ISO 9001:2026

1 What it covers

ISO 9001 sets out what an organisation must do to plan, run, check and improve the way it delivers products and services so that they meet customer requirements and applicable legal requirements. It does not tell you how to run your business — it asks you to understand your context, set a quality policy and objectives, manage your processes and their interactions, address risks and opportunities, and keep improving.

The standard is built on ISO's seven quality management principles: customer focus, leadership, engagement of people, process approach, improvement, evidence-based decision making and relationship management.

What changed in 2026

ISO describes the 2026 edition as an evolution rather than a rewrite. According to ISO, the main changes are:

• a stronger leadership role, with more emphasis on quality culture and ethical behaviour (clause 5.1)
• a quality policy linked more explicitly to the organisation's context and strategic direction (5.2)
• a clearer distinction between actions to address risks and actions to address opportunities (6.1)
• new awareness requirements about quality culture and ethical behaviour (7.3)
• a new informative Annex A explaining concepts, terminology and the intent of the requirements

The climate-change consideration added to ISO 9001:2015 by its 2024 amendment is carried forward. UKAS's high-level gap analysis rates the changes at 4.2, 5.1.1, 6.1.2, 6.1.3, 6.3, 7.3 and 9.3.2 as significant.

2 Who uses it

Organisations of every size and sector — manufacturers, service companies, construction firms, software houses, hospitals, universities, public bodies and charities. Many UK public-sector and supply-chain tenders ask for ISO 9001 certification, and the standard is often the first one people train in.