ESG reporting frameworks compared: GRI, TCFD, ISSB, ESRS
GRI, TCFD, ISSB, ESRS, SASB — five acronyms, five different approaches to sustainability reporting. Navigating this landscape is one of the most common points of confusion for businesses preparing to report. This guide maps them clearly and explains which applies to you.
Tool via The Carbon Workbench
GRI, TCFD, ISSB, ESRS, SASB — five acronyms, five different approaches to sustainability reporting. Navigating this landscape is one of the most common points of confusion for businesses preparing to report. This guide maps them clearly and explains which applies to you.
Why are there so many frameworks?
The proliferation of sustainability reporting frameworks reflects the fact that different stakeholder groups developed them for different purposes. Investors wanted financial materiality — what sustainability risks affect the bottom line. NGOs and standard-setters wanted impact materiality — what harm is your business doing? Regulators wanted mandatory, comparable, auditable disclosure. Each group created its own framework, and the result was fragmentation.
That fragmentation is beginning to resolve. The ISSB (established in 2021) is building a global investor-focused baseline. CSRD's ESRS are built partly on GRI and TCFD foundations. Convergence is happening — but it is not complete, and for now most large organisations need to navigate multiple frameworks simultaneously.
GRI: Global Reporting Initiative
GRI is the oldest and most widely used sustainability reporting framework, with roots in the late 1990s. GRI standards cover a wide range of environmental, social, and governance topics in detail and take an impact materiality perspective — reporting on your organisation's effects on the world, regardless of financial materiality.
GRI standards are voluntary but widely adopted globally. CSRD's ESRS are partially interoperable with GRI, meaning companies that have already been reporting under GRI have a head start on CSRD compliance. GRI publishes a mapping document showing where ESRS requirements align with GRI disclosures.
TCFD: Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures
TCFD was established by the Financial Stability Board in 2015 and published its final recommendations in 2017. It takes a financial materiality perspective — focused specifically on how climate risks and opportunities affect a company's financial performance.
TCFD uses a four-pillar structure: governance (who oversees climate risk?), strategy (how does climate affect your business model?), risk management (how do you identify and manage climate risk?), and metrics and targets (what do you measure and what are your goals?).
TCFD-aligned disclosure is now mandatory for many UK companies under UK financial regulations, and forms the basis of the climate-related disclosure requirements in CSRD's ESRS E1.
ISSB: International Sustainability Standards Board
The ISSB was established by the IFRS Foundation in 2021 to create a global baseline for investor-focused sustainability disclosure. It published IFRS S1 (general sustainability disclosure requirements) and IFRS S2 (climate-related disclosures) in June 2023.
IFRS S2 is explicitly built on TCFD and incorporates TCFD's four-pillar structure. ISSB standards take a financial materiality perspective and are designed for capital markets disclosure. The UK government has announced plans for UK Sustainability Reporting Standards (UK SRS) based on ISSB standards.
ESRS: European Sustainability Reporting Standards
ESRS are the mandatory reporting standards under CSRD. They are the most comprehensive and demanding framework currently in operation, covering environmental, social, and governance topics under a double materiality framework — both financial and impact materiality.
ESRS ESRS 1 and 2 set general requirements; sector-specific ESRS are under development. ESRS E1 covers climate change and is closely aligned with TCFD. ESRS has interoperability with GRI and the ISSB standards.
SASB: Sustainability Accounting Standards Board
SASB (now merged into the ISSB) published industry-specific sustainability accounting standards focused on financial materiality. SASB standards tell you which ESG topics are most financially material for 77 specific industries — useful for identifying what to prioritise in your ESG reporting.
| Framework | Mandatory / voluntary | Materiality lens | Audience | Status (UK / EU) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GRI | Voluntary (CSRD uses it) | Impact | Broad stakeholders | Referenced in CSRD ESRS |
| TCFD | Mandatory (large UK cos) | Financial | Investors | Mandatory for many UK cos; ESRS E1 |
| ISSB | Voluntary (UK SRS planned) | Financial | Capital markets | UK SRS adoption expected 2026/27 |
| ESRS | Mandatory (CSRD) | Double (financial + impact) | Broad stakeholders + investors | Mandatory for large EU companies |
Which frameworks does your business need?
For most UK businesses, the practical answer is:
If you are a large UK company already subject to mandatory TCFD reporting: continue with TCFD and prepare for UK SRS adoption.
If you have significant EU operations and meet the CSRD thresholds: ESRS is mandatory. Using GRI as a reporting foundation is efficient given the interoperability.
If you are a UK SME reporting voluntarily: GRI is the most widely understood voluntary framework. A GRI-aligned report will also be compatible with most investor and supply chain requirements.
Key takeaway
GRI is the established global standard for voluntary disclosure. TCFD is the investor-focused climate framework, now mandatory for many UK companies. ISSB is the emerging global baseline for capital market sustainability disclosure. ESRS is the EU mandatory framework under CSRD. They are converging — but for now, which frameworks apply to you depends on your size, listing status, and EU exposure.