An energy audit lives or dies on the site data. Whether you are running an ESOS assessment for a large undertaking or gathering the numbers behind a SECR disclosure, the analysis is only as good as the meter readings, asset ratings and significant energy uses captured on the ground. That capture is usually the messy part: a site visit, a spreadsheet, and weeks of chasing the one boiler rating nobody wrote down. So the real question about a carbon and energy audit app is not which one models best. It is which tool gets the site data captured completely on the walk, so the analysis is not waiting on an email.
Guide · Carbon and energy
Carbon and energy audit app for the UK.
A practical guide to capturing site energy data for ESOS and SECR, from spreadsheets and site visits to a WhatsApp workflow your assessors already know, so meter readings, asset data and evidence are gathered on site rather than chased by email.
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The point
Software does not sign off the assessment.
The lead assessor and the responsible board do, for ESOS, and the directors do for SECR. Software makes the site energy data easier to capture on the visit, harder to leave a meter unread, and faster to hand to the analysis. A good tool means nobody emails round chasing a boiler rating three weeks after the site walk.
Where it fits the audit
The data an energy audit gathers.
Metering
Meter reads and half-hourly
Electricity, gas and other fuel meter readings and identifiers, captured on the site walk with a photo of each meter.
AssetsPlant, HVAC and lighting
Boilers, chillers, HVAC, lighting and major loads recorded with make, model and rating, so the energy model has real inputs.
Transport and processSignificant energy uses
Fleet, process loads and other significant energy uses logged as evidence for the ESOS or SECR narrative.
The friction
The data arrives late and thin.
An energy audit built from a spreadsheet and a site visit often stalls because a meter reading is missing or an asset rating was never noted. The assessor chases by email, the site contact half-remembers, and the analysis waits. Capturing every meter, asset and significant use at the point of the walk, with a photo, is what keeps the audit moving.
Run energy audits on WhatsApp
No app install. No training.
Assessors capture site data from the phone they already have. Text, voice note or photo of the meter and the plate. The audit assembles itself. Setup to first live workflow usually takes under a week.
The short version
- ESOS, the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme, requires qualifying large UK undertakings to audit their energy use each phase and identify savings.
- SECR, Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting, requires many companies to report energy use and carbon emissions in their annual accounts.
- Both depend on accurate site data: meter readings, asset ratings and significant energy uses.
- The lead assessor signs off ESOS and directors are responsible for SECR; the software gathers the evidence, it does not sign it off.
- Per-report pricing beats per-seat for firms with a mix of field assessors and office analysts, because adding people is free.
- The software captures and timestamps the site data. The competent assessor and the responsible directors carry the validity.
The point
What a carbon and energy audit app is actually for
ESOS, the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme, is a mandatory energy assessment scheme for large undertakings in the UK. Each phase, qualifying organisations must measure their total energy consumption, audit a significant proportion of it, identify cost-effective energy savings, and have the assessment signed off by a lead assessor and the board. SECR, Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting, requires many large companies and LLPs to report their energy use and greenhouse gas emissions within their annual reports.
Software does not sign off either. The lead assessor and the responsible board do for ESOS; the directors do for SECR. What software does is make the site energy data easier to capture in full on the visit, harder to leave incomplete, and faster to move into the analysis. A good tool means the meter reads and asset ratings arrive with the site walk, not three weeks of chasing later.
The site data
Meters, assets and significant uses
An energy audit needs three things off the site. Metering: electricity, gas and other fuel meter readings and identifiers, ideally with half-hourly data where it exists. Assets: the boilers, chillers, HVAC, lighting and major loads, with make, model and rating so the energy model has real inputs rather than assumptions. Significant energy uses: transport and fleet, process loads, and anything else that moves the total.
Quickler prompts for each of these on the site walk, with a photo of the meter or the asset plate attached at the point of observation. The office sees the audit status on a dashboard without chasing. It does not perform the ESOS analysis, calculate the carbon figures or replace the lead assessor's judgement; those remain the competent assessor's work, which is where the value sits.
ESOS and SECR
Who signs, and what changes
ESOS runs in phases with compliance deadlines, and the assessment must be reviewed and signed off by a lead assessor and at a board level, then notified to the regulator. SECR sits inside the annual accounts and is the directors' responsibility, reported against a defined methodology. The two overlap in the underlying energy data but differ in scope, thresholds and deadlines.
Quickler is a tool for gathering and evidencing the site data both depend on. It does not determine whether your organisation qualifies, calculate the reported figures, or carry the sign-off. This is guidance, not compliance or legal advice, and the ESOS phases, SECR requirements and the wider path to net zero all change, so check the current scheme rules and thresholds and work with a competent assessor.
Pricing
Per report, not per seat
Most energy and audit tools charge per seat. For an energy consultancy or an in-house team that is the wrong shape. The analyst who builds the model pays the same as the assessors capturing data across a dozen sites, and every subcontract assessor you add costs more.
Quickler charges per report, with unlimited users on every bundle. Bundles run from Quickler 50 at 50 pounds a month for 50 reports, up to Quickler 500 at 500 pounds a month for 500 reports. Add as many assessors, analysts and admins as you like; you pay for the audits you file, not the people who could file them. Pricing is approximate and shifts, so check the current pricing page before you commit.
Questions, answered
What is a carbon and energy audit app?
It is a tool that helps an assessor capture site energy data for schemes like ESOS and SECR: meter readings, asset ratings and significant energy uses. The options range from spreadsheets and site visits, to general audit apps, to conversation-based tools like Quickler that run the data capture over WhatsApp so there is no app to install. The captured data still feeds your energy analysis.
Does the app produce the ESOS or SECR figures?
No. ESOS is signed off by a lead assessor and the board, and SECR is the directors' responsibility, reported against a defined methodology. Quickler captures and structures the site energy data those assessments depend on; it does not perform the analysis, calculate the carbon figures, or carry the sign-off. The competent assessor and the responsible directors carry the validity.
Can I capture energy audit data over WhatsApp?
Yes. Quickler's workflow runs over the WhatsApp Business API. The assessor receives each data prompt in their existing WhatsApp chat, replies with text, a voice note or a photo of the meter or the asset plate, and the audit assembles itself with a timestamp on every entry. No separate app or login is required, and Quickler manages the WhatsApp Business API account on the firm's behalf.
Does the software tell me if I qualify for ESOS or SECR?
No. Whether your organisation qualifies depends on thresholds and definitions that change between phases and schemes. Quickler helps you gather and evidence the site data an assessment needs, but it does not determine qualification or calculate reported figures. This is guidance, not compliance advice; check the current scheme rules and thresholds and work with a competent assessor.