Data Dividend Overview

The Data Dividend is SDX's mechanism for sharing revenue with the people who contribute data to the platform. When third parties purchase licensed content — aggregate benchmarks, indices, and data packs — a portion of that revenue flows back to the building owners whose data made the product possible.

How it works in brief

  1. You contribute data — Submit utility readings for your buildings on SDX, completely free.
  2. Third parties buy licensed content — Investors, lenders, and index providers purchase board-approved data products from SDX.
  3. Revenue is shared — A portion of every licensed content sale is allocated to the Data Dividend pool.
  4. You receive a payout — Each qualifying building earns a dividend based on its floor area, data quality, and whole-building completeness.

Key principles

  • One dividend per building per underlying owner. If multiple software platforms submit data for the same building, the dividend is paid once to the building's underlying owner — not duplicated across platforms. This prevents gaming through multiple integrations.
  • The platform is free. Contributors never pay anything to use SDX. The Data Dividend is a bonus on top of free benchmarking, reporting, and compliance tools.
  • Data contributors get licensed content free. Any licensed content product that includes your buildings' data is available to you at no cost for your own internal use. Only third parties pay.
  • Board governance. The total dividend pool size and distribution methodology are governed by the SDX board. See Board Governance.

Who qualifies

Any organisation that contributes building data to SDX can earn a Data Dividend, provided the buildings meet minimum data quality and freshness requirements. See Eligibility & Rules for full details.

How much can you earn?

The dividend amount depends on several factors:

  • The total revenue SDX collects from licensed content sales in the period
  • The number and size of buildings in the dividend pool
  • Your buildings' data quality grades
  • Whether your buildings have whole-building data (all utility types metered)

See How It's Calculated for the formula and worked examples.

Next steps