What does it mean to have your company "Not Scored" by CDP

What do Walmart, HSBC, Unilever and Microsoft all have in common? In 2025 they all chose to submit their CDP responses as “Not Scored.” This article dives into the CDP “Not Scored’ status, what it means to be Not Scored versus Not Disclosed and why some companies are choosing this route. 

Since its founding in 2000, CDP has been a leader in collecting environmental data and other stakeholders. Today the organisation receives information from tens of thousands of companies, cities and regions from their annual questionnaire. 

CDP scores are a highly watched signal in corporate sustainability. An A signals climate leadership. A B or C indicates varying levels of engagement and companies are nervous to have a D associated to their name. This being said, recently there has been a growing category on CDP - when a company chooses to disclose to CDP but choose to be "Not scored."

In the 2025 CDP submission cycle, 354 companies across the CDP dataset selected this status for their climate disclosure. In this article, Nossa Data will outline what it means to be a “Not Scored” CDP company as well as commenting on what companies chose this status in 2025. 

Want to streamline your CDP response? Nossa Data is a CDP API software partner and Accredited Solution Provider. Every year we work with a many CDP companies from the A-List through to not scored to streamline their process. Get in touch via solutions@nossadata.com to see a demo. 

What Does "Not Scored" Mean?

"Not scored" is distinct from simply performing poorly. These companies have actively engaged with CDP's disclosure process — completing the questionnaire and submitting data — but have opted out of receiving a formal score band. This is different from companies that "did not disclose" (who did not respond at all) or those listed as "See disclosing organisation" (who report through a parent entity's consolidated response).

A company choosing "Not scored" status is, in effect, saying: we will be transparent with our environmental data, but we do not wish to be graded on it. CDP permits this in certain circumstances, including where companies are undergoing significant structural changes, are disclosing for the first time in a transitional capacity, or have specific objections to the scoring methodology applied to their sector.

To become a Not Scored company companies must submit their response after the scoring deadline the Week of September 14th but before the Final response deadline the Week of October 26th. See the screenshot below or check the CDP 2026 schedule here: https://www.cdp.net/en/disclosure-2026 

Why Is the Number Growing?

The rise of "Not scored" companies reflects a broader tension in environmental disclosure. As CDP's scoring methodology has grown more demanding — with 2025 introducing essential criteria gates at every scoring level, mandatory third-party emissions verification thresholds, and stricter science-based target requirements — some companies that previously held strong scores are finding the bar increasingly difficult to clear.

For companies that have held CDP A or A- status in prior years, the decision to move to "Not scored" is particularly striking. Our analysis of the CDP 2025 dataset identified companies across this group that had previously appeared in Leadership and A-list brackets. The move away from scoring can reflect genuine strategic move by the company. It could signal that there is a gap between a company's actual climate performance and what CDP's A-list now requires has become too wide to bridge. It could also signal the company is prioritising its regulatory disclosure instead of voluntary benchmarks. 

Among the most notable names in the 2025 "Not scored" list are household names with significant public sustainability profiles: Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet (Google), Meta, Walmart, AT&T, Boeing, Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, HSBC, Unilever, The Coca-Cola Company, Starbucks, Nike, Walt Disney, and Allianz — organisations whose sustainability commitments are regularly cited in investor materials and public reporting, yet which chose not to receive a formal CDP score in 2025. Their presence in this category is a signal the market will not ignore.

Why would a company opt to be Not Scored instead of Not Disclosed? 

Not Scored is a middle ground where company is still providing their data organised by CDP to investor stakeholders and supply chain partners but they not worrying about the scoring rules. The benefit of this approach is that while still offering your stakeholders data transparency you are also protecting risk of a bad score from CDP. Many sustainability leaders have been put into an emergency when they had their company CDP score drop and they needed to attempt to appeal. Not scoring a response is a less aggressive move than entirely stopping your disclosure to CDP. The problem for large companies who stop disclosing entirely to CDP is that in this case their data would no longer be available in the widely used CDP datasets. 

What Should Investors and Supply Chain Partners Make of It?

For investors using CDP scores as a climate screening tool, a company choosing not to be scored removes a key data point without removing the underlying performance data. The disclosure is still there — but the independent assessment of its quality is not. Investors should consider how much do they rely on the underlying CDP score versus making an independent assessment of the score based on the raw data. If you are an investor and you care about the score specifically, be sure to communicate this to companies you invest in so they are aware that this is something to focus on. 

The same principles apply for supply chain members requesting CDP responses from suppliers, a "Not scored" supplier response requires additional scrutiny. The data may be accurate and comprehensive, but without CDP's scoring assessment, buyers must evaluate quality themselves.

The Transparency Paradox

There is a paradox at the heart of "Not scored" status: a company that completes the full CDP questionnaire is being more transparent than one that does not disclose at all — yet by opting out of scoring, it removes the independent quality signal that makes that transparency meaningful to data users.

As CDP's 2026 cycle introduces further mandatory requirements and new disclosure areas including ocean and expanded forests coverage, the "Not scored" category bears watching. For any company that has previously held A-list status, choosing not to be scored is a decision that will not go unnoticed by the investors and institutional buyers who rely on CDP to separate genuine climate leaders from those simply going through the motions.

Nossa Data helps issuers maintain their CDP scores as requirements evolve. Whether you are defending an A score, recovering from a difficult cycle, or approaching CDP for the first time, our platform gives you the data infrastructure to respond with confidence. Visit nossadata.com to learn more or request a demo on our website here: https://www.nossadata.com/request-a-demo 

Full List: Companies Recorded as "Not Scored" by CDP in 2025

The following 354 companies disclosed to CDP in 2025 but received "Not scored" status for Climate Change:

3M Company (United States) | AB Dynamics plc (United Kingdom) | ABM INVESTAMA TBK PT (Indonesia) | ACOGROUP (France) | AFLAC Incorporated (United States) | AIROHA TECHNOLOGY (Taiwan) | AMP Limited (Australia) | ANZ Group Holdings Limited (Australia) | AO Smith (United States) | ASIAN STAR ANCHOR CHAIN CO LTD JIANGSU (China) | ASMedia Technology Inc. (Taiwan) | AT&T Inc. (United States) | Abanca Corporacion Bancaria S.A (Spain) | Agnico-Eagle Mines Limited (Canada) | Air Products & Chemicals, Inc. (United States) | Airbnb (United States) | Albertsons Companies, Inc. (United States) | Allianz SE (Germany) | Ally Financial Inc (United States) | Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (United States) | Alphabet, Inc. (United States) | Amalgamated Bank (United States) | Amazon.com Inc (United States) | American Airlines Group Inc (United States) | American Electric Power Company, Inc. (United States) | American Express (United States) | Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (United States) | Amoy Diagnostics Co., Ltd. (China) | Analog Devices, Inc. (United States) | Anpec Electronics Corporation (Taiwan) | Ansys Inc. (United States) | Antaros Medical AB (Sweden) | Apple Inc. (United States) | Atlassian Corporation PLC (United States) | Autodesk, Inc. (United States) | Avis Budget Group (United States) | Azkoyen (Spain) | BANIJAY ENTERTAINMENT (France) | BARNES GROUP INC (United States) | BIOVENTUS (United States) | BNY Mellon (United States) | BUMBLE INC A (United States) | Bank of America (United States) | Bank of Montreal (Canada) | Bank of Nova Scotia / Scotiabank (Canada) | Beyond Meat Inc (United States) | Bid Corporation Ltd (South Africa) | BlackRock Inc (United Kingdom) | BlueScope Steel (Australia) | Boeing Company (United States) | Booz Allen Hamilton (United States) | Brown-Forman Corporation (United States) | Budweiser Brewing Company APAC Limited (Hong Kong) | By Light Professional IT Services LLC (United States) | CENTRE FOR PROCESS INNOVATION LIMITED (United Kingdom) | CONVERGE TECH SOLUTION A (Canada) | Cafés Rgc Inc. (Canada) | Campbell Soup Company (United States) | Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce / CIBC (Canada) | Capital One Financial (United States) | Cargill (United States) | Carrier Global Corp (United States) | Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (United States) | Cboe Global Markets, Inc. (United States) | Citigroup Inc. (United States) | Citizens Financial Group Inc (United States) | Citrus Health Group, Inc. (United States) | Clarasight PBC (United States) | Clorox Company (United States) | Colgate Palmolive Company (United States) | Cologix, Inc. (United States) | Comcast Corporation (United States) | Comerica Incorporated (United States) | Commonwealth Bank of Australia (Australia) | Compagnie Financière Richemont SA (Switzerland) | Conagra Brands Inc (United States) | Consolidated Edison, Inc. (United States) | Cornerstone Building Brands, Inc. (United States) | Coupa (United States) | DATAMATICS GLOBAL SERVICES LIMITED (India) | DATASONIC GROUP BERHAD (Malaysia) | DIGITAL CHINA GROUP CO LTD (China) | DONCASTERS LIMITED (United Kingdom) | DREAMFOLKS SERVICES (India) | Davies Office Refurbishing, Inc. (United States) | Deere & Company (United States) | Dell Technologies (United States) | Delta Air Lines (United States) | Devon Energy Corporation (United States) | Dexus (Australia) | DigiPlus Interactive Corp. (Philippines) | Dominion Energy (United States) | Dropbox, Inc. (United States) | Duke Energy Corporation (United States) | ELAN Corporation (Japan) | ENVIPRO HOLDINGS Inc. (Japan) | EOG Resources, Inc. (United States) | EUROFILM MANTZARIS S.A. (Greece) | eBay Inc. (United States) | Echo Global Logistics Inc. (United States) | Enbridge Inc. (Canada) | Enphase Energy Inc (United States) | Essential Utilities, Inc (United States) | Ethos Services SA (Switzerland) | Euro Packaging UK Ltd (United Kingdom) | Evergy, Inc. (United States) | Exelon Corporation (United States) | FELDBERG CAPITAL UK LIMITED (United Kingdom) | FIGS A (United States) | FITIPOWER INTEGRATED (Taiwan) | Fellowes Brands (United States) | Fifth Third Bancorp (United States) | FirstService Corp. (Canada) | Focus Systems Corporation (Japan) | Ford Motor Company (United States) | Franklin Resources, Inc. (United States) | G&P GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED (United Kingdom) | GEI Consultants, Inc. (United States) | GITLAB A (United States) | GOLDEN ERA PRINTERS & STATIONERS PTY LTD (South Africa) | GXO LOGISTICS, INC. (United States) | General Dynamics Corporation (United States) | General Motors Company (United States) | Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (United States) | Granite Construction Inc (United States) | Gravita India Ltd. (India) | Greenly (France) | Grupo Eulen (Spain) | Grupo Palacio de Hierro, S.A.B. de C.V. (Mexico) | Grupo de Inversiones Suramericana SA (Colombia) | Guangdong Fenghua Advanced Technology Holding Co., Ltd (China) | H&R Block Inc (United States) | HARMONY ELECTRONICS (Taiwan) | HERC HOLDINGS INC (United States) | HIGHROAD PRESS LLC (United States) | HSBC Holdings plc (United Kingdom) | Happiest Minds Technologies Ltd. (India) | Harley-Davidson, Inc. (United States) | Helsingin Satama Oy (Finland) | Hertz Global Holdings (United States) | Hilton Worldwide, Inc. (United States) | Himile Mechanical Science and Technology (Shandong) Co., Ltd. (China) | Holaluz-Clidom, S.A. (Spain) | Hormel Foods (United States) | Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (United States) | Humana Inc. (United States) | Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (United States) | Hyatt Hotels Corporation (United States) | I G PETROCHEMICALS LIMITED (India) | ID Logistics (France) | IEIT SYSTEMS Co., Ltd. (China) | INDUSTRIAS DUREINO SA (Brazil) | ING Group (Netherlands) | INPAQ TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD (Taiwan) | ISOFTSTONE INFO A (China) | Incheon International Airport Corporation (South Korea) | Incyte Corp (United States) | Infinera Corporation (United States) | Intact Financial Corporation (Canada) | Intego Group, LLC (United States) | Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corporation (United States) | Intellect Design Arena Ltd (United Kingdom) | Intercontinental Exchange Inc (United States) | International Business Machines / IBM (United States) | International Consolidated Airlines Group, S.A. (United Kingdom) | Itera ASA (Norway) | J M HUBER (United States) | JLL (United States) | JPMorgan Chase & Co. (United States) | JSE Ltd (South Africa) | JTP CO.,Ltd. (Japan) | Janus Henderson Group PLC (United Kingdom) | Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (United States) | Jiangsu Hanvo Safety Product Co., Ltd. (China) | Jotun (Norway) | Jubilant Pharmova Limited (India) | Julius Bär Group LTD (Switzerland) | K92 MINING (Canada) | KINGSTATE ELECTRONICS (Taiwan) | KYNTUS (France) | Kaiser Permanente (United States) | Kandelium Care GmbH (Germany) | Kellanova (United States) | Keurig Dr Pepper (United States) | KeyCorp (United States) | Kinder Morgan Inc. (United States) | Korea Transportation Safety Authority (South Korea) | L3Harris Technologies INC (United States) | LATENTVIEW ANALYTICS CORPORATION (India) | LAU LAGUN BEARINGS SL (Spain) | Landis+Gyr (Switzerland) | Lockheed Martin Corporation (United States) | Loram Maintenance of Way, Inc. (United States) | Lunit Inc. (South Korea) | Luxnet Corporation (Taiwan) | L'OCCITANE International (Suisse) SA (Switzerland) | M&T Bank Corporation (United States) | MALAYSIA AVIATION GROUP BERHAD (Malaysia) | MANUTAN INTERNATIONAL (France) | METALFRIO SOLUTIONS SA (Brazil) | MGE Energy Inc. (United States) | Macquarie Group (Australia) | Manulife Financial Corp. (Canada) | Maple Leaf Foods Inc (Canada) | Markdom Componentes de México, S.A. de C.V (Mexico) | Marriott International, Inc. (United States) | Mars (United States) | Mastercard Incorporated (United States) | Mattel, Inc. (United States) | McKesson Corporation (United States) | Meta (United States) | MetLife, Inc. (United States) | Metro AG (Germany) | Microbiologos Asociados S.A. (Costa Rica) | Microsoft Corporation (United States) | Mission Produce (United States) | Mohawk Industries, Inc. (United States) | Morgan Stanley (United States) | Musashi Seimitsu Industry Co., Ltd. (Japan) | NAPCO NATIONAL (Saudi Arabia) | NIKE Inc. (United States) | NRG Energy Inc (United States) | National Australia Bank (Australia) | National Bank of Canada (Canada) | New Balance Athletics, Inc. (United States) | New Japan Chemical Co., Ltd. (Japan) | NextEra Energy, Inc. (United States) | NiSource Inc. (United States) | Nimir Industrial Chemicals Limited (Pakistan) | Nippon Steel Trading Corporation (Japan) | Nomura Holdings, Inc. (Japan) | Northern Trust (United States) | Northrop Grumman Corp (United States) | Nutrien Ltd. (Canada) | OMAN TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY (Oman) | OPEN (France) | Oil Refineries Limited (Israel) | PARISIAN MIDCO / GROUP NETCEED (France) | PLURALSIGHT LLC (United States) | POLYTRONICS (Taiwan) | PR TIMES, Inc. (Japan) | PROGYNY INC (United States) | PayPal Holdings Inc (United States) | Peach Warehouse LLC (United States) | Pembina Pipeline Corporation (Canada) | Perkins Eastman Architects (United States) | Philip Morris International Inc. (Switzerland) | Pinnacle West Capital Corporation (United States) | Pinterest Inc (United States) | Plastigaur (Spain) | Prudential Financial, Inc. (United States) | Q2 HOLDINGS (United States) | QBE Insurance Group (Australia) | QUECTEL WIRELESS SOLUTIONS (China) | QUEST HOLDINGS S.A. (Greece) | RAMBUS (United States) | RPS CONSULTING PRIVATE LIMITED (India) | RS Technologies Co., Ltd. (Japan) | Raahen Satama Oy (Finland) | Rabobank Group (Netherlands) | Red Bull (Austria) | Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (United States) | Reunert (South Africa) | Robert Half Inc. (United States) | Royal Bank of Canada (Canada) | S&P Global (United States) | SABIC (Saudi Arabia) | SAN FANG CHEMICAL INDUSTRY CO., LTD. (Taiwan) | SANDEN VIKAS (INDIA) PRIVATE LIMITED (India) | SENDEN CLUB, INC. (Japan) | SEPLAT ENERGY PLC (Nigeria) | SERVICE STREAM LIMITED (Australia) | SHENZHEN LAIBAO HI-TECH CO., LTD (China) | STAGWELL A (United States) | SUZUYO SHINWART CORPORATION (Japan) | SYLVERA LTD (United Kingdom) | SYRMA TECH (India) | Salesforce, Inc. (United States) | SeAH Steel Corporation (South Korea) | Sempra (United States) | Services Industriels de Genève / SIG (Switzerland) | Sinopec (Ecuador) | Song Hong Garment Joint Stock Company (Vietnam) | Southwest Airlines Co. (United States) | Spirit Aerosystems Holdings Inc (United States) | Sri Trang Gloves Thailand PCL (Thailand) | Starbucks Corporation (United States) | Stryker Corporation (United States) | Sun Life Financial Inc. (Canada) | SunOpta Inc. (Canada) | Suncorp Group (Australia) | Sunshine Global Circuits Co., Ltd. (China) | Suzhou Dongshan precision manufacturing Co., LTD. (China) | Suzhou Hengmingda Electronic Technology Co., Ltd. (China) | Suzhou Weixi Wire electrical appliances Co (China) | T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. (United States) | TAIPASTUR TRANSPORTES TURISTICOS LTDA (Brazil) | TC Energy (Canada) | TD Bank Group (Canada) | THE BOOTS GROUP LIMITED (United Kingdom) | TPC Printing & Packaging (United States) | TRUE VALUE CONFERENCES ORGANIZING (United Arab Emirates) | TWINBEE-HOME SL. (Spain) | Telecom Plus (United Kingdom) | The AES Corporation (United States) | The AZEK Co Inc (United States) | The Coca-Cola Company (United States) | The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc (United States) | The Walt Disney Company (United States) | Toro Co. (United States) | TotalEnergies SE (France) | Truist Financial Corp. (United States) | Tyler Technologies Inc (United States) | UFP TECHNOLOGIES INC (United States) | US Foods, Inc. (United States) | UTZ Brands, Inc. (United States) | UWC (Malaysia) | Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. (United States) | UniTest Incorporation (South Korea) | Unilever plc (United Kingdom) | United Airlines Holdings (United States) | Universal Music Group N.V. (United States) | VITAL FARMS (United States) | Vail Resorts (United States) | Varex Imaging Corporation (United States) | Verizon Communications Inc. (United States) | Viaplay Group AB (Sweden) | Vista Energy, S.A.B. de C.V. (Mexico) | Vopak (Netherlands) | W.R. Grace & Co. (United States) | WALTON ADVANCED ENGINEERING, INC. (Taiwan) | WEC Energy Group (United States) | WISE PLC (United Kingdom) | Wabtec Corp. (United States) | Walgreen Co. (United States) | Walmart, Inc. (United States) | Warehouse Services, Inc. (United States) | Warner Bros. Discovery (United States) | Wasko S.A. (Poland) | Well Shin Technology (Taiwan) | Wells Fargo & Company (United States) | Western Union Co (United States) | Westpac Banking Corporation (Australia) | Weyerhaeuser Company (United States) | Whirlpool Corporation (United States) | Williams-Sonoma Inc (United States) | Wyndham Hotels & Resorts (United States) | XTC NEW ENERGY MATERIALS (XIAMEN) CO LTD (China) | YMC CO., Ltd. (South Korea) | Youngone Corporation (South Korea) | Zilia Technologies Indústria e Comércio de Componentes Eletrônicos Ltda. (Brazil) | Zotefoams (United Kingdom) | Zurich Insurance Group (Switzerland) | kenda manufacturing hr d.o.o. (Croatia)