Circle Economy

What Circle Economy does

Circle Economy Foundation is a Dutch non-profit organisation founded in 2011 and headquartered in Amsterdam at Haarlemmerweg 331. It operates as a global impact organisation dedicated to accelerating the transition to a circular economy, working with governments, cities, businesses, and international bodies. Its core product is the annual Circularity Gap Report (CGR®), a registered trademark published since 2016 that sets the global benchmark for measuring circularity; the 2026 edition introduced a new Value Gap metric quantifying monetary losses to the linear economy in euros, complementing the existing tonnage-based Circularity Metric.

The organisation's technology platform comprises the CGR Dashboard (interactive visualisation of circular progress at global, national, and city levels), the Knowledge Hub (a curated database of circular economy publications, case studies, and user-submitted content), and Circle Academy (a digital learning platform for capacity building). It also produces the "Going Circular" documentary used for private screening engagements. Underlying these is what Circle Economy describes as the world's largest circularity database, covering 90+ nations, 350+ cities, and 1,000+ businesses.

Its business model is entirely professional-services based, with three reported revenue streams: tailored advisory services for organisations implementing circular strategies, training programmes delivered through Circle Academy, and research publications distributed via the Knowledge Hub. Go-to-market is sales-led, relying on direct engagement with policymakers and business leaders, the CGR as a flagship thought-leadership asset, and a dense partnership network that includes the ILO, World Bank Group, UN PAGE, Laudes Foundation, Chatham House, ACEN, and Quebec Circulaire. Customer engagement spans five horizontal segments — Cities & Regions, Finance & Economics, Textiles & Fashion, Jobs & Employment, and Global Value Chains — with stated impact of 90+ nations, 360+ cities, 970+ organisations engaged, and 4,200+ people trained since inception.

Name

Circle Economy

Legal name

Circle Economy Foundation

Website

https://circle-economy.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Circle Economy Foundation is a Dutch non-profit producing the annual Circularity Gap Report and operating data platforms and advisory services that help governments, cities, and businesses transition to circular economies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sustainability Consulting Services

NAICS

Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services (541611)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Circularity Consulting & Program Management (EPR, Design-for-Circularity, LCA) (EUAIANAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Circular Economy & Resource Efficiency (BPADALAM), Circular Economy & Sustainable Products (Reuse, Repair, Upcycling) (BPAGALAF)

Keywords

• Circular economy consulting
• Sustainability advisory services
• Circular research reports
• Environmental data analytics
• Circular economy training

Headquarters

HQ city

Amsterdam

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Advisory Services: Tailored advisory services helping businesses and governments develop actionable circular strategies and drive implementation.
2. Training Programmes: Capacity building through targeted training programmes and digital learning platforms like Circle Academy.
3. Research & Publications: Publishing research reports, case studies, and policy recommendations available through their Knowledge Hub platform.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Circle Economy generates insights on circular progress through tools such as the Circularity Gap Report (CGR®) and CGR Dashboard, turns that data into actionable strategies through tailored advisory services, and builds capacity via targeted training programmes and the Circle Academy digital learning platform. It serves cities, regions, businesses, and policymakers across five focus areas: cities, finance, jobs, textiles, and global value chains.

Product overview

Circle Economy operates as a global impact organisation offering a portfolio of research publications, data platforms, and advisory services centred on accelerating the circular economy transition. At its core is the annual Circularity Gap Report (CGR®) and its companion CGR Dashboard — a publicly accessible data visualisation tool that tracks circular progress globally, nationally, and at city level. The Knowledge Hub serves as a browsable content platform aggregating hundreds of reports, case studies, business cases, policy cases, blogs, and resources across regions and industries, supplemented by curated collections (e.g., CircularInvest, Circularity Gap Report Textiles, Circular Food, Footprints Africa). Learning and capacity-building is delivered through Circle Academy, while tailored advisory services provide strategic support for organisations. Additional offerings include the Going Circular documentary for private screenings, and sector-focused programmes spanning cities, finance, textiles, jobs, and global value chains.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CGR (Circularity Gap Report): Annual flagship report setting the standard for measuring circular progress, with registered trademark CGR.
• Circle Academy
• CircularInvest
• Going Circular
• Circularity Gap Dashboard

Products and services

• Circularity Gap Report (CGR®) Annual flagship global report that measures circularity progress, sets the standard for measuring circular economy transition, and is accompanied by a public CGR Dashboard. The 2026 edition introduced the Value Gap metric measuring monetary value lost to the linear economy.
• CGR Dashboard Interactive digital tool accompanying the Circularity Gap Report, allowing users to visualise and track circular progress data at global, national, and city levels across multiple years.
• Knowledge Hub Global database of circular economy content including case studies, publications, organisations, business cases, policy cases, blogs, and resources, with options for users to submit their own content. Includes curated collections by region, industry, and theme.
• Circle Academy Digital learning platform included in the 'Learn & Scale' service area, delivering targeted training programmes to build circular economy capacity among professionals and organisations.
• Going Circular Documentary Documentary film presenting a practical vision for businesses and governments transitioning to a circular economy, featuring four pioneers and available for private screening requests with tailored packages including expert speakers and workshops.
• CircularInvest Initiative and curated collection focused on unlocking investment pathways to fund the circular economy, producing policy briefs and investment-readiness guides to support project owners and investors.
• Tailored Advisory Services Strategic advisory services included in the 'Strategise & Act' area, turning data into actionable circular strategies and driving implementation for organisations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 90 nations engaged in circular economy work
• +3 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration11 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• International Labour Organization (ILO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on measuring circular economy employment globally. Jointly developed an internationally applicable methodology for measuring circular economy employment with the ILO and World Bank Group, providing the first global baseline covering 177 of 187 ILO Member States.
• World Bank GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with ILO and World Bank Group to develop methodology for measuring circular economy employment globally.
• UN Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClose collaboration and support from PAGE in developing the methodology for measuring circular economy employment.
• Chatham HousecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead organization in the project examining socioeconomic impacts of EU circular textiles policies on trading partners (Bangladesh and Ghana).
• European Environment BureaucoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the series exploring upstream and downstream aspects of the textiles value chain, examining EU policy impacts on trading partners.
• BUILD (Bangladesh)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization in Bangladesh focusing country on examining impacts of EU circular textiles policies on workers and industries.
• The Or Foundation (Ghana)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization in Ghana focusing on examining impacts of EU circular textiles policies on workers and social equity.
• African Circular Economy Network (ACEN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with ACEN as part of the programme to support circular economy transition in Africa, resulting in Footprints Africa database of circular economy initiatives.
• Footprints AfricacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration to build a comprehensive database of circular economy initiatives in Africa, supporting SMEs to adopt circular practices.
• Québec Circulaire / Pôle québécois de concertation sur l'économie circulaireminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to showcase circular economy initiatives from Quebec, one of North America's pioneers in circular economy transition since 2014.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• Ellen MacArthur Foundation: Mission-aligned foundation producing the global circular economy thought leadership (e.g., circular economy reports,蝶蝶D做了scape) and convening businesses, cities, and policymakers. Direct comparable to Circle Economy's flagship report and advisory positioning.
• SYSTEMIQ: Systems-change advisory firm focused on circular economy, climate, and nature, producing flagship reports (e.g., The Circular Economy in Detail) and working with business and government on implementation. Comparable report-plus-advisory model.
• Metabolic: Amsterdam-based consultancy and venture builder advising governments and businesses on circular economy, climate, and food systems. Closely comparable advisory practice and city-level engagement.
• Material Economics: Stockholm-based consultancy producing influential circular economy research (e.g., the Circular Economy in Detail series) and advising corporations and governments on industrial transformation. Comparable research-and-advisory model.
• WRAP: UK-based climate-impact NGO working on circularity, resource efficiency, and sustainable production/consumption with extensive corporate and government programmes. Comparable mission-driven advisory and data platform approach.

Broad incumbents

• World Resources Institute (WRI): Global research organisation with extensive work on circular economy, sustainable cities, and finance. Broader sustainability mandate but overlapping datasets, business cases, and policy advisory.
• ERM (Environmental Resources Management): Global environmental consultancy offering circular economy, sustainability, and ESG advisory to large enterprises. Wide portfolio but with significant overlap in circular strategy and reporting work.
• Ramboll: Global engineering, design, and consultancy firm with a circular economy and sustainability practice serving cities and industries. Comparable city- and infrastructure-level circular advisory.

Emerging players

• Anthesis Group: Large sustainability consultancy advising corporates on circular strategies, supply chain decarbonisation, and ESG reporting. Comparable commercial circular advisory to enterprises.
• GlobeScan: Research consultancy producing sustainability benchmarks and consumer/citizen insights used by corporates and NGOs. Adjacent but comparable thought-leadership and survey-style methodology.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCgLGYj7XHqqI3X6gJKM6OQA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/circle-economy

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Circle Economy