EcoVadis
EcoVadis is a private sustainability ratings provider, founded in Paris in 2007, that scores companies from 0 to 100 on how well they manage sustainability across four themes: environment, labor and human rights, ethics, and sustainable procurement. Companies are assessed because a customer asked them to be, the rated company pays for its own subscription, and only questionnaire answers backed by dated, formal documents earn points. Scorecards are valid for 12 months and medals are awarded on percentile rank against all companies rated in the prior 12 months.
EcoVadis is not a regulation and not a certification. There is no legal threshold, no regulator behind it, and no pass mark. A company is assessed when a customer, prospective customer, or lender asks it to be, usually as a condition of an RFP, a supplier onboarding process, or an annual supplier review. More than 150,000 companies have been rated across 185+ countries, according to EcoVadis, and requests concentrate in sectors where large buyers have published value chain commitments: automotive, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, food and beverage, and industrial manufacturing.
Every assessment is built from the same 21 criteria, weighted by the industry, size, and country risk of the company being rated. Within each of the four themes, scoring follows three layers EcoVadis calls policies, actions, and results. Policies are the formal commitments a company has written down, actions are what has been implemented, and results are the performance it reports and can evidence. Only declarations supported by dated, formalized documents are credited, and an analyst reviews every submission, which is why a standard campaign takes 12 to 16 weeks from invitation to scorecard.
The overall score falls into five bands: Outstanding (85–100), Advanced (65–84), Good (45–64), Partial (25–44), and Insufficient (0–24). Since 2024, medals have been awarded on percentile rank rather than fixed thresholds: Platinum is the top 1% of companies rated in the prior 12 months, Gold the top 5%, Silver the top 15%, and Bronze the top 35%. All four also require at least 30 points in each theme, and medal eligibility begins at the Premium subscription tier. Because the rated population improves each year, an unchanged score can lose a medal.
Methodology V10.0 has applied since January 2026. Changes that year included splitting scope 2 into location-based and market-based figures, removing in-progress certifications as evidence, scoring GRI "with reference" reporting at 75, and aligning environment criteria with the CSDDD. Since the EU ESG Ratings Regulation took effect on July 2, 2026, EcoVadis has notified ESMA of its intention to apply for authorization, with a decision expected around May 2027.
For most companies, the environment theme's results layer is where the score is lost. It is scored on reported and evidenced scope 1, scope 2, and scope 3 emissions, energy, water, and waste metrics, ideally published in a sustainability report. The same emissions inventory that answers EcoVadis also answers CDP, CSRD, and California SB 253, so building it once with evidence attached to each figure is the efficient route.
Frequently asked questions
What is EcoVadis? +
EcoVadis is a private sustainability ratings provider that scores companies from 0 to 100 on how they manage environment, labor and human rights, ethics, and sustainable procurement. Companies are assessed because a customer asked them to be, and the rated company pays for its own subscription.
Is EcoVadis a certification? +
No. EcoVadis is a rating, not a certification. There is no pass mark, no site audit, and no certificate of conformance. An analyst scores the documents a company submits and publishes a scorecard with a 0–100 score, theme scores, and possibly a medal, valid for 12 months.
How are EcoVadis medals awarded? +
On percentile rank against every company rated in the prior 12 months: Platinum is the top 1%, Gold the top 5%, Silver the top 15%, and Bronze the top 35%. All four require at least 30 points in each of the four themes, and medal eligibility begins at the Premium subscription tier.
How does Gravity help with EcoVadis? +
Related terms
CDP (formerly Carbon Disclosure Project)
CDP is a global non-profit organization that operates the world's largest environmental disclosure system. It collects self-reported climate, water, and forest data from thousands of companies, cities, and subnational governments on behalf of investors and purchasers, scoring disclosures from A (leadership) to D– (minimal).
ESG Reporting
ESG reporting is the disclosure of an organization's performance across environmental (E), social (S), and governance (G) dimensions. It encompasses GHG emissions, water and waste management, labor practices, diversity, board structure, ethics, and risk management — providing stakeholders with a holistic view of sustainability performance.
Supplier Engagement
Supplier engagement is the practice of working with suppliers to collect emissions data, improve data quality, and drive reductions across the value chain. It's the primary path to accurate Scope 3 measurement, replacing spend-based estimates with supplier-specific data over time.
Supply Chain Emissions
Supply chain emissions are the greenhouse gases produced throughout an organization's upstream and downstream value chain — from raw material extraction and manufacturing through distribution, product use, and end-of-life disposal. In GHG Protocol terms, these are Scope 3 emissions, and they typically represent the majority of a company's total footprint.
Scope 3 Emissions
Scope 3 emissions are all indirect greenhouse gas emissions that occur in an organization's value chain — both upstream (suppliers, purchased goods, business travel, employee commuting) and downstream (product use, end-of-life treatment, investments). Scope 3 typically represents 70–90% of a company's total carbon footprint.
Sustainability Reporting
Sustainability reporting is the disclosure of an organization's environmental and social performance to stakeholders, including regulators, investors, customers, and employees. It covers GHG emissions, energy, water, waste, and social metrics, structured according to frameworks like CSRD/ESRS, CDP, GRI, and ISSB.
Where this shows up in Gravity
- EcoVadis guide The full guide to how the rating works, who gets assessed, what to submit, and what changed in 2026.
- Carbon accounting Where the scope 1, 2 and 3 figures the environment theme scores are built and evidenced in Gravity.
- Scope 3 and suppliers How Gravity collects supplier data and progresses scope 3 from spend-based estimates to supplier-specific factors.