Amid Changing ESG Rules, U.S. Companies Continued to Step Up Sustainability Reporting
S&P 500® Reaches 99% Reporting; Russell 1000® Increases to 94%
Governance & Accountability Institute, Inc. (G&A) is pleased to share the 14th annual edition of our research series tracking the sustainability reporting trends of the largest U.S. publicly-traded companies.
G&A’s 2025 Sustainability Reporting in Focus research on companies in the S&P 500® Index and the Russell 1000® Index shows substantial increases in sustainability reporting for both large-cap and mid-cap U.S. public companies, as the mandated disclosure requirements for U.S. companies beginning in 2026 in the EU and California.
Key Report Findings
A record 94% of Russell 1000 companies reported on sustainability in 2024, up from 93% in 2023.
The smaller half by market cap of the Russell 1000 (mid-cap companies with approximately $2 billion-$4 billion in market cap) had the greatest alignment in reporting in 2024 - reaching 90% compared to 87% in 2023.
The larger half by market cap of the Russell 1000 (i.e., the S&P 500) are nearing 100% reporters with a record 99% reporting on sustainability in 2024, compared to 98.6% in 2023.
SASB continued to be the most widely used sustainability standard, with 82% of Russell 1000 reporters aligning with SASB in 2024, compared to 81% in 2023 and only 12% in 2019.
TCFD reporting continued to increase, with 65% of Russell 1000 reporters aligning with TCFD in 2024, compared to 60% in 2023 and only 4% in 2019.
GRI reporters remained consistent among the Russell 1000 with 55% aligning with GRI in 2024 - the same compared to 2023.
For the first time, G&A’s 2025 research includes data on the adoption of three recent sustainability reporting initiatives: the ISSB’s International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Sustainability Standards, the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), and the Task Force for Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD).
Our research also includes sector-specific analysis of reporting trends within all 11 sectors of the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®), to provide additional insights into reporting behavior per industry sector.
For the complete findings of our 2025 Sustainability Reporting in Focus report, please complete the form on this page to download your copy of the report.
