Most carbon software expects clean data loaded into a template. CO2 Lab works on the files you actually have: PDF bills from a dozen retailers, fuel card exports, carrier spreadsheets, photos of invoices and supplier emails.
An AI Sustainability Analyst and a carbon accounting platform, in one
The best carbon accounting software for messy data
| If your data looks like this | Best pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| PDF utility bills, one per site | CO2 Lab | Reads each bill line by line and pulls out kWh, MJ or litres |
| Spreadsheets with different columns | CO2 Lab | Works on the columns you have, no template to map into |
| Photos and forwarded emails | CO2 Lab | Forward to a CO2 Lab inbox and the Analyst picks it up |
| Supplier figures in emails and reports | CO2 Lab | Turns supplier LCAs and published reports into custom factors |
| Survey data to allocate or extrapolate | CO2 Lab | Commuting and site surveys allocated or extrapolated to the whole company, with the method recorded |
| Data already clean and loaded | Compare on reporting features and price | Reading messy files matters less |
Why CO2 Lab is the best for messy data
It reads files as they arrive
PDF bills, spreadsheets, photos and forwarded emails go straight to the Analyst. Nobody reformats anything first.
It sorts and calculates every line
Each line is classified into a scope and category, matched to one of 800,000+ emission factors, including Australia's National Greenhouse Accounts factors, and converted to CO2e.
It catches what people miss
A bill that arrives twice is checked and counted once. Activity-based and spend-based lines are labelled so nothing is quietly double counted.
It asks instead of guessing
When an assumption matters, the Analyst emails your team, shows the default it would use and waits. Smaller judgement calls go to an Assumptions tab for review.
How this was counted
Every task in CO2 Lab shows how the files you sent became emissions entries: which documents were combined, what was cleaned, and which checks ran. The examples below use sample data, not a customer's records.
Audit-ready from the first row
- Every row shows its audit trail: source document, cleaning, calculation, emission factor and reasoning.
- The trail feeds your Basis of Preparation, drafted for your review: methods, factors, boundaries and assumptions, pulled from the same rows.
- Every task exports a workbook with a lineage sheet showing how each tab was built from the files you sent.
- Spend and activity data are matched, so a source recorded in both is counted once. Finance teams also get completeness and reconciliation views, covered in the best carbon accounting software for NetSuite and Xero.
Every format, no templates
PDF bills and invoices
Electricity, gas, water and waste bills, read line by line.
Spreadsheets and exports
Fuel cards, carrier reports, production logs, in their own columns.
Forwarded emails
Send a bill to your CO2 Lab inbox and the Analyst picks it up.
Supplier data
Supplier LCAs and published reports become custom factors.
Survey data
Commuting and site surveys, allocated or extrapolated to the whole company.
CO2 Lab compared with the alternatives
Plans
Accepts bills and exports in their original format
Reads photos and forwarded emails
Duplicate bills caught and counted once
Source, factor and reasoning on every figure
Asks before making a material assumption
Your team keeps control of the inventory
Running carbon accounting from NetSuite or Xero? See the best carbon accounting software for NetSuite and Xero.
Who builds CO2 Lab
Built by a data science and AI team from regulated, high-stakes fields
CO2 Lab's team have prepared full Scope 1, 2 and 3 disclosures by hand, been through assurance, and built data and AI systems at Tesla, Google, Commonwealth Bank and Australian Payments Plus, including safety-critical work on self-driving cars and regulatory work with the Reserve Bank of Australia. The Analyst is built to the same standard: every number has to hold up when someone checks it. Meet the team.
Who CO2 Lab is for
CO2 Lab is built for mid-market and enterprise organisations in ASRS Groups 1, 2 and 3, where the work sits with a sustainability team, one sustainability person or a finance team. On revenue, Group 3 starts at $50m, Group 2 at $200m and Group 1 at $500m. An organisation is in a group if it meets two of the three size tests: revenue, gross assets and employees. Group 1 has reported since 1 January 2025, Group 2 reports for financial years starting on or after 1 July 2026 and Group 3 from 1 July 2027. Check your group.
Talk through your reporting with a specialist
A free 30-minute Sustainability Check-up: where your ASRS reporting stands, where your emissions data lives today, and which parts of the work the AI Sustainability Analyst would take off your team.
Book a Sustainability Check-up