56. Treeapp How can people who are time and resource poor, or who lack specific knowledge, help fight climate change? Treeapp allows them to do just this. Written by Helena Young Sponsored by Sage Published on January 12, 2026 About the Startups 100 Now in its 18th year, the Startups 100 is the definitive list of the most promising new UK businesses. There's no fee for entry or for inclusion in our index. The Startups team of new business experts judge all our top 100 entrants in collaboration with specialist industry consultants. See our guide to this year’s hottest new businesses and most exceptional founders in the complete 2026 Startups 100 index. Sustainability Award Nominee In recognition of a sustainability leader that prioritises the health of the planet as part of its company mission. Startups 100: Sustainability Award Founders: Jules Buker and Godefroy HaritoYear founded: 2023Website: thetreeapp.org“For many, the barriers of time, money, and know-how made climate action feel out of reach. The result was a frustrating gap: a generation of people eager to contribute, but with no accessible, trustworthy way to do so,” say the team behind Treeapp.Co-founders Jules Buker and Godefroy Harito met when they were studying at London Business School. They wanted to make an impact on climate change and both felt drawn towards tree planting. Harito, who is Greek, had experienced the devastation of the wildfires in Athens in 2018. Buker, who is of Turkish descent, had followed when Turkey planted 11 million trees in a day, only for 90% to die a few months later.They created the Treeapp mobile app so that anyone can get involved in tree planting with just a few taps, but the right trees in the right location. It launched on Earth Day and now has more than 250,000 downloads, 2,000 business partners and has been nominated for the 2026 Startups 100 Sustainability Award. For many, the barriers of time, money, and know-how made climate action feel out of reach. It works by letting users choose from 14 countries to plant in: they watch a short ad, and the revenue from that ad directly funds tree planting in that country. It doesn’t cost the user anything. The advertising partners are also very specifically chosen for being eco-conscious, with Wild, Estrid, Oddbox and Ocean Bottle among those who have taken part.The impact has been tangible, and this is something the co-founders have made sure the app users can see. “Beyond restoring ecosystems, every tree planted through Treeapp also helps create jobs and support communities,” the team explains.They did face a huge barrier, and that was mistrust. There had been so many high-profile failures in the tree planting sector that the co-founders needed to show they were achieving what they promised. The team now vets every project and provides satellite and regular photographic evidence, so that everyone can see the trees thriving. Beyond restoring ecosystems, every tree planted through Treeapp also helps create jobs and support communities, Treeapp has now planted over six million trees across more than 20 countries, launched in France, and is now also profitable. The ambition is to plant a million trees every day and to make climate action easy for everyone.View the full Startups 100 Index for 20261. Omnea2. HIVED3. MAGIC AI4. OXCCU5. Lightyear6. Neuranics 7. Hormona8. Burbank9. Better Dairy 10. Lenkie Technologies11. Userled12. Hoxton Farms13. Rensair14. PulpaTronics15. TradeKart16. 32Co17. Carmoola18. cheqd19. Sightline Analytics20. Adamo Foods21. Bold Bean Co22. Beams Renovation 23. Pan Galactic24. Capi Money25. Spotted Zebra26. ANTHROTEK 27. Unravel28. Perci Health29. Untap Health30. Hair Syrup31. Connect Earth 32. spacebands 33. Unfabled34. Lightning Reach35. STOCKED36. Embeddable37. XR Therapeutics38. Literal Labs39. Scooch40. Openr41. Fibe Limited42. Inicio AI43. Peachies44. Better Nature 45. Ctrl Alt46. Resting Reef47. Nila48. ROXFIT49. Finmile50. NavLive51. Volunteero52. Inntelo AI53. Zonova54. A&B Smart Materials55. Ethicronics56. Treeapp57. kennek58. Soil Benchmark59. Vox Aeris60. Asan Cup61. Nuuri62. Mindstone63. MYNDUP64. Enbiosis Biotechnology65. JUX Food66. Danu Robotics67. Wylde Market68. Air Aware Labs69. Mimicrete Ltd70. ALYVE71. Happl72. Living Things73. Grub Club Pets74. Mealia75. PetProov76. Lylo Products77. Chest78. ZIM Connections79. Uptime Labs80. Teal81. Zero Fintech82. Micro Thermal Energy 83. Kanjo 84. Merlin Cloud85. My Skin Feels86. Eleria87. Cashblack88. RevvedUp89. Cosysense90. SuperFi91. Loom92. Legacy Compass93. Meshed94. SWURF95. Main Squeeze96. Sampl Technologies97. Over the Moo98. Pioneering People99. Bikebook100. Recondition Share this post facebook twitter linkedin Tags 2026 Written by: Helena Young Deputy Editor Helena is Deputy Editor at Startups. She oversees all news and supporting content on Startups, and is also the author of the weekly Startups email newsletter, delivering must-know SME updates straight to their inbox. From interviewing Wetherspoon's boss Tim Martin to spotting data-led working from home trends, her insight has been featured by major trade publications including the ICAEW, and news outlets like the BBC, ITV News, Daily Express, and HuffPost UK. With a background in PR and marketing, Helena is particularly passionate about giving early-stage startups a platform to boost their brands. That's one reason she manages the Startups 100 Index, our annual ranking of new UK businesses. Sponsored by: Sage Startups 100 Index Sponsor 2026 Sage exists to knock down barriers so everyone can thrive, starting with the millions of Small and Mid-Sized Businesses served by us, our partners and accountants. Customers trust our finance, HR and payroll software to make work and money flow. By digitising business processes and relationships with customers, suppliers, employees, banks and governments, our digital network connects SMBs, removing friction and delivering insights. Knocking down barriers also means we use our time, technology and experience to tackle digital inequality, economic inequality and the climate crisis.