Purpose of this article
This article explains how to configure calculated meters in Scaler to automatically combine or transform consumption values from physical meters using formulas.
What is a calculated meter
A calculated meter derives its consumption values from one or more physical meters using a formula.
Unlike physical meters, which represent real-world measurement sources (utility meters, invoices, etc.), calculated meters are virtual. They automatically aggregate or disaggregate consumption data based on the physical meters you include and the calculation method you specify (Add or Subtract).
Key characteristics:
- Fully automated - Scaler recalculates them whenever underlying physical meter data changes
- Read-only consumption - values cannot be manually entered or edited
- Must be created in the platform (cannot be created via spreadsheet)
- Require matching
SubcategoryandConsumption formatacross all included meters
How they appear in Scaler:
Calculated meters behave like physical meters in most parts of the platform (they appear in analytics, reports, and exports), except that their consumption values are always read-only and automatically generated.
Summary table — Key things to know
Topic | Key Rule / Behavior |
Creation / Deletion | Calculated meters can only be created / deleted manually in the platform (not via spreadsheet). |
Spreadsheet Editing | Only existing calculated meters can be edited; however, Subcategory and Consumption format cannot be changed. If changes are made to these fields, the cell(s) will be highlighted in red. The import will still succeed if all values meet validation requirements, any edits to these restricted fields will be ignored and not reflected in the platform. |
Spreadsheet Uploads | Calculated meter consumption is read-only and cannot be changed. If changes are attempted to consumption, the cells will be highlighted in red. While the import will still succeed if all values meet validation requirements, these restricted fields will be ignored and not reflected in the platform. |
Subcategory & Consumption Format | Must match exactly between the calculated meter and its included physical meters. |
Consumption Values | Always auto-calculated; cannot be manually added or edited. |
Avoiding Double Counting | Physical meters included with Calculation method = Add must be excluded from calculations (set Include in calculations = FALSE). |
Unit Conversion | All included physical meter values convert to kWh before aggregation. |
Output Frequency | Calculated meters produce one annual value per reporting year. |
Data Requests | Not supported for calculated meters. |
Before you begin
Before creating a calculated meter, ensure you have:
Required:
- Physical meters already set up in Scaler with consumption data
- Clear understanding of which physical meters should be included
- Knowledge of whether each meter should be added or subtracted
Important to know:
- All included physical meters must have the same
Subcategory(e.g., all "Off-site electricity")
- All included physical meters must have the same
Consumption format(e.g., all "Consumption recording")
- Physical meters included with
Calculation method=Addmust be excluded from calculations to prevent double counting
If you haven't set up your physical meters yet, do that first.
When to use calculated meters
Calculated meters are commonly used for:
Deriving Common Area consumption
Subtract tenant-controlled meters from whole-building meters to isolate landlord-controlled areas.
Common Area = Whole-building (Add) − Tenant Space (Subtract)
Aggregating multiple tenant-space meters
Combine several tenant meters into a single "Total Tenant" meter for reporting.
Total Tenant = Tenant 1 (Add) + Tenant 2 (Add) + Tenant 3 (Add)
Creating Whole-building consumption from multiple inputs
Sum multiple utility feeds or sub-meters into a building-level total.
Whole-building = Main feed (Add) + Secondary feed (Add)
Handling API integrations with multiple provider meters
When an external API delivers consumption split across multiple meters, but you want to report them as one meter in Scaler.
Main meter = API sub-meter 1 (Add) + API sub-meter 2 (Add) + ...
Creating a calculated meter
Setting up a calculated meter involves four main steps:
- Create the meter shell - Set up the basic meter structure with matching
SubcategoryandConsumption format
- Add physical meters - Select which physical meters to include and specify
AddorSubtractfor each
- Configure inclusion settings - Set
Include in calculationscorrectly to prevent double counting
- Save and verify - Confirm calculated values appear as expected
Step 1: Create the meter shell
- Go to Data Collection Portal → Portfolio → Asset List → select asset → Meters & Consumption → choose the resource
- On the Add meter button, click the dropdown arrow
- Select Calculated meter
- Complete all required fields under Meter Details.
Critical requirement:
The Subcategory and Consumption format of the calculated meter must match the physical meters you plan to include.
How calculated meters appear in the UI:
- Calculated Meter icon → distinguishes these from physical meters
- Included in Calculated Meter pop-up → shows which physical meters feed into this calculated meter
- View icon → opens the Meter Consumption tab (read-only calculated values)
- Edit icon → opens Meter Details for updating configuration
Step 2: Add physical meters to the calculation
Under "Meters included", define exactly which physical meters make up your calculated meter.
- Click Add Meter.
- The dropdown ONLY shows physical meters whose:
Subcategorymatches the calculated meterConsumption formatmatches the calculated meter
- For each included meter, select a
Calculation method: - Add (+) → Include this meter's consumption
- Subtract (–) → Remove this meter's consumption
- Repeat for all relevant physical meters.
Example: Common Area meter configuration
Goal: Isolate landlord-controlled consumption
Setup:
- Calculated meter: "Common Area Electricity"
- Included meters:
- Whole-building meter →
Calculation method= Add - Tenant space meter →
Calculation method= Subtract
Result:
Common Area = Whole-building − Tenant Space
This yields the consumption attributable to shared landlord-controlled spaces.
Step 3: Configure "Include in calculations"
The Include in calculations toggle determines whether a meter participates in:
- Aggregated metrics
- Analytics
- Reporting
- Data coverage calculations
For calculated meters:
- Usually set to TRUE (enabled) - this is the meter you want in reports
For physical meters being added to the calculated meter:
- Must be set to FALSE (disabled) if
Calculation method=Add
- This prevents the same consumption from being counted twice
Example:
When creating a Common Area calculated meter:
- Whole-building physical meter (
Add) → SetInclude in calculations= FALSE
- Tenant space physical meter (
Subtract) → Usually keepInclude in calculations= TRUE
- Common Area calculated meter → Set
Include in calculations= TRUE
Scaler displays a warning message when Calculation method = Add is selected to remind you of this requirement.
Step 4: Save and verify
Once everything is configured:
- Save the meter
- Click View to open the Meter Consumption tab
- Verify that:
- Calculated values appear correctly
- The operator logic (+/−) produces expected results
- No physical meter was accidentally left included in calculations when it should be excluded
How calculated meter consumption works
Expand for details
Calculated meters generate consumption values automatically based on the included physical meters.
Key behaviors:
- Automatic calculation - Values update immediately when any included physical meter's consumption changes
- Read-only everywhere - Consumption appears in read-only mode in both the platform and spreadsheet exports
- Unit conversion - All included physical meter values convert to kWh before aggregation
- Annual output - Calculated meters produce one annual value per reporting year
- Frequency inheritance - Physical meter frequencies (monthly, quarterly, etc.) still count for validation and coverage
Display requirement:
Calculated consumption is only displayed when the asset has 100% data completion. Any Scaler-related Errors or Missing Data alerts must be resolved before calculated consumption can be shown.
Preventing double counting
Expand for details
Double counting occurs when the same consumption is included in calculations more than once.
The rule:
Physical meters included in a calculated meter with Calculation method = Add must be excluded from calculations.
Why this matters:
Without this rule, consumption would be counted twice:
- Once from the physical meter itself
- Again from the calculated meter that includes it
Example of double counting:
Whole-building physical meter = 1000 kWh (Include in calculations = TRUE)
Common Area calculated meter = Whole-building (Add) − Tenant (Subtract) = 300 kWh
Asset total = 1000 + 300 = 1300 kWh ❌ WRONG
The whole-building's 1000 kWh is counted once directly, then the 300 kWh from Common Area (which is part of that 1000) is counted again.
Correct setup:
Whole-building physical meter = 1000 kWh (Include in calculations = FALSE)
Tenant physical meter = 700 kWh (Include in calculations = TRUE)
Common Area calculated meter = 1000 − 700 = 300 kWh (Include in calculations = TRUE)
Asset total = 700 + 300 = 1000 kWh ✓ CORRECT
What happens when you exclude a meter
Expand for details
When Include in calculations = FALSE, the meter:
- Does not count toward data coverage
- Does not count toward time coverage
- Does not appear in Analytics
- Does not appear in reporting outputs
- Can still feed consumption into calculated meters
- Still appears in the platform and spreadsheet exports (marked as excluded)
- Still must meet validation rules
Excluded meters remain visible for transparency but don't contribute to performance metrics.
Impact on data coverage
Calculated meters affect how Scaler calculates data coverage at both meter level and asset level. Coverage behavior also differs between Scaler and GRESB data coverage.
Meter-level coverage
Expand for details
Scaler time coverage:
A calculated meter has no raw consumption data of its own. Its Scaler time coverage is derived from the included source meters by taking the average time coverage of those meters. On the individual meter level, the average time coverage of all included source meters is taken.
Time coverage (area type):
When coverage is shown at area type level (e.g., Common area, Tenant area):
Scaler evaluates all meters contributing to that area type. The meter with the lowest consumption-day coverage determines the time coverage for that area type. Area type level time coverage uses the weakest meter, not the average.
Floor area covered:
Calculated meter coverage uses the Covered area value assigned to the calculated meter itself. It is not affected by the Covered area of the underlying physical meters.
Asset-level coverage
Expand for details
Asset-level coverage follows the same rules as meter-level, but applied across all meters contributing to the asset.
Key principles:
- Data coverage is calculated over the overlapping time interval of all included meters
- Time coverage is calculated on the intersection of time of all included meters
- Area coverage is calculated based on the
Covered areaof the calculated meter (not impacted by included meters)
If required source meters do not overlap in time, those periods are excluded from coverage calculations.
Spreadsheet behavior
Expand for details
Calculated meters have special behavior in the Scaler Spreadsheet:
What you can edit:
- Meter details (except
SubcategoryandConsumption format)
Include in calculationstoggle
- Other meter configuration fields
What you cannot edit:
Subcategory(cells will highlight red if changed, edits ignored on upload)
Consumption format(cells will highlight red if changed, edits ignored on upload)
- Consumption values (always read-only, cells will highlight red if changed)
What you cannot do:
- Create new calculated meters via spreadsheet (must be created in platform)
- Delete calculated meters via spreadsheet (must be deleted in platform)
Linked Building Units
Expand for details
Calculated meters can be linked to Building Units, just like physical meters.
Setup:
- Navigate to the Linked building units tab in the calculated meter
- Add building unit linkages the same way you would for physical meters
Behavior:
- Calculation behavior is identical to non-linked calculated meters
- Consumption is allocated to the linked building units based on the linkage configuration
API integrations: One-to-many meter mapping
Expand for details
A common scenario when using API integrations:
The situation:
An external API delivers consumption split across multiple meters (e.g., 10 separate utility account meters), but logically these represent one real-world entity and you want to report them as one single meter in Scaler.
The solution:
Use a calculated meter to aggregate the API sub-meters.
Recommended setup steps
Step 1: Create physical sub-meters in Scaler
- Create one physical Scaler meter per API meter
- Map each Scaler meter 1-to-1 to the corresponding API meter
- These meters will contain the raw consumption data pulled from the API
Step 2: Create a calculated meter
- Create a calculated meter that represents the combined entity
- Formula:
Main meter = API sub-meter 1 (Add) + API sub-meter 2 (Add) + ... + API sub-meter 10 (Add)
Step 3: Exclude sub-meters from calculations
- Set
Include in calculations= FALSE for all sub-meters
- Set
Include in calculations= TRUE for the calculated meter
Result:
- API data flows into the physical sub-meters automatically
- Sub-meters feed the calculated meter automatically
- Only the calculated meter contributes to asset-level totals (no double counting)
- All meters remain visible for transparency and audit purposes
A common API scenario:
Multiple third-party meters need to be aggregated into a single Scaler meter. This setup is used when a client receives multiple meters from an external API, but wants to report them as one single meter in Scaler.
Use a calculated meter as an aggregate when:
- An API delivers consumption split across multiple meters
- Logically, those meters represent one real-world entity
- Reporting should happen on one Scaler meter, not multiple
Troubleshooting & common mistakes
Expand for details
Problem: Calculated meter cannot include physical meters in the dropdown
Cause: Subcategory or Consumption format mismatch between calculated meter and physical meters
Solution: Edit the physical meter or calculated meter so both Subcategory and Consumption format match exactly
Problem: Consumption is being counted twice at asset level
Cause: Physical meter with Calculation method = Add still has Include in calculations = TRUE
Solution: Set Include in calculations = FALSE for that physical meter
Problem: Cannot edit calculated meter consumption via spreadsheet
Cause: Calculated meter consumption is always read-only
Solution: Edit the underlying physical meter consumption instead - the calculated meter will update automatically
Problem: Calculated meter shows incomplete or zero values
Cause: One or more included physical meters is missing consumption data for the reporting period
Solution: Check time periods on all included physical meters to ensure consumption data exists
Problem: API meters are mapped but not appearing in the included meter dropdown
Cause: Subcategory or Consumption format mismatch
Solution: Verify that all meters have exactly matching Subcategory and Consumption format values
Problem: Calculated consumption is not displaying in the platform
Cause: Asset does not have 100% data completion
Solution: Resolve all Scaler-related Errors or Missing Data alerts for the asset
Problem: Changes to Subcategory or Consumption format in spreadsheet are not taking effect
Cause: These fields cannot be changed for calculated meters via spreadsheet
Solution: Edit these fields directly in the platform instead