EUDR Software – The right tools for your EUDR Reporting
Companies are facing major challenges due to a new EU regulation: The EU…
ccounting for CO2 emissions raises numerous questions due to the complexity of data and processes: Which data are relevant for your company’s CO2 output? Where in the company should they be collected and how does the technical aggregation work? What opportunities and risks are there in reducing emissions?
This is exactly where a CO2 accounting software provides support. It not only takes legal requirements into account, but also records individual goals and identifies influencing factors. But what can CO2 software really do, and what should you pay attention to when choosing the right provider?
We share our know-how from over 700 matchings in the sustainability sector for SMEs and large corporations, and give you guidance for your decision-making.
You are already familiar with emissions accounting and want to identify the right software providers straight away? With Matchilla’s matching service, you can quickly and easily find the right CO2 software. Identify the service that best fits your criteria from more than 50 software providers.
With CO2 accounting software, companies measure and monitor their carbon footprint. Depending on the individual challenges, there are various providers, ranging from simple emissions calculators to complete, multi-module sustainability management software covering all ESG topics.
In the context of the CSRD, the EU Taxonomy, the product passport and the supply chain, CO2 accounting plays a major role within ESG software. The tool solutions continuously collect emissions data, analyze it, and at the end of each day (or even in real time) calculate consumption. In principle, such software is a data and analytics tool that is usually needed for the two categories corporate footprint (CCF) and product footprint (PCF).
Good to know: What is the difference between CO2 accounting software and decarbonization software? In principle, you’re looking for the same tool under two different names: both offer the same scope of services.
Companies need a CO2 tool when current laws, such as the ESG guidelines, place them under sustainability obligations. That’s when you need a clean, legally compliant sustainability report – and the software will save your day at the latest then! The tool automatically captures all figures and requirements across the entire supply and value chain.
CO2 accounting software has many advantages:
Efficiency in data management and the entire ESG process
When it comes to the question “How much data do you need for emissions calculations?”, you’ve probably already moved on from the idea of “using Excel for CO2 accounting.” With the huge mountain of required data, anything other than using CO2 software is inefficient. The start of the ESG reporting process will also work faster and more holistically if you put a tool at the center of your activities.
Automation / accuracy
Thanks to the software, interfaces to internal systems and data sources are created that correspond, in real time if needed. There are automated processes, and the results are so accurate that you continuously add the exact value of your generated emissions data to your carbon footprint.
Transparency / analysis / optimization
Thanks to systematic recording, it is easier for companies to identify the root causes and implement targeted measures to optimize the CO2 balance in the short, medium, and long term.
Legally compliant ESG reporting reports
As part of the CSRD criteria, capital market-oriented companies with 250 employees or more are required to publish an annual sustainability report for the year 2024. CO2 accounting software is the data source for the sometimes very extensive reports you need. Detailed information on the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and specific CSRD tools can be found here.
The decarbonization software supports the various emission scopes under the GHG Protocol). Emissions are divided into the following three types:
Scope 1 – Tools for direct emissions
With a Scope 1 tool, CO2 emissions are managed that arise directly from the company’s activities and relate to the company’s own locations. These include stationary, mobile, process-related, and fugitive emissions.
Scope 2 – Tools for indirect emissions
Scope 2 includes indirect emissions that result from the company’s use of energy, e.g., from purchasing electricity, heat, or mobility. These emissions are mostly caused by the use of fossil fuels in power plants that generate electricity or heat for the company. Scope 2 therefore also relates to the company’s own locations.
Scope 3 – Tools for the supply chain
Scope 3 relates to the extended supply chain and is often divided into upstream and downstream emissions. This very complex topic is currently particularly relevant due to legislation, as many companies have already been required since 2023 to monitor the CO2 accounting of their own suppliers – keyword: LkSG. We Criteria for selecting LkSG software therefore provide separately. Scope 3 also includes all other indirect emissions, such as business travel and waste disposal.
Currently, software providers that offer modules for Scope 1 and 2 are often compared. These two modules relate to preparations for the CSRD. Scope 3 is then mostly covered by additional software. But: by now, there are numerous providers that offer an overall solution for all three scopes.
Depending on the provider, not only do the accounted scopes vary, but also the features of the CO₂ accounting software. Some tools offer tailored solutions for companies of certain sizes, others focus on industry specializations and/or technical integrability. Typical features of CO₂ software include:
Structured data collection via templates
The software provides you with templates that you can use to internally organize the necessary data across various areas such as energy consumption, waste generation, business travel, and much more, and link it to the tool. This gathers all the emissions that influence your carbon footprint. Essentially a to-do list that gives you an important structure, especially at the beginning.
CO2 calculator
The recorded data is used to calculate CO2 emissions. CO2 software generally uses different emission factors for different activities and resources in order to determine the CO₂ footprint as accurately as possible. There are two areas of application: CCF (Corporate Carbon Footprint) and PCF (Product Carbon Footbrint – all about PCF software).
Analysis and a source for reporting
As soon as the first data is entered, the CO2 software starts the analysis. Various dashboards generate statistics and document the current state. This creates real “aha” moments when you see where your company is producing (unnecessary) emissions. By the way, these overviews are one of the most important sources for sustainability reporting or further ESG topics such as CBAM.
Industry-specific features and benchmarks
By comparing with industry standards, companies benchmark their CO2 figures against similar businesses and thus discover potential for optimization compared to your competitors. Note: When you later fill out the Match Assistant, we can use the industry information to match exactly the providers that offer the relevant templates for your specific emissions.
Forecasts and scenario planning
What emissions would arise in scenario XY? For companies with complex supply chains or emissions that are difficult to regulate, a forecasting function in CO2 software can be useful. It then develops data-based strategies for reduction, with many providers supported by AI.
Integration into overall ESG management
If you are already dealing more intensively with ESG management and sustainability management, you know that the topics of CSRD/VSME, the EU Taxonomy, and the LkSG will also have to be addressed in the future. CO2 software is the centerpiece here and will pass the data on for reporting (you can read about which tools exist from the ESG and CSR universe in our sustainability glossary). Many CO2 software providers already offer a CSRD solution as an additional module or provide very good APIs to make the data usable in other relevant places.
Is our company legally required to provide information about its CO2 footprint?
Does the software offer a legal compliance function?
How large are the volumes of data that the tool has to process?
How much budget is available for CO2 software?
Can an ESG all-in-one solution help streamline our sustainability tech stack?
Is the provider a good fit for our industry and my specific requirements? Do they have experience and references in our industry?
Does the software include guides and templates that I can work well with?
Is the onboarding process straightforward and quick to complete?
Does the software offer benchmarking functions for our industry?
Does the tool really cover all important data about our company (Scope 1, 2 or 3)?
Are there interfaces to our existing systems?
For companies, mandatory recording and accounting of CO2 emissions is a huge challenge. Where do we need to cut back, change, and improve in order to produce and operate more sustainably?
So far, not all companies are required to offset their CO2 footprint. But it is likely that this will change soon! Requirements and possible penalties will probably be tightened significantly in the future. If climate change alone isn’t enough to make us rethink, then a law will hold us accountable—sooner or later.
With technical support, all risks and opportunities are systematically captured, analyzed, and optimized. From A to Z, everything is put to the green test here. If chosen correctly, the software proves to be a key assistant for the sustainable reduction of emissions—even independent of legal requirements.
And yes, many companies professionalize CO2 accounting because they “have to.” But the transparency created also shows, first, how easy it can be to reduce emissions and, second, that in some areas significant cost savings can be achieved, e.g., in energy or waste management.
For this reason, and with a view to a project that, due to the required data, will be new territory in terms of complexity for many, the course should be set toward emissions accounting early enough—and the CO₂ software will help you immensely with that!
You’ve probably been asking yourself for a few lines now how to choose the right one from the many software providers. As you can see from this and the linked articles, since 2022 we at Matchilla have been intensively tracking developments in sustainability software and continuously screening the provider market with over 170 ESG software providers (including over 50 that calculate CO2 emissions in the German-speaking region. We make the database from our neutral market research available to you as a service to help you select the providers most relevant to you.
You invest a few minutes in our questionnaire and receive a shortlist of three CO2 software providers (we call it the Matchboard) – matched precisely to your individual criteria. With a more detailed briefing (the best way is to use the Matchilla platform directly), we can even request an initial cost estimate from the providers.
Best of all: This comparison of CO2 tool providers and our service is non-binding, free of charge, and anonymous vis-à-vis the providers.
Want to know which CO2 solution best fits your requirements? Simply fill out the Match Assistant. 👇
CO2 software providers in the matching: 63 – last update: 11 September 2025
Problems with the display? Open the Match Assistant in a new window here
The Matchilla approach is brilliant: I no longer have to painstakingly research consultancies and software providers and fight my way through countless comparison portals – the right providers, so to speak, come to me – with just a few minutes’ effort. The matching process saves us many resources.
Finding suitable ESG service providers is easy and super fast with Matchilla. Getting in touch, formulating specifications, and after just a few days the results were there. Through this route, we got information about providers we hadn’t even heard of before. A real added value.
With Matchilla, we can conveniently open ourselves up to impulses from new service providers that were previously outside our radar. Our search details are matched against a database, but the final suggestions are in the hands of the Matchilla team. The result: high quality and strong service!
Ulli Theves is Head of ESG software matching at Matchilla and an expert in technical solutions in the field of sustainability. In MatchZINE, he shares his expertise and regularly publishes current news and useful insights on the topic of ESG.
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