Transparent pricing for non-financial assurance
What is our approach to pricing?
Unlike traditional firms that hide behind “it depends”, we have built our pricing around clarity, predictability and value.
After 15 years of assurance work, we’ve learned that unclear pricing creates:
- procurement paralysis (you don't call because you assume we're too expensive)
- budget surprises (scope creep and hourly billing spirals out of control)
- misaligned incentives (we get paid more when projects take longer)
We've designed our pricing to eliminate these problems:
✓ Fixed fees for 3-year engagements (predictability)
✓ All travel costs included and billed as one lump sum (no surprise invoices)
✓ Senior experts, not junior staff charging senior rates
✓ AI-powered efficiency passed on to you as cost savings
✓ One integrated price for coherent assurance (not separate bills from 5 vendors)
Does assurance pay for itself?
Cost of borrowing impact
Companies with verified ESG data often secure loan terms that are 25–50 basis points better. On $50m of debt, that’s $125k–$250k per year in savings.
Greenwashing risk mitigation
The average cost of a sustainability scandal is $2m–$50m, compared with $75k–$125k per year for prevention through assurance.
ESG rating improvement
ISO 37001 certification, by way of example, typically adds 15–20 points to MSCI ratings. Higher ratings mean a lower cost of capital and increased investor access.
Time savings
Nicole AI reduces report preparation time by 40%. The value of sustainability team time saved is $30k–$60k per year.
Pricing guidance for key solutions
While there are many factors to consider, we have outlined some of the key factors and provided guidance on selected solutions in USD. This information should be used as a guide only, as each circumstance is considered separately.
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Typical range: $75,000–$125,000 per year (three-year commitment)
Industry guidance suggests sustainability assurance typically costs 30-40% of your financial audit fee.
Factors that influence your specific price:
- Assurance level: limited vs reasonable assurance
- Reporting framework: ESRS, IFRS S1/S2, GRI or multiple
- Data maturity: spreadsheets vs integrated systems
- Company complexity: business units, geographies, supply chain
- Stakeholder engagement: board interviews, site visits required
What's included:
✓ Annual assurance opinion letter
✓ Detailed findings report with improvement recommendations
✓ Nicole AI-powered initial review (saves 40% of traditional time)
✓ All travel costs for our senior auditors
✓ Quarterly check-ins to support continuous improvement
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Typical Range: $10,000 - $75,000 (initial certification + 3-year surveillance)
ISO certification provides market-recognized credibility for your management systems.
Factors that influence your specific price:
- Number of standards (single vs integrated management system)
- Company size: employees, locations, operational complexity
- Current system maturity: starting from scratch vs refining existing
- Surveillance requirements: annual audit scope
What's included:
✓ Stage 1 and Stage 2 certification audits
✓ Annual surveillance audits (years 2-3)
✓ Certificate and official documentation
✓ All auditor travel and expenses
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Typical Range: 10,000 - 100,000/annum
Our AI-powered ESG management platform with Nicole AI embedded.
Pricing depends on:
- modules needed: reporting, carbon accounting, supplier management, whistleblowing etc.
- company size and user count
- implementation complexity
- training and support requirements
What's included:
✓ Speeki Engage® platform access
✓ Nicole AI for automated ESG analysis
✓ Pre-built templates and frameworks
✓ Ongoing platform updates
✓ Customer success support
N.B. There is no financial benefit to bundling assurance and technology from Speeki. We always keep our assurance pricing independent, and no ‘discount’ is provided because you are a technology client.
“Another global certification body could have given us a certificate. Speeki gave us a competitive advantage. The price difference was minimal, the value difference was massive."
— Head of Compliance, Engineering Firm, 2025
Our pricing model is heavily impacted by three key factors
Project scope
Each project is scoped by our team to determine the required expertise, resources and timing. Once sufficient information is available and scoping is complete, pricing is fixed and rarely changes.
Experts used
We have built a team of highly qualified leaders who conduct our audits. We assign senior experts based on the project and, where needed, supplement them with additional resources.
Our rate
Our pricing model depends on the project and is either a daily rate or a fixed project rate based on an agreed scope. Our rates reflect the expertise of the resources assigned.
What makes Speeki’s pricing different to our competitors?
The Speeki advantage when engaging us as your assurance partner:
Speeki is business-minded, not process-minded
Speeki focuses on building competitive advantage, whereas traditional ISO bodies focus on checking boxes
When you work with Speeki, you work with senior business leaders who understand how ESG creates shareholder value. When you work with mega certification bodies, you work with auditors trained to follow compliance checklists
The question isn't "Can we get certified?"
The question is "How do we use certification strategically?"
Speeki answers the second question.
We always hear this feedback about our mega certification body competitors:
Commoditisation problem: Pricing has been historically deflated, leading to a downward spiral in auditor calibre
Process-focused, not business-minded: Checklist auditors who don't understand business strategy
Auditor quality issues: Auditors who do not fully understand the standards they are auditing
Poor value perception: Customers feel they get poor value for money
Rising costs, declining quality: Costs have continued to increase at an unjustifiable rate while the quality of auditors has severely diminished
Auditor turnover: Frequent introduction of unfamiliar auditors to projects
Not consultative: Certification-only approaches with no strategic improvement guidance
How to reduce your costs
Start with limited assurance for sustainability report assurance
Limited assurance typically costs 40–60% more than reasonable assurance. Unless required by regulation, start with limited assurance and upgrade later.
Implement technology first
Using the Speeki Engage® platform (or a similar platform) before assurance of your sustainability report can reduce auditor time by 30–40% compared with a spreadsheet-based and basic document repository model.
Build ISO certifications first
If you have ISO 14001 (environmental) or ISO 45001 (safety) certification, we can rely on those systems rather than auditing your sustainability report from scratch.
Commit to three or more years
Annual engagements typically cost around 30% more per year than three-year commitments. For most projects, the longer the commitment, the better the pricing.
What actually drives your assurance costs?
Three key factors that are particularly relevant to sustainability report assurance.
Data system maturity for sustainability report assurance (30-40% impact on cost)
Spreadsheet hell = higher cost
- manual data collection
- version control nightmares
- error-prone calculations
- extensive auditor time verifying
Integrated systems = lower cost
- automated data feeds
- single source of truth
- built-in controls
- Nicole AI can process quickly
Pro tip: Investing in the platforms before assurance can reduce your annual assurance fees by $20,000-50,000.
Reporting framework complexity for sustainability report assurance (20-30% impact)
Lower cost:
- single framework (e.g. CSRD only)
- limited assurance level
- focused scope
Higher cost:
- multiple frameworks (ESRS + IFRS S2 + GRI)
- reasonable assurance level
- comprehensive scope with Scope 3
Company footprint for sustainability report assurance (20-30% impact)
Lower cost:
- single country operation
- one business unit
- clear supply chain
Higher cost:
- multi-country operations
- multiple business units
- complex supply chains requiring supplier audits
We name our team and our plan is that they stay with your project for three years.
Most competitors do not commit to named auditors or professionals. They rely on contractors and often introduce auditors who are unfamiliar with your organisation and project.
This wastes time, increases onboarding effort and adds management overhead. Our approach is to use resources who know your business, understand your projects and have worked with you over multiple years.
Travel costs and taxes are a lump sum and identified up front.
The cost of our AI platform, Engage®, is optional.
There is no obligation to purchase the Engage® platform as part of your assurance project, although we strongly encourage its use.
In many cases, the platform can reduce delivery time and lower overall project costs. In some engagements, particularly ISO certification projects, it does not affect on-site time, as this is governed by ISO accreditation rules.
Some view certification and non-financial audits as commoditised exercises.
We disagree. They require skill, expertise and a commitment to continuous improvement. There is nothing commoditised about the work we deliver, and viewing it that way misses the point.