear back within two working days. Free, whether or not your customer uses DitchCarbon.
Free, takes about 30 seconds, and is where your customer reads your answer from.
