For a company, buying carbon credits is a procurement decision with reputational risk attached. This guide sets out where credits fit in a net-zero plan, how corporate buyers source and check them, and how to report them. It is part of our buying guides; the guide to buying carbon credits covers the basics.
Where credits fit in a net-zero plan
The main frameworks agree on the order: cut your own emissions first, then use credits. Once you know the tonnes that remain, our credits-needed calculator turns them into a number of credits.
- SBTi. Its Corporate Net-Zero Standard defines net zero as reducing emissions to a residual level in line with 1.5°C pathways, and permanently neutralising whatever remainsSource 1. It notes that most companies will reduce emissions by at least 90% through their long-term targetsSource 1. Credits must not be counted as reductions towards science-based targets. They may only be used to neutralise residual emissions or to finance mitigation beyond the company’s targetsSource 1.
- VCMI. Its Claims Code expects companies to set short-term reduction targets aligned with net zero by 2050, and then buy high-quality credits from outside their value chainSource 2.
- Oxford Offsetting Principles. They ask companies to shift towards carbon removals with a low risk of reversal over timeSource 12.
The SBTi calls mitigation outside the value chain “beyond value chain mitigation”. It covers activities that avoid or reduce emissions as well as those that remove themSource 1. Deciding which role your credits play shapes everything that follows: neutralisation points to durable removals, while beyond-value-chain mitigation can include both.
How corporate buyers procure credits
Step 1: Set targets and decide the role of credits
Set science-based reduction targets first, then decide whether credits are for neutralising residual emissions or for mitigation beyond your value chain.
Step 2: Write your procurement criteria
Define the volume, budget, project types, standards, vintage, CCP label and any rating thresholds you will accept.
Step 3: Source the credits
Run a request for proposals, use a broker, or buy on an exchange or marketplace, depending on volume and how much choice you need.
Step 4: Do due diligence
Check each project’s methodology, CCP label status, independent ratings and registry records before you sign.
Step 5: Contract and retire
Agree delivery and retirement terms, then make sure credits are retired in your organisation’s name in the public registry.
Step 6: Disclose separately
Report credits separately from your greenhouse gas inventory and keep claims factual.
Companies can source credits in three main ways: a request for proposals sent to several suppliers, a broker who sources against your criteria, or an exchange or marketplace where you buy listed credits. The table shows the types of provider in our records that say they serve companies.
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| Type | How you buy | Serves (from our records) | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retailer / offset shop | Sells credits it has already chosen, often at a fixed price per tonne, and retires them for you | Individuals, Small businesses, Companies | BuyCarbonOffsets.org *, Cool Effect, Ecologi |
| Marketplace | Lists credits from many projects or sellers, so you choose the project | Individuals, Small businesses, Companies | Carbonmark, Gold Standard Marketplace, Supercritical |
| Broker | Sources and negotiates credits for an organisation, usually through a sales conversation | Small businesses, Companies | Climate Impact Partners, Patch |
| Exchange | Trading platform with standard contracts for organisations and traders | Companies | Climate Impact X (CIX) |
| Project developer | Runs or finances its own projects and takes money for them directly | Individuals, Small businesses, Companies | atmosfair, myclimate |
* Same operator · DisclosureWho each type serves and the examples come from the providers' own pages. Examples are listed alphabetically, not ranked.As of Oct 2026
Whichever route you take, ask every supplier for the same information so you can compare offers: the project name and registry ID, the standard and methodology, the vintage, the volume available, the price per tonne, and how the retirement will be evidenced. Our where to buy page compares individual providers on the same criteria.
Due diligence before you sign
Methodology and CCP label. The ICVCM’s Core Carbon Principles set a quality threshold, and credits that meet it can carry the CCP labelSource 3. The label applies to whole methodologies, so it also rules some out. In August 2024, for example, the ICVCM decided that credits from eight current renewable energy methodologies would not receive itSource 4.
Independent ratings. Rating agencies assess individual projects, which the CCP label doesn’t do:
- BeZero Carbon assesses six risk factors, including additionality, over-crediting and non-permanenceSource 5.
- Sylvera rates projects on carbon, additionality and permanence, on a scale from AAA to DSource 6.
- Calyx Global evaluates additionality, over-crediting, permanence and overlapping claimsSource 7.
Registry records. Ask for serial numbers and check the issuance and retirement records yourself. On the Verra Registry, the retirement record can name your organisation as beneficial owner if the account holder chooses to show itSource 8. Our guide to how to verify carbon credits walks through each registry, and do carbon offsets work? summarises the evidence on over-crediting.
Spot purchases, portfolios and offtakes
Companies buy in three broad ways:
- Spot purchases buy credits that already exist and can be retired straight away.
- Portfolios mix project types, for example avoidance credits now with a growing share of removals, in line with the Oxford PrinciplesSource 12.
- Offtake agreements commit to buying credits a project will deliver in future years, so the tonnes don’t exist yet when you sign. US guidance treats it as deceptive to suggest that an offset’s reductions have already happened when they haven’t. Sellers should clearly disclose when reductions won’t occur for two years or longerSource 10.
Price depends heavily on the mix. In Ecosystem Marketplace’s survey of 2024 deals, removal credits averaged $19.50 per tonne and reduction credits $4.05Source 9. These are averages of reported transactions, so use them to frame a budget rather than as a quote.
Reporting and claims
Claims: keep credits separate
- Disclosure. The SBTi standard says companies should disclose carbon credits separately from their greenhouse gas inventory, and make clear that progress against targets doesn’t include themSource 1.
- Products in the EU. From 27 September 2026, claims based on offsetting that a product has a neutral, reduced or positive climate impact are banned. Companies can still describe their investments in carbon credit projects, as long as that information isn’t misleadingSource 11.
For more on wording, see the EU green-claims ban and carbon neutral claims.
If your company is buying a large volume, the form below sends an enquiry to BuyCarbonOffsets.org, the offset shop run by the same team as this site. For contract terms and routes to market at volume, see buying carbon credits in bulk. For smaller organisations, see buying carbon credits for a small business; for the general steps, see how to buy carbon offsets.