The CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project) is a global non-profit organization that operates the world’s primary environmental disclosure system for companies, cities, states, and regions. Founded in 2000, the NGO has expanded its scope to include not only information on climate impact, but also on forests, water security, plastics, biodiversity and oceans. CDP is a voluntary reporting system which has become the "gold standard" for environmental transparency, holding the largest and most comprehensive dataset on corporate and municipal environmental impact.

At the core of the CDP disclosure lies their annually updated integrated questionnaire.

Structure and Criteria of the CDP Questionnaire

Companies carry out the CDP-Rating by answering a questionnaire via CDP's Online Reporting System (ORS).

If a company is asked to complete the CDP questionnaire at the customer's request or decides to do so voluntarily, it can download the questionnaire as a PDF from the CDP website before the portal officially opens. These documents are often over 100 pages long. This marks the start of the CDP preparation process, which is usually the most time-consuming for the company.

Since April 2024, CDP has been offering a new questionnaire format, which comprises the previous three questionnaires into one integrated questionnaire. As of 2026, it covers the following topics:

• Climate change
• Forests
• Water security
• Biodiversity
• Plastics
• Oceans

The integrated company questionnaire helps stakeholders to better understand their environmental impacts in context of business activities, value chain and financial decisions.

Not every company is required to disclose data on all environmental topics or answer all questions when completing the integrated questionnaire. However, all companies are assessed against climate change indicators, while questions on forests and water security are tailored to the specific relevance and operations of each company.

In general, the length of the questionnaire may vary depending on the response to specific questions. For example, there could be a series of follow-up questions after a previous question has been answered with "yes". Many of the questions are questions about quantitative data. The further companies progress on their path to sustainability, the longer and more comprehensive their questionnaire is likely to become.

Structure of the Integrated CDP Questionnaire (as of 2026)

The 2026 CDP questionnaire comprises 13 modules. Modules 1 to 6 as well as 12 and 13 are integrated: questions in these modules cover more than one disclosure topic. In contrast, modules 7 to 11 focus on environmental performance, while each module is dedicated to a specific disclosure topic. Companies in the financial services sector receive Module 12, an integrated, sector-specific environmental performance assessment module.

All companies receive questions on climate change data points, as well as supplementary questions on plastics and biodiversity. Data points on forests and water security are only requested if the company has either applied for these topics or voluntarily decides to report on them. The complete CDP company questionnaire is completed in the following steps:

• Module 1-6, 13 (integrated modules): Cover several environmental areas
• Module 7-11 (environmental performance): Specific environmental topics
• Module 12 (for the financial sector): Sector-specific environmental performance data

For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), there is a simplified version of the questionnaire that includes fewer data points.

Further details on the individual modules of CDP (2026 questionnaire pending, release in April 2026): Modules 1-6, 7, and 8-13.

Criteria for Selection of Data Points for the CDP Questionnaire

The full CDP questionnaire requires companies to take comprehensive and effective action on a wide range of environmental issues in order to integrate climate and nature protection into their corporate strategy. CDP recommends following the principles for truthful and fair reporting based on the Greenhouse Gas Protocol:

1. Relevance: Ensure that emissions and water consumption reflect actual environmental impacts and support decision-making by internal and external users.
2. Completeness: Report all relevant sources of emissions, water activities and potential forest risks.
3. Consistency: Use consistent methodologies to enable comparisons over time.
4. Transparency: Report clearly and comprehensibly, taking into account all relevant assumptions, sources, and changes.
5. Accuracy: Provide accurate data to ensure informed decision-making.

CDP Questionnaire Updates: Changes in 2026

CDP adapts the questionnaire every year to drive business ambition and support companies and financial markets in the transformation to a 1.5 °C deforestation-free and water-secure world.

When reporting, companies must pay particular attention to high-quality, transparent and verified data in order to meet the increasing requirements in the area of sustainability and therefore also the CDP questionnaire. In 2026, CDP this year’s updates focus on closing the gaps between climate, water, and land, while introducing brand-new frontiers like ocean health.

At a Glance: What’s New for the 2026 Cycle?

• The Blue Frontier: For the first time, CDP is introducing Ocean questions into CDP’s existing disclosure framework. The Ocean content will not be scored in 2026.
• Expanded Forest Scoring: The "big four" commodities (Cattle, Soy, Palm Oil, Timber) are being joined by Cocoa, Coffee, and Rubber as formally scored commodities.
• Stronger Framework Connection: Alignment with the Science Based Targets Network (SBTN) and TNFD is deepening. Expect more stringent requirements for "no-deforestation" and "no-conversion" targets.
• Climate Resilience & Adaptation: Existing questions towards physical environmental risks are being broadened to capture how an organization is actually adapting to physical climate risks.
• Key Updates on SMEs metrics: Small and medium enterprises will face updated metrics for water and forests and the introduction of an SME Climate Change 'A' Score.

Please note: The full and final 2026 questionnaire and guidance will be made available prior to the opening of the 2026 cycle in the week of April 20. This will include the updated CDP’s scoring methodology and a detailed mapping document to help stakeholders navigate all changes and updates at the question level. 

Update Alert: Stay ahead of the curve as we keep you up to date on the most important changes in the 2026 CDP Questionnaire.

Tips from the CDP Adaptation of 2026

Responding to the CDP questionnaire is a complex task that requires careful planning, accurate data and coordinated teamwork. As a CDP Accredited Solutions Provider, we have already successfully guided several companies through the questionnaire process. From our experience with clients, we have compiled the following best practices and tips:

1. Make changes and adjustments to answers: Depending on the question and answer, additional questions may be activated in the questionnaire that still need to be answered (and which can be easily overlooked!).
2. Check complex tables: Some questions with tables appear to be completed at first glance, but are still rated as "in progress" by CDP. It is therefore important to expand tables completely and check that all cells are filled in — they often contain extensive information that is easily overlooked.
3. Use required units for the data: Work closely with your team to ensure consistency of data and correct use of units. You may be working internally with different units than those specified by CDP for data entry.
4. Allow sufficient time: Start sufficiently in advance of the deadline with a final data check and a sanity check of the entire questionnaire to ensure a correct data basis for the evaluation. We recommend that you ideally allow 2 to 4 weeks for the sanity check.
5. Working together for success: Comprehensive questionnaires such as CDP's require collaboration between different departments. Early and close cooperation between sustainability, finance, IT, HR and other teams is crucial.

Book a demo now to learn how Sunhat can help you with your next CDP assessment!