ComparisonSustainability

ISSB, ESRS or GRI: how the three reporting standards differ and which ones apply to you

The ISSB standards (IFRS S1 and S2) tell investors how sustainability matters affect a company's prospects. The ESRS, required under the EU's CSRD, add the company's own impacts on people and the environment. The GRI Standards report impacts for any stakeholder. Which you need depends on where you are listed and operate and who reads the report, and one well-designed data model can serve all three.

Reviewed 8 min read

On this page
  1. Six dimensions that separate the ISSB, ESRS and GRI standards
  2. Materiality and legal force decide most of the work
  3. Where each set is required at the time of review
  4. Which standards to prioritize for five company profiles
  5. Collect once, report many: one data model behind several standards
  6. What became of TCFD and SASB
  7. Interoperability mappings predate the revised ESRS
  8. Questions and answers
  9. Sources

Six dimensions that separate the ISSB, ESRS and GRI standards

DimensionISSB (IFRS S1 and S2)ESRS (under the CSRD)GRI Standards
Primary audienceUsers of general purpose financial reports deciding whether to provide resources14Investors plus affected stakeholders, civil society and other report usersAny stakeholder interested in the organization's impacts3
Materiality lensFinancial: matters that could affect prospects, cash flows or cost of capitalDouble: impact and financial materiality, and either test is enoughImpact: the most significant effects on the economy, environment and people
Topic structureGeneral requirements plus a climate standard with industry-based requirements derived from SASB1Cross-cutting standards plus topical environmental, social and governance standards12Universal Standards plus sector and topic standards3
Legal statusVoluntary unless a jurisdiction adopts or endorses itMandatory for companies in CSRD scope, set through EU delegated actsVoluntary, often used beside a mandatory regime
Climate contentGovernance, strategy, scenario-based resilience, emissions and targetsTransition plan, physical and transition risks, emissions and targetsEmissions and energy topics, judged by impact rather than by scenario
AssuranceNot set by the standard; depends on local lawLimited assurance required by the CSRD4Not required; organizations disclose their own assurance approach

Rows describe the standards as published. Legal status and assurance depend on the jurisdiction and change over time, so confirm each against the official text before relying on it.

Where each set is required at the time of review

Which standards to prioritize for five company profiles

  • If

    You are an EU company above the revised CSRD thresholds.

    Then

    Plan around the ESRS and the double materiality assessment, and use the joint interoperability guidance to make the climate section ISSB-compatible in the same pass.

    The ESRS are the legal obligation, and the guidance shows that ISSB climate compatibility needs few additions7.

  • If

    You are listed in the UK and outside CSRD scope.

    Then

    Prepare against UK SRS S1 and S2 now, starting with climate, and track the outcome of the FCA's listing-rule consultation.

    Endorsed ISSB text is the published UK baseline6, and building the data takes longer than drafting the disclosures.

  • If

    You are a US multinational with large EU subsidiaries.

    Then

    Test whether any EU entity or the group as a whole falls in CSRD scope, then choose between one consolidated ESRS statement and subsidiary statements, with ISSB as the investor-facing layer.

    The amended directive applies its thresholds to undertakings and groups and treats non-EU parents separately, so scope depends on structure5.

  • If

    You are a private mid-market company asked for data by customers or lenders.

    Then

    Report impacts with GRI or a simpler voluntary framework and a focused climate disclosure, using the same metric definitions your customers' ESRS or ISSB reports need.

    Matching their definitions avoids rework, and Omnibus I limits what in-scope companies may demand from smaller value-chain partners5.

  • If

    You report under GRI today and expect to enter ESRS scope.

    Then

    Keep GRI, add a financial materiality test beside your impact assessment, and map existing disclosures with the GRI–ESRS interoperability index.

    EFRAG and GRI state that ESRS reporters can be considered as reporting with reference to GRI11.

Collect once, report many: one data model behind several standards

  1. Inventory every disclosure requirement you face

    List each obligation and voluntary commitment: ESRS disclosure requirements if in scope, IFRS S1 and S2 or UK SRS paragraphs, GRI disclosures, CDP questionnaires, lender covenants and customer requests. Record the jurisdiction and first reporting period of each.

    Output
    Requirement register
    Owner
    Reporting lead

  2. Define each metric once

    Write a single definition for every underlying metric, such as location-based Scope 2 emissions or employee turnover, with boundary, unit and method, and note where standards define it differently.

    Output
    Metric dictionary
    Owner
    Sustainability and finance

  3. Map definitions to standards

    Link each metric to the paragraphs it satisfies in each standard. Where a standard needs a different boundary or breakdown, store a derived metric rather than starting a second data collection.

    Output
    Crosswalk table
    Owner
    Reporting lead

  4. Give every metric one owner and one system of record

    Name an accountable owner and a source system for each metric, from ERP and HR platforms to utility data. Parallel collection by different teams is where inconsistencies between reports begin.

    Output
    Ownership matrix
    Owner
    Group controller

  5. Reconcile shared numbers before anything is published

    Check that climate figures in the annual report, the sustainability statement and any questionnaire response agree. The ESG data architecture page describes the lineage and controls that make this routine.

    Output
    Reconciliation log
    Owner
    Finance controls

What became of TCFD and SASB

The Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures completed its work and disbanded in October 2023, and the Financial Stability Board asked the IFRS Foundation to take over monitoring of companies' climate disclosures2. Its structure of governance, strategy, risk management, and metrics and targets survives in IFRS S2, which integrates and builds on the task force's recommendations1.

SASB Standards now sit with the ISSB and supply the industry-based disclosure requirements in IFRS S21. For a reporting team, an existing TCFD report is a reasonable first draft for IFRS S2 and for the climate standard in the ESRS, but not a substitute: both ask for more on transition plans, value-chain emissions and the financial effects of climate risks. ColdAI's ESG reporting offering covers CSRD and ISSB requirements and voluntary frameworks such as GRI and SASB13.

Interoperability mappings predate the revised ESRS

Questions and answers

Can one report satisfy the ISSB, ESRS and GRI requirements at once?

Often, yes, with care. A complete ESRS statement can be prepared so that its climate section also meets IFRS S2, using the joint interoperability guidance, and ESRS reporters can claim to report with reference to GRI. Reporting in accordance with GRI does not by itself meet the ESRS, and each claim needs its own index showing where every requirement is answered.

Is GRI still worth using if we already report under the ESRS?

It can be. GRI is recognized by many non-EU stakeholders, and its sector standards add impact topics that a company may want to cover. Because the two sets were developed in close cooperation, adding GRI to an ESRS statement usually means a content index and a few extra disclosures rather than a new process.

Which standard should a first-time reporter start with?

Start with the one you are legally required to use, then layer the others. With no obligation, choose by audience: IFRS S1 and S2 or the UK SRS if investors and lenders are the main readers, GRI if communities, customers and employees are. In both cases build climate data first, because every set requires it.

Do US companies still need to plan for the SEC climate disclosure rules?

Not as a planning basis. The rules were stayed during litigation, and the SEC later voted to stop defending them in court. US companies are more likely to meet sustainability reporting through EU subsidiaries in CSRD scope, ISSB-based rules where they are listed abroad, and data requests from customers and lenders.

Sources

  1. IFRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures — IFRS Foundation · checked 10 October 2026
  2. IFRS Foundation monitoring of climate-related disclosures (TCFD) — IFRS Foundation · checked 10 October 2026
  3. GRI Standards — Global Reporting Initiative · checked 10 October 2026
  4. Directive (EU) 2022/2464 as regards corporate sustainability reporting (CSRD) — EUR-Lex · checked 10 October 2026
  5. Directive (EU) 2026/470 on certain corporate sustainability reporting and due diligence requirements (Omnibus I) — EUR-Lex · checked 10 October 2026
  6. UK Sustainability Reporting Standards — UK Department for Business and Trade · checked 10 October 2026
  7. IFRS Foundation and EFRAG publish interoperability guidance — EFRAG · checked 10 October 2026
  8. Corporate sustainability reporting — European Commission · checked 10 October 2026
  9. SEC Votes to End Defense of Climate Disclosure Rules (Press Release 2025-58) — US Securities and Exchange Commission · checked 10 October 2026
  10. IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards around the world — IFRS Foundation · checked 10 October 2026
  11. GRI-ESRS Interoperability Index — GRI and EFRAG · checked 10 October 2026
  12. Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2023/2772 as regards sustainability reporting standards — EUR-Lex · checked 10 October 2026
  13. Sustainability: ESG reporting offering — ColdAI
  14. IFRS S1 General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information — IFRS Foundation · checked 10 October 2026

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