Do Online Calculators Capture your True Carbon Footprint?

Online carbon footprint calculators are often free, web-based tools that allow individuals or organizations to estimate their carbon footprint through answering a set of pre-determined questions. The availability of carbon footprint calculators is increasing due to the increasing pressures of climate-related legislation as well as stakeholder and shareholder demands for greater climate action.

These tools can act as a stepping stone to climate action but are often riddled with problems that can result in inaccurate emissions calculations.

Here, we dissect the online carbon footprint calculator space and look at where they can be helpful, but generally, why they should be avoided. 

Carbon footprint calculators can be a tool for good. They can provide surface level insights into the carbon footprint of an individual or an organisation which can support the initiation of climate action. By answering a set of pre-determined questions, you will be provided with an estimation of your carbon footprint.

These surface level insights can get the ball rolling in terms of organisational action. Larger SMEs may find their carbon footprint to be higher than anticipated – prompting organisations to begin changing their operations or perhaps will seek out experts to produce a carbon reduction plan. Ultimately, it raises awareness which can initiate and kickstart environmental action at both a personal and an organisational level – ideally both.

Calculators do, however, have a limited use. Calculators often fail to capture specific nuances within a business – thus inaccurately estimating emissions. It is uncommon to see online calculators ask users what sector their organisation operates in – those in construction or manufacturing for instance, may have high volumes of upstream deliveries, high volumes of waste, as well as long value-chains – none of which can necessarily be captured in a standard set, predetermined set of questions.

The limited scope and lack of industry specific knowledge therefore resulting in under-estimating emissions, which could in fact, have the opposite effect to the benefits explained above.

Similarly, under-estimating emissions can result from inconsistent, or outdated approaches or data. Carbon footprints are calculated using ‘emission factors’, which are often updated yearly – if an online tool does not ask you to specify a year, it is most likely that these are outdated, thus inaccurate. In the same breath, these calculation methods are opaque and therefore will not be comparable to other online calculators due to a lack of standardisation.

The most important parameter, however, is data.

If the data inputted into these calculators is inaccurate or incorrect, then the resulting output will be erroneous. The core dimensions that define high-quality data are relevance, reliability, completeness, accuracy, and timeliness. Accuracy and completeness are of chief importance as if the pre-determined questions result in an incomplete dataset, then the output, will too, be incomplete – a partial carbon footprint – which is not accurate, nor representative, of an organisation’s overall environmental impact.

For the purposes of comparisons, I have sampled four free online calculators to compare against calculations done by Carbon Neutral Britain for a standardised data set. 

Measuring your carbon footprint as an SME can be time consuming, frustrating, and complex due to the litany of voluntary standards to adhere to. That’s time away from delivering your services to your customers and clients – which could make or break a business.

Due to this, we strongly recommend partnering with a consultancy like Carbon Neutral Britain who can quash all the doubts and uncertainty associated with free, online calculators.

All Carbon Data Analysts and Consultants at Carbon Neutral Britain are certified and accredited to ISO 14064-1 (Specification with guidance at the organization level for quantification and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions and removals), ensuring that the methods we use are recognised internationally. Moreover, the methods and proprietary data we use is updated regularly and only the most recent and relevant data and emission factors will be used to calculate your carbon footprint.

Additionally, due to the manual nature of our calculations, we will have an open line of dialogue with you to better understand the specific nuances within your organisation’s operations – championing your needs to guarantee accurate calculations.

Similarly, all data points that look anomalous will be queried and sense-checked against our rolodex of knowledge and historical data, ensuring we maintain high levels of integrity when taking care of your carbon accounting needs.

So, if you’re looking for a trusted, reliable carbon accounting service – that will also support your journey to Net Zero through a tailored carbon reduction plan and emissions offsetting – please reach out to one of our consultants today!