We are pleased to share that the GRESB Foundation has published the 2028 GRESB Real Estate and Infrastructure Standards. The publication marks the culmination of more than two years of work led by the Foundation and shaped through extensive engagement with the industry.
In preparation for this significant evolution, the 2027 Standards were intentionally kept stable. For real estate, the 2027 Standard was published in November 2025 and is not subject to further changes. For infrastructure, the 2027 Standards are covered in the 2028 Standards document.
2028 GRESB Standards
Since 2009, the GRESB Standards have given investors and managers of real assets a common language for sustainability. The 2028 Standards build on this groundwork, strengthening the connection between sustainability data, real-world performance, and asset and investment decision-making. They bring the market closer to what sustainability information is ultimately for: sharper decisions, deeper engagement, and better-performing assets.
The changes represent the first major step in Road to Performance, the Foundation’s multi-year program to strengthen the Standards’ focus on measured performance. Investor-led and shaped by wider industry input, they respond directly to industry feedback calling for greater recognition of real-world outcomes.
This first step begins with a focus on energy and greenhouse gas emissions. The 2028 Standards will:
- Give greater weight to measured performance and the real-world outcomes it supports, including efficiency, resilience, and long-term value creation.
- Reward both absolute performance and annualized improvement, while expanding and strengthening the ways sustainability performance can be recognized.
- Provide investors with a clearer basis for engagement, risk assessment, and investment decisions.
- Reduce reporting effort by drawing largely on data participants already provide and moving foundational management indicators to a three-yearly cadence.
The changes have been shaped through the GRESB Foundation’s independent, industry-led governance. For real estate, the Foundation held a public consultation in spring 2026 and published its findings in July. For infrastructure, the approach was developed with investors, asset managers, and the Infrastructure Standards Committee. The Foundation Board and both Standards Committees have guided the work throughout.
GRESB is committed to supporting members through a managed transition over the next 18 to 24 months. The 2028 Standards use a more focused set of inputs to reduce reporting effort and draw largely on the same underlying data participants already report, but they change how that information is assessed and scored. Because the recalibrated Standards redefine and recognize sustainability leadership differently, some movement in scores and relative positions within the Benchmarks is expected. These movements will reflect the new definition of leadership, not necessarily any change in the underlying performance.
Members will receive greater visibility before the new methodology takes effect and benefit from transition support:
- Over the coming weeks and months, the GRESB team will engage directly with investor members and participants through one-to-one meetings to explain the upcoming changes and what they will mean for them in practice.
- In addition to their official 2027 results, participants will also receive indicative scores showing how they would have performed under the 2028 methodology.
- For the 2028 assessment cycle, results will also be provided under the previous methodology to help explain any changes in results as the market moves to the new Standard.
The Road to Performance resource hub in GRESB Guides will provide ongoing guidance and supporting resources throughout the transition. We will continue to update the hub as further information becomes available.
Join the “GRESB Foundation: Road to 2028” Webinars
On December 1 and 2, the GRESB Foundation will host dedicated webinars exploring the 2028 Standards in greater detail.
Members of the Foundation will explain the key changes to the Standards and how industry input shaped them. GRESB BV will outline the support available to members during the transition and clarify what investors and managers can expect over the next 18 to 24 months.
Attendees can submit questions in advance when registering.
Thank you to everyone who contributed through consultation, committee work, and conversations throughout this process.
We look forward to continuing this work with the industry to support better asset and investment decisions and measurable sustainability improvement at scale across real assets.