Spotify Technology S.A.·Media / Entertainment / Publishing·Luxembourg, Luxembourg·Founded 2006·Last verified 31 May 2026
58
out of 100
Making progressPending Review+1 since last review

Spotify has genuinely low direct emissions and reports them thoroughly with third-party verification. The company achieved 31% absolute emissions reduction year-on-year and has decoupled growth from carbon output. Critical gaps: no water monitoring despite cloud computing's indirect water footprint, minimal nature risk assessment, and unvalidated SBTi targets undermine the 2030 net-zero claim.

The calculation

Every score shows its working.

Same formula for every company. No curve. No private weighting.

SINK = (0.3 × Base + 0.7 × Performance) × Scale
Industry base impact
Media / Entertainment / Publishing sector ceiling.
60 / 100
Performance score
Sum of the 10 rubric questions, scored 0–10 each.
62 / 100
Raw score
Weighted average before scale penalty.
(0.3 × 60) + (0.7 × 62) = 61.4
Scale penalty
Multiplier based on absolute emissions volume — physics-first.
× 0.95
Final score
Rounded. Making progress.
58 / 100
The ten questions

Where Spotify Technology S.A. is strong, and where it isn't.

Strongest on Carbon Footprint — Operations and Energy Source (8/10, 8/10). Weakest on Water Impact and Resource Use & Waste (3/10, 4/10).

Where the evidence comes from

Every document used, listed.

9 sources used in this assessment. All publicly available. Each row shows which rubric questions it informed.

[1]Third-party verified
Spotify — Carbon Footprint & Climate Data
Ongoing
Q1Q2Q3Q4
View →
[2]Third-party verified
Spotify Strikes a Chord: Big Q1 Gains and Bigger Climate Goals (Net-Zero for 2030)
Unknown
Q1Q2Q4Q8Q9
View →
[3]Self-reported
Spotify Life — Equity, Diversity & Impact: Climate Action
Ongoing
Q1Q2Q5Q6Q8Q9
View →
[4]Self-reported
Making an Impact: One Note, One Voice, One Idea at a Time
2025
Q3
View →
[5]Self-reported
Sustainability Outlook 2024
2024
Q5
View →
[6]Third-party verified
The Hidden Cost of Music — China Water Risk Analysis
Unknown
Q7
View →
[7]Self-reported
Spotify Equity & Impact Report 2024
2024
Q9
View →
[8]Third-party verified
Spotify ESG-Driven Governance: Balancing Resilience in the Streaming Era
2025
Q10
View →
[9]Third-party verified
Klarna and Spotify Among Nordic Tech Companies Contributing to Impact Platform Milkywire
2023
Q5
View →

If you believe a source has been misread or a newer version exists, submit a challenge.

Spotify Technology S.A. in context

Where Spotify Technology S.A. sits among media / entertainment / publishing peers.

Among the 6 major media / entertainment / publishing brands we've scored, Spotify Technology S.A. sits 2nd of 6.

2/6
Spotify Technology S.A.'s rank
43
Industry average
20
Industry low
64
Industry high
How this score has moved

Spotify Technology S.A.'s score over time.

today

Score history begins 8 February 2026.

As Spotify Technology S.A.'s score updates, the trajectory will appear here.

We're backfilling historical scores for FTSE 100 and S&P 100 companies over the coming weeks.

What's being contested

This score is not currently being contested.

Every challenge is published. We'd rather be corrected than wrong — that's the whole point.

No challenges submitted yet. If you have evidence that contradicts this score, you can challenge any question above — cite a public source and we'll review it.

About Spotify Technology S.A.

Spotify is a Swedish music and podcast streaming platform founded in 2006, headquartered in Luxembourg. With 6,617 employees and €9.7bn in FY2021 revenue, it operates as a digital-native media company with negligible direct manufacturing footprint but substantial indirect emissions from cloud infrastructure and user-facing advertising.

Founded
2006
Headquarters
Luxembourg, Luxembourg
Employees
~9,000
Annual revenue
~€16B (~$17.5B)
Company website ↗
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