If your scheme cannot reach its mandatory 10% biodiversity net gain on site or through the off-site market, the government's statutory credits are the fallback — and they are priced as a deterrent. This calculator applies the official 2026 price list and the ×2 spatial risk multiplier so you can see the real cost of a shortfall in seconds.
Statutory credit cost calculator
The calculator needs JavaScript enabled. The full official price list is on GOV.UK.
The 2026 prices behind the calculator
| Tier | Example habitats | Price per credit |
|---|---|---|
| A1 | Low-distinctiveness habitats, e.g. simple grassland | £42,000 |
| A2 | Medium-distinctiveness woodland; some heathland and grassland types | £48,000 |
| A3 | Wet woodland, upland birchwoods, some intertidal sediments | £66,000 |
| A4 | Priority ponds, coastal saltmarsh, lowland deciduous woodland | £125,000 |
| A5 | The most sensitive lake habitats | £650,000 |
| H | Hedgerows | £44,000 |
| W | Watercourses | £230,000 |
Prices were last updated on 2 June 2026 and are reviewed every six months. For the full analysis of why they are set this high — and the cheaper routes — see our statutory credit prices guide.
Why the ×2 multiplier?
Statutory credits carry a spatial risk multiplier of two: every unit of shortfall costs two credits. Combined with the deliberate mark-up over market prices, a one-unit shortfall in the cheapest tier costs £84,000 — the government's way of ensuring credits stay the genuine last resort, behind on-site enhancement and the private off-site unit market (commonly quoted from around £20,000 per unit).
Before you buy credits: the hierarchy
- First — deliver gains on site: planting, hedgerows, wildflower areas, ponds. On small sites, sensible landscape design usually gets to 10%.
- Second — buy off-site biodiversity units from habitat banks on the open market.
- Last resort — statutory credits, with the costs this calculator shows, plus evidence to your council that the first two routes were genuinely explored.
How Fortress Associates can help
Our automated sustainability statement service produces a planning-ready statement in minutes, free — covering the 10% BNG requirement, water efficiency to the 110 litres-per-person-per-day standard, urban greening (including London's Urban Greening Factor) and BREEAM where required. It is the fastest way to show your council you have worked down the hierarchy before anyone reaches for the credit card. Try our other free planning tools, see all services or contact us.
Sources & further reading
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