What Is ESG Reporting? A Practical Guide for 2026

Last reviewed: 21 October 2026. Rules are changing fast. If anything here is out of date, tell us and we will fix it.

ESG reporting used to be a glossy PDF the comms team put out once a year. Now it's a regulated disclosure in India, the EU, the UAE and a growing list of other markets, and investors, lenders and big customers read it the way they read your financials.

This guide covers what ESG reporting is, who has to do it in 2026, which frameworks matter, and how to build a report that holds up when someone checks the numbers. Country-by-country answers are in the FAQs at the end.

Key takeaways

• ESG reporting is how a company discloses its environmental, social and governance performance, using defined metrics and a recognised framework.
• In India, the top 1,000 listed companies must file a BRSR, and BRSR Core assessment or assurance covers the top 1,000 from FY 2026-27.
• The EU cut CSRD scope sharply in 2026. Large companies not already reporting now start with FY 2027.
• ISSB standards are the global baseline, adopted or being adopted by more than 30 jurisdictions.
• The hard part isn't writing the report. It's collecting data you can trace back to a source.

What is ESG reporting?

ESG reporting is the structured disclosure of a company's environmental, social and governance performance. It uses standard metrics, like tonnes of CO2e, water withdrawn, employee turnover or board independence, reported against a framework such as BRSR, GRI or ISSB so that readers can compare companies and track progress year on year.

A financial report tells you how the business performed. An ESG report tells you how it performed on the things that will shape its risk and value over the next decade.

ESG reporting vs sustainability reporting vs CSR

People use these interchangeably. They overlap, but they're not the same thing.

In practice, most companies now produce one set of disclosures that serves all three.

Why ESG reporting matters now

Regulators require it. India, the EU, the UAE, Australia, Singapore and others now mandate some form of sustainability disclosure. More on who's in scope below.

Your customers ask for it. If you supply a large listed company, expect questionnaires on emissions, safety and labour practices. Their own reports depend on your data, especially for Scope 3 and BRSR value chain disclosures.

Capital follows it. Banks price green and sustainability-linked loans off ESG metrics. Investors screen on them. A missing or weak disclosure is a reason to pass.

It shows you where the risk is. Done properly, the process surfaces energy costs, supplier exposure and governance gaps before they become problems.

It's now the norm. KPMG's 2024 survey of 5,800 companies found 71% of the largest 100 companies in each country and 77% of the world's 250 largest use GRI for their reporting.

Who has to report in 2026

The rules depend on where you're listed, where you sell, and how big you are. Here's where things stand as of October 2026.

If you're an Indian exporter selling into Europe, you may be pulled into CSRD through your customers even if you're nowhere near the thresholds yourself. Same goes for CBAM if you ship steel, aluminium, cement or fertilisers.

For the full country-by-country timeline, see our guide to where ESG reporting is mandatory. For India specifically, read BRSR requirements explained.

ESG frameworks and standards: which does what

A framework tells you what to report and how. Most companies use two or three together: a mandatory one for compliance and a voluntary one that investors or customers expect.

You'll still see TCFD mentioned. It was disbanded in 2023 and its recommendations now live inside IFRS S2, so treat it as legacy.

Not sure which mix fits you? Our ESG frameworks guide and BRSR vs CSRD vs ISSB comparison go deeper. If GRI is on your list, start with GRI reporting explained, and for CDP see what CDP reporting involves.

What goes into an ESG report

Formats vary by framework, but a credible report usually has these parts:

1. Company overview. What you do, where you operate, reporting boundary and period.
2. Materiality assessment. Which ESG topics matter most to your business and stakeholders, and how you decided.
3. Governance of ESG. Who owns it at board and management level, and how targets link to pay.
4. Strategy, risks and opportunities. Climate and other ESG risks, how they affect the business, and what you're doing about them.
5. Metrics and targets. Year-on-year data with clear methods, emission factors and assumptions.
6. Framework index. A table mapping each disclosure to the framework requirement it answers.
7. Assurance statement. An independent check of key metrics. BRSR Core requires assessment or assurance for companies in the glide path, and CSRD requires limited assurance.

How to prepare an ESG report: 7 steps

1. Confirm what applies to you. List every mandatory rule (BRSR, CSRD, CBAM) and every voluntary ask (CDP, customer questionnaires, lender covenants). This sets your minimum scope.
2. Run a materiality assessment. Talk to investors, customers, employees and suppliers. Under CSRD you need double materiality: how ESG issues affect your finances, and how you affect people and the planet. Our materiality assessment guide walks through it.
3. Set boundaries and owners. Decide which entities and sites are in, then assign an owner for each metric. Facilities for energy, HR for workforce data, procurement for suppliers, finance for anything that ties to the accounts.
4. Collect data at the source. Pull electricity bills, fuel logs, HR records and purchase data directly, with evidence attached. Example: a plant's Scope 2 figure is its metered kWh multiplied by the grid emission factor for that year. If the kWh lives in an email thread, an assessor will find it. Here's how to calculate a company carbon footprint step by step.
5. Calculate, check and compare. Apply recognised methods (the GHG Protocol for emissions), check for gaps and outliers, and compare against last year. A 40% drop in water use needs an explanation, not a footnote.
6. Write it for the reader. Lead with what changed and why. Map every disclosure to the framework index. Keep claims specific and backed by data.
7. Get it assured, then improve. Bring in your assessor or assurance provider early, not in the last month. Use their findings to fix the process for next year.

What makes an ESG report hold up under assurance

Assurance is where weak processes get exposed. An assessor will pick a number, say Scope 2 for your Pune plant, and ask you to walk it back to the meter reading. Four things make that easy:

• An audit trail for every data point. Where it came from, who entered it, who approved it, and what changed after.
• Written methods. Which emission factors, which year, how you estimated missing data. If the method changes, say so and restate last year.
• Controls like finance has. Separate the person who enters data from the person who approves it. Review outliers before they reach the report.
• One dataset, many outputs. BRSR, GRI, CDP and customer questionnaires should all pull from the same numbers. Re-keying data for each one is how errors creep in.

Know which level you're aiming for. Limited assurance is a plausibility check: analytical review and enquiry. Reasonable assurance is closer to a financial audit, with sample testing against source documents. Most regimes start with limited and tighten over time, so build for reasonable from the start.

Common ESG reporting mistakes

• Greenwashing. Vague claims like "eco-friendly operations" with no numbers behind them. Regulators in India, the EU, the UAE and the UK are watching. See what counts as greenwashing.
• Reporting only the good news. A year with a safety incident or an emissions rise, explained honestly, builds more trust than a report with no bad news in it.
• Spreadsheet sprawl. Twenty versions of the same file, no audit trail, and nobody sure which number is final.
• Guessing Scope 3. Spend-based estimates are a fine start. Leaving them unrefined for years isn't, especially now BRSR value chain and CSRD expectations are rising.
• Treating it as a once-a-year project. Teams that collect data monthly spend weeks, not months, on the report.

How Breathe ESG helps

Breathe ESG supports all major global reporting frameworks, including BRSR and BRSR Core, GRI, CSRD and ESRS, CDP and CBAM. You collect data once, at the source, and map it to every framework you report against.

What makes the difference is the people around the platform:

• ESG consulting for materiality, framework choice and assurance readiness
• Fractional CSOs if you need senior sustainability leadership without a full-time hire
• Breathe Academy to train your team on ESG reporting
• Breathe Zero, a community of ESG professionals comparing notes on what works
• Breathe SAFE for EHS tracking alongside your ESG data

Want to see it on your own data? Book a demo or try INARA for free. Comparing options first? Here's our take on ESG reporting tools.

FAQs

What is ESG reporting in simple terms?

It's how a company tells investors, regulators and customers how it's doing on environmental, social and governance issues, using standard metrics and a recognised framework.

Is ESG reporting mandatory?

In a growing number of markets, yes, at least for large and listed companies. India, the EU, the UAE, Australia and Singapore all have mandatory rules in force. Even where it isn't required, customers and lenders often ask for it. See the country questions below.

What is the difference between ESG reporting and sustainability reporting?

ESG reporting focuses on what affects enterprise value and is aimed at investors. Sustainability reporting looks more broadly at a company's impact on people and the planet. Most companies now cover both in one report.

Which ESG reporting framework should I use?

Start with what's mandatory for you (BRSR in India, ESRS under CSRD). Then add what your investors and customers expect, usually GRI, ISSB or CDP.

How long does it take to prepare an ESG report?

A first report usually takes three to six months, mostly spent on data collection. With data flowing monthly, later reports take a few weeks.

Does an ESG report need to be assured?

It depends on the rule. BRSR Core needs assessment or assurance for companies in the glide path, CSRD needs limited assurance, and voluntary reports are increasingly assured because readers expect it.

What are the three pillars of ESG reporting?

Environmental (emissions, energy, water, waste), social (people, safety, human rights, communities) and governance (board, ethics, risk management).

Is ESG reporting mandatory in India?

Yes, for the top 1,000 listed companies by market cap. They must file a Business Responsibility and Sustainability Report (BRSR) with their annual report. BRSR Core, a subset of key metrics, needs third-party assessment or assurance, phased in to cover the top 1,000 from FY 2026-27. Unlisted companies aren't required to file, but many report because their listed customers need value chain data. More in our guide to BRSR requirements.

What are the ESG reporting requirements in the UAE?

Three layers. Federal Decree-Law No. 11 of 2024, in force since 30 May 2025, requires public and private entities that emit greenhouse gases, including free zone companies, to measure, report and keep records of their emissions, with fines from AED 50,000 to AED 2 million. Listed companies must already publish an annual sustainability report under SCA governance rules, and DFM and ADX publish ESG guidance (DFM's sets out 32 metrics). ADGM has its own comply-or-explain framework. See ESG regulations in the UAE and our explainer on UAE Climate Decree No. 11.

Is ESG reporting mandatory in the USA?

Not at federal level. The SEC's 2024 climate rule never took effect: the SEC stopped defending it in 2025 and proposed rescinding it in May 2026. The action is at state level. California's SB 253 requires companies with more than $1 billion in revenue doing business in the state to report Scope 1 and 2 emissions, with first reports due 10 November 2026. SB 261, the climate-risk report, is on hold while the courts decide. More in ESG regulations in the USA.

What are the ESG reporting requirements in the UK?

Large UK companies already report energy and carbon under SECR, and many listed and large companies make TCFD-style climate disclosures. The government published the final UK Sustainability Reporting Standards (UK SRS S1 and S2, based on ISSB) in February 2026. They're voluntary for now, and the FCA has consulted on requiring listed companies to use them from 1 January 2027. Our UK SRS guide covers the detail.

Does CSRD apply to Indian or other non-EU companies?

Only the large ones with real EU business. After the 2026 Omnibus changes, a non-EU group comes into scope if it has more than €150 million in EU turnover and an EU subsidiary or branch above the thresholds, and reporting for non-EU groups starts later than for EU companies. Smaller exporters are more likely to feel CSRD through customer data requests.

Is climate reporting mandatory in Australia?

Yes, for large companies. Group 1 (two of: 500+ employees, A$500m+ revenue, A$1bn+ assets) has reported since financial years starting 1 January 2025. Group 2 starts with years from 1 July 2026 and Group 3 from 1 July 2027. Reports follow AASB S2. See what ASRS requires.

Is ESG reporting mandatory in Canada?

Not broadly, yet. The securities regulators paused their mandatory climate rule in April 2025. The CSSB's Canadian standards (CSDS 1 and 2) are voluntary. Federally regulated banks and insurers must disclose under OSFI Guideline B-15, and many large companies file annual forced labour reports under the supply chains act.

What are Singapore's climate reporting requirements?

All SGX-listed companies report Scope 1 and 2 emissions from FY 2025. STI index companies also make full ISSB-based climate disclosures and add Scope 3 from FY 2026. Other large listed companies follow from FY 2028 or FY 2030 depending on market cap, and large non-listed companies from FY 2030.

Sources

• BRSR Core in FY 2025-26, Sustainability 101
• CSRD reporting timeline after Omnibus I, Dcycle
• ESG reporting in the UAE, DMCC
• UK government publishes final Sustainability Reporting Standards, CMS
• CARB Initial Regulation under SB 253 and SB 261, Sullivan & Cromwell
• SEC to formally abandon climate disclosure rules, PSCA
• Australia mandatory climate reporting legislation, Allens
• Sustainability reporting requirements and timeline, ACRA
• Canada ESG reporting requirements 2026, Brightest
• ISSB adoption tracker, July 2026
• KPMG Survey of Sustainability Reporting 2024, via GRI