Free tool

Materiality Matrix Builder

Plot your CSRD sustainability topics on a double materiality matrix. Start from the ESRS topical list, score each topic on impact and financial materiality, and see your priorities laid out: a working aid for your double materiality assessment.

A presentation aid, not a CSRD requirement

Under CSRD double materiality, a topic is material if it crosses your threshold on the impact axis or the financial axis, not necessarily both. The matrix is an optional way to visualise a double materiality assessment; the actual requirement is a documented, IRO-based assessment. Score each topic from 0 to 5 on each axis below.

Topics and scores

1 of 10 material
4 / 5
4 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5
2 / 5

Your matrix

Impact materiality (vertical) against financial materiality (horizontal). The shaded top-right band is high on both; topics past the threshold on either axis are material.

Impact materiality
E1
E2
E3
E4
E5
S1
S2
S3
S4
G1
Financial materiality
Material (past threshold on either axis)Below threshold

The CSRD Brief

Download the Double Materiality Assessment workbook

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Double materiality, explainedThe 12 ESRS standards

This is a working aid to help you visualise a double materiality assessment, not a CSRD deliverable or legal advice. The formal requirement is a documented, IRO-based assessment.

The short version

How the double materiality matrix works

Two axes, two definitions of materiality, one rule for what counts. Here is the picture in plain English.

TL;DR

Under CSRD double materiality, you score each topic on impact materiality (effect on people and planet) and financial materiality (effect on enterprise value). A topic is material, and must be disclosed, if it crosses your threshold on either axis. The matrix is an optional way to visualise this; the requirement is a documented, IRO-based assessment.

Two axes, not one blended score

The defining feature of CSRD is double materiality. Impact materiality (inside-out) is how your business affects people and the environment across the value chain. Financial materiality (outside-in) is how sustainability issues create risks and opportunities that affect your cash flows, performance and access to finance. These are two separate lenses, scored separately, not merged into one importance number. European Commission, CSRD overview

Material under either lens

A topic is material if it crosses the threshold on impact materiality or on financial materiality. It does not need to be material under both. This is why a 2x2 grid can mislead: a topic sitting low-financial but high-impact is still material and must be disclosed. Some companies now prefer ranked tables or heat maps for exactly this reason. EFRAG, materiality assessment guidance (IG 1)

The matrix is the output, not the assessment

The matrix is an explanatory aid. ESRS requires a documented assessment of impacts, risks and opportunities (IROs), with defined thresholds you can show an auditor. Use this builder to visualise and prioritise, then take the result into a proper double materiality assessment. Our DMA workbook walks through the steps.

Topic-level first, then drill down

EFRAG's revised guidance endorses a top-down approach: conclude materiality at topic level first using your strategy and sector context, then score individual IROs only for topics that pass the initial filter. This builder works at topic level, which is the right altitude to start.

Materiality questions people ask

What is a materiality matrix?

A materiality matrix is the visual output of a materiality assessment: a chart that plots sustainability topics by importance so readers can see priorities at a glance. Under CSRD double materiality, one axis is impact materiality (effect on people and planet) and the other is financial materiality (effect on enterprise value). Topics in the top-right are high on both.

What goes on the X and Y axis?

Under CSRD double materiality, the horizontal axis is typically financial materiality (how sustainability issues affect the company financially) and the vertical axis is impact materiality (how the company affects people and the environment). This replaces the older single-materiality framing of business importance against stakeholder importance.

Is a materiality matrix required under CSRD?

No. The matrix is an optional presentation aid, not a CSRD requirement. What ESRS requires is a documented double materiality assessment based on impacts, risks and opportunities (IROs) with defined thresholds. A topic is material, and must be disclosed, if it crosses the threshold on either the impact or the financial axis, even if it is low on the other.

How is a double materiality matrix different from the old version?

The classic single-materiality matrix blended everything into one importance score (often business importance vs stakeholder importance). The double materiality version uses two distinct definitions: impact materiality and financial materiality. A topic can be material from the impact side alone even with no near-term financial effect, which is why some companies now prefer ranked tables or heat maps over a 2x2 grid.

This is a working aid to help you orient, not a CSRD deliverable or legal advice. The formal requirement is a documented, IRO-based double materiality assessment.

Sources

  1. [1]European Commission, Corporate sustainability reportingretrieved 8 Jun 2026
  2. [2]EFRAG, sustainability reporting and materiality guidanceretrieved 8 Jun 2026