Free tool

CBAM calculator: estimate embedded emissions and certificate cost

Enter what you import and how carbon-intensive it is to see roughly how many CBAM certificates the EU importer must surrender, and what they cost. The calculation runs in your browser: nothing you type is sent or stored.

· Checked against the official EU texts on that date. CBAM rules and guidance change, so check the latest Commission guidance before you rely on a figure.

Your import

CN 72, 73 and 2601 12 (selected codes)

CN 76 (selected codes)

CN 2523 and 2507 00 80

CN 2808, 2814, 2834 21, 3102, 3105 (selected codes)

CN 2804 10 00

CN 2716 00 00

Sets the CBAM factor and the mark-up on default values.

Specific embedded emissions

Fill in one or both. With both, you see what verified actual data saves compared with default values.

From the Commission’s definitive-period default values for your CN code and country of origin.

Untick it if the value you entered already includes the mark-up.

Calculated for the producing installation and verified by an accredited verifier.

Used for the free allocation adjustment: the benchmark for your CN code in the Annex to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2620.

Only a price actually paid, net of any rebate or compensation, can be deducted. Leave 0 if none was paid.

Prefilled with the latest published quarterly price. Published for 2026: 2026 Q1 €75.36 · 2026 Q2 €75.28 · 2026 Q3 €82.32.

Estimate

CBAM factor for this year
Mark-up on default values

Enter a quantity and at least one emissions value to see the estimate.

No benchmark entered, so the free allocation adjustment is zero and this is an upper bound. While EU producers still receive most of their free allocation (97.5 % of the benchmark in 2026), the real cost can be far lower.

If your imports of iron and steel, aluminium, cement and fertilisers together stay at or below 50 tonnes in the calendar year, you are exempt from CBAM. The threshold counts all these goods together, not each shipment.

Electricity: no free allocation adjustment applies, the 50-tonne threshold does not apply, and default values are the normal case.

Hydrogen is not covered by the 50-tonne threshold: every import is in scope.

Calculated in your browser. Nothing is sent or stored.

How the estimate is calculated

The calculator follows the structure of the CBAM Regulation, (EU) 2023/956, as amended by Regulation (EU) 2025/2083:

  1. Embedded emissions = quantity × specific embedded emissions. A default value is increased by the mark-up of the year (10 % in 2026, 20 % in 2027, 30 % from 2028; 1 % for fertilisers) unless you untick the box.
  2. Free allocation adjustment = quantity × CBAM benchmark × CBAM factor of the year. EU producers of the same goods still receive free EU ETS allowances, which are phased out between 2026 and 2034. The adjustment gives importers the same treatment (Article 31 of the Regulation and Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2620).
  3. Certificates = embedded emissions − free allocation adjustment − the deduction for a carbon price effectively paid in the country of origin (Article 9).
  4. Cost = certificates × certificate price. For goods imported in 2026 the price is the Commission’s quarterly average of EU ETS auction prices for the quarter of import. From 2027 it is published weekly.

The CBAM factor comes from Article 10a(1a) of the EU ETS Directive 2003/87/EC, as amended by Directive (EU) 2023/959. It is the share of free allocation EU producers keep, so the part of their emissions that importers pay for grows as it falls.

CBAM factor and default-value mark-up by year
Year CBAM factor (share of free allocation kept) Mark-up on default values
2026 97.5% +10%
2027 95% +20%
2028 90% +30%
2029 77.5% +30%
2030 51.5% +30%
2031 39% +30%
2032 26.5% +30%
2033 14% +30%
2034+ 0% +30%

Fertilisers: +1% in every year.

Assumptions and limits

  • Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2620 also applies the EU ETS cross-sectoral correction factor. The calculator sets it to 1.
  • The carbon price deduction is simplified: the price you enter is assumed to have been paid on all emissions that need certificates, with no rebate or free allocation in the country of origin. The binding rules are in Article 9 of the Regulation and the Commission’s implementing act.
  • For iron and steel, aluminium and hydrogen only direct emissions count. For cement and fertilisers, indirect emissions (from the electricity used in production) are included (Annex II of the Regulation). Enter the specific embedded emissions on that basis.
  • Electricity is entered in MWh and has no free allocation adjustment.
  • Without a benchmark the adjustment is zero, so the result overstates the cost.
  • One certificate price is applied to the whole quantity. In practice each quarter (2026) or week (from 2027) has its own price.
  • The quarterly holding requirement, verification costs and penalties are not included.

Getting the inputs right

Two inputs move the result most: the specific embedded emissions and the benchmark. Both are set per CN code.

  • Default values are published per CN code and country of origin in Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2621, corrected by Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1740 with effect from 1 January 2026. Read our guide to CBAM default values.
  • Actual values come from the producing installation. They are calculated with the CBAM methodology and verified by an accredited verifier. Producers in Türkiye can read what EU buyers ask for.
  • CBAM benchmarks are listed per CN code in the Annex to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2620. Some CN codes have different benchmarks for different production routes, and when default values are used the benchmark that belongs to them applies. Check the annex for your code.
  • Certificate prices are published on the Commission’s CBAM certificate price page.

Frequently asked questions

Is the CBAM calculator free, and is my data stored?
It is free and needs no account. The estimate is calculated in your browser. The page has no form that sends your numbers anywhere, and nothing is saved.

Which certificate price should I use?
For goods imported in 2026, the Commission publishes one price per quarter: the average of EU ETS auction clearing prices in that quarter. Use the price of the quarter in which the goods were imported. Certificates for 2026 imports go on sale on 1 February 2027. From 2027 the price is published weekly. All dates are on the CBAM deadlines timeline.

Why does the free allocation adjustment matter so much?
While EU producers still receive free allowances, importers pay only for emissions above the free allocation an EU producer of the same good would get. In 2026 that is 97.5 % of the CBAM benchmark per tonne. Every tonne of CO₂e above that level needs a full certificate, which is why high emissions, and default values with their mark-up, are expensive.

Do I have to pay CBAM if I import less than 50 tonnes?
From 2026, an importer whose imports of iron and steel, aluminium, cement and fertilisers add up to no more than 50 tonnes (net mass) in a calendar year is exempt. Electricity and hydrogen are not covered by this threshold. Once the 50 tonnes are exceeded, all imports of that year are subject to CBAM.

Can a carbon price paid in Türkiye or another country be deducted?
Only a carbon price that was effectively paid in the country of origin, net of any rebate or other compensation, can reduce the number of certificates; free allowances count as a rebate. In Türkiye’s emissions trading system the 2026 system year of the pilot phase is reporting only, with 100 % free allocation, so there is nothing to deduct for 2026 emissions. See CBAM for Turkish exporters.

Where do I find the default value and the benchmark for my CN code?
Default values are in Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2621, as corrected by Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1740, and in the default-values file on the Commission’s CBAM guidance page. Benchmarks are in the Annex to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2620.

Official sources

Each source below was opened and checked on October 9, 2026.

General information about EU law, not legal, tax or customs advice. Only the texts published in the Official Journal of the European Union are authentic.

More CBAM guides

CBAM default values When default values apply, how the mark-up works, and the official values for goods from Türkiye. CBAM deadlines Every date of the definitive period on one timeline, with the 2025 simplifications and the quarterly rule. CBAM for Turkish exporters The data your EU buyer will ask for, verification, the TR ETS and a step-by-step checklist. CBAM software What Karbonet does for CBAM, what it does not do, and what it costs.

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