As scrutiny of ESG ratings increases, investors are looking beyond scores to the underlying data and wider sources of insight. 

The ESG data and investment landscape has experienced considerable turbulence since the ERM Sustainability Institute last examined investor perspectives on ESG ratings in 2023. Surging sustainable finance regulation, increasing mandatory corporate disclosure, and direct oversight of ESG ratings providers have intensified scrutiny.  

Last year, the ERM Sustainability Institute published the 2025 Corporate Edition of Rate the Raters, exploring how global companies perceive and engage with ESG ratings and data. The 2026 Investor Edition complements the 2025 research with insights from global investment professionals, examining how investors use ESG ratings, underlying ESG data, and other sources of sustainability information in investment decision-making.

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The findings reveal where investor and corporate perspectives align, where they differ, and what this means for the future of ESG ratings. Key findings include: 

  1. Although they remain relevant to investors, ESG ratings and top-level scores are no longer the leading source of information for investment decisions and are increasingly treated as one input among many.
  2. Investors prefer the underlying data behind ESG ratings to top-level scores and increasingly use it to support proprietary research and investment analysis.
  3. Investors are becoming more selective in their choice of providers, weighing factors such as data integration, price, coverage, and topic-specific expertise.
  4. Investors are becoming more critical of ESG ratings, with declines in average perceived quality, usefulness, and trust since 2023.

Read the full report to discover: 

  • How investors rank ESG ratings providers on quality and usefulness
  • How investors use ratings and underlying data in investment processes
  • Why investors are becoming more selective in their choice of ESG ratings providers
  • How investor perspectives compare to corporate views
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