Method · Eco-score
How the eco-score works
The eco-score places a product's carbon footprint next to similar products. It compares estimates; it is not a certificate, a rating of the brand, or a claim that a product is good for the environment.
The calculation
- Work out the product's footprint per kg of product: its carbon footprint, excluding biogenic uptake, divided by its weight.
- Find its category benchmark: median footprint per kg of product (excluding biogenic uptake) of the catalogue products in the category, recalculated with the current MFP footprint engine and factor library in screening mode. Each category keeps one system boundary (cradle to grave for clothing, footwear and bags; cradle to gate for home textiles), and a product is compared only with a benchmark of the same boundary.
- Compare: the percentage by which the product is lower or higher than the benchmark, and the band below.
| Band | Footprint per kg, compared with the category median |
|---|---|
| A | 40% or more lower |
| B | 15% to 40% lower |
| C | within 15% either way |
| D | 15% to 40% higher |
| E | 40% or more higher |
Per kg, so a light and a heavy version of the same product are compared fairly. A product is scored only against a benchmark with the same system boundary.
When there is no score
- The product's category has no benchmark: Clothing, footwear, bags and accessories, home textiles and packaging. Categories with at least 50 single products whose middle half lies within a factor of 3. Left out: catch-all groups (garment, accessory, home and kitchen item, toy, stationery item, jewellery, decor piece, home textile, footwear) and listings that are collections, packs, sets or bundles.
- The result's system boundary differs from the benchmark's (for example a company study measured cradle to gate in a cradle-to-grave category).
- The listing is a collection, pack, set or bundle rather than one product.
Benchmarks in use
eco-score v1, built 2026-11-12 with factor library 2026.11-mfp.8. Medians and quartiles in kg CO₂e per kg of product.
| Category | Boundary | Products | Median | Middle half |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| bag | Cradle to grave | 656 | 19.112 | 14.97–23.547 |
| tote | Cradle to grave | 351 | 21.817 | 16.513–25.093 |
| pouch | Cradle to grave | 346 | 38.888 | 33.5–42.075 |
| crossbody | Cradle to grave | 336 | 16.465 | 14.765–19.112 |
| wallet | Cradle to grave | 246 | 33.02 | 30.36–37.44 |
| laptop bag | Cradle to grave | 158 | 14.922 | 13.425–20.41 |
| backpack | Cradle to grave | 141 | 12.654 | 12.654–18.044 |
| handbag | Cradle to grave | 91 | 14.48 | 12.78–18.463 |
| tag / keyring | Cradle to grave | 68 | 98.3 | 93.7–107.1 |
| belt | Cradle to grave | 65 | 31.153 | 27.36–31.267 |
| dress | Cradle to grave | 3,533 | 29 | 27.049–29 |
| t-shirt | Cradle to grave | 3,060 | 27.822 | 25.861–29.767 |
| set / jumpsuit | Cradle to grave | 1,947 | 28.758 | 25.57–28.758 |
| trousers | Cradle to grave | 1,517 | 26.867 | 25.633–28.82 |
| shirt | Cradle to grave | 1,379 | 27.372 | 26.136–29.324 |
| shorts / skirt | Cradle to grave | 970 | 28.136 | 26.136–29.324 |
| jacket | Cradle to grave | 836 | 28.545 | 25.356–28.545 |
| sweatshirt | Cradle to grave | 693 | 25.484 | 22.296–26.342 |
| jeans | Cradle to grave | 365 | 25.438 | 10.234–28.626 |
| socks | Cradle to grave | 227 | 31.92 | 30.58–31.92 |
| underwear | Cradle to grave | 129 | 29.787 | 28.725–33.063 |
| sandals | Cradle to grave | 198 | 23.258 | 21–24.524 |
| sneakers | Cradle to grave | 98 | 19.223 | 17.763–21.659 |
| cushion cover | Cradle to gate | 419 | 19.206 | 19.206–19.206 |
| blanket / throw | Cradle to gate | 382 | 17.253 | 16.018–19.206 |
| quilt / bedspread | Cradle to gate | 295 | 19.206 | 16.018–19.206 |
| towel | Cradle to gate | 289 | 19.206 | 18.983–19.206 |
| cushion | Cradle to gate | 265 | 17.389 | 16.018–19.206 |
| bedsheet set | Cradle to gate | 237 | 19.206 | 16.018–19.206 |
| placemat | Cradle to gate | 170 | 17.253 | 8.123–17.253 |
| apron | Cradle to gate | 164 | 17.253 | 17.253–17.253 |
| rug / mat | Cradle to gate | 156 | 10.586 | 10.586–14.817 |
| table runner | Cradle to gate | 150 | 14.966 | 10.01–14.966 |
| curtain | Cradle to gate | 110 | 19.206 | 19.206–19.206 |
| napkin | Cradle to gate | 79 | 16.018 | 14.778–19.206 |
| bedding | Cradle to gate | 68 | 16.018 | 16.018–16.018 |
Limits
- The benchmarks are themselves screening estimates from public listings, calculated with category defaults where a listing gives no data. Many products share those defaults, so most land close to the median (band C); a band away from C mostly reflects a different material or weight.
- A company study with its own data is compared with estimates made from listings. Its score shows where it sits among them, not that the other products were measured.
- Benchmarks change when the factor library or the catalogue changes; every score names the method version and build date.
- An independent reference (ADEME's 2018 per-item figures) will be added as a second, dated comparison once its system boundary has been confirmed from the study itself.
Wording: scores say "lower" or "higher than the category median". They are not for public environmental claims.