Air Products & Chemicals, Inc.

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

SCHEDULE 14A

Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of the

Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Amendment No. )

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.

(Name of Registrant as Specified In Its Charter)

(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement, if other than the Registrant)

Proxy StatementWe have provided you this Notice of Annual Meeting and proxy statement because the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (the “Company” or “Air Products”) is soliciting your proxy to vote at the Company’s 2026 Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be held on January 28, 2026 (the “Annual Meeting”). This proxy statement contains information about the items to be voted on at the Annual Meeting and information about the Company. Instructions on how to access this proxy statement and our 2025 Annual Report to Shareholders (the “Annual Report”) on the Internet or paper copies of this proxy statement and the Annual Report are first being sent to shareholders on or about December 11, 2025.

LETTER FROM OUR CHAIRMAN AND VICE CHAIRMAN

December 11, 2025

Dear Shareholders,

This year was a transformative year for Air Products and marked a significant milestone in our 85-year journey as an organization. We have refocused on our traditional industrial gases business and core competencies, positioning ourselves to navigate the evolving business landscape, capitalize on new opportunities and serve the needs of our global customer base. We believe that this strategic change will enable the continued success of our Company and deliver long-term value to our shareholders.

Board Reconstitution and Integration

Over the past year, our Board has been refreshed with seven new directors. Notably, we now have seven directors with large public company experience as chief executive officer or chief financial officer, while our other directors bring deep executive leadership, corporate governance, industry, legal and finance experience to the boardroom. Our Board has the right mix of skills, experience and perspectives to guide our Company forward. Our new members bring valuable insights and expertise, while also maintaining continuity and cohesion with our longer-serving directors.

Welcoming Our New CEO

Our CEO, Eduardo Menezes, who joined us in February 2025, brings fresh ideas and a wealth of industry experience to Air Products. Having been in our industry for over 35 years, Eduardo has a proven track record of driving growth and innovation. Eduardo already has undertaken several significant initiatives related to productivity, pricing, operational excellence and disciplined capital allocation while also remaining committed to transparency for all stakeholders.

Return to Excellence and Driving Financial Results

We successfully demonstrated the strength and resilience of our core business this year. In fiscal 2025, we reported sales and adjusted operating income that were down only slightly from fiscal 2024, despite headwinds from the divestiture of our former liquefied natural gas business in September 2024, a challenging helium market and from certain project cancellations. We exceeded the midpoint of revised annual adjusted EPS guidance that was set in May 2025 shortly after

our board and management refreshment. We took steps to cancel, descope and derisk certain of our energy transition projects to focus on those with the greatest potential and for which we intend to secure strong customer commitments.

Moving forward, we expect to unlock earnings growth as a result of several key actions since the second quarter of fiscal 2025 to refocus on our core industrial gases business. Over the next few years, we are targeting high single-digit annual adjusted EPS growth, increasing adjusted operating margin and adjusted return on capital and returning cash to shareholders through growing dividends and potential share buybacks.

Future Outlook

As we look to the future, we are optimistic about the opportunities that lie ahead. We are setting challenging but achievable financial targets. Our strategic roadmap positions us well to execute on our historical strengths such as in our merchant and onsite businesses. With a strong foundation and a clear vision, we are confident that Air Products will once again accelerate adjusted EPS growth and create long-term shareholder value.

2026 Annual Meeting

On behalf of our fellow directors, we are pleased to invite you to attend the 2026 Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be held on Wednesday, January 28, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. (Eastern Time). The Annual Meeting will be held virtually as a live audio webcast, which can be accessed atwww.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/APD2026. Shareholders participating in the Annual Meeting will have the ability to submit questions during the meeting.

Thank you for your continued support and confidence in Air Products. We look forward to your participation in the 2026 Annual Meeting.

Sincerely,

LETTER FROM OUR CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

December 11, 2025

Dear Shareholders,

Since joining Air Products in February 2025, I have been pleased to visit many of our Company locations around the world and meet with customers, employees, investors and other stakeholders. I have been impressed with the hard work and dedication of our employees to meet the needs of our customers and deliver value for our shareholders during a year of considerable transition and transformation for our Company.

After becoming CEO earlier this year, I have worked with the Board of Directors and management to reorient our strategy toward our traditional core industrial gases business, while making prudent decisions regarding our energy transition projects, including efforts to descope and derisk the largest of these projects, and also to cancel certain projects that no longer met our investment and return criteria. In connection with these events and a changing and complex business environment, we revised our annual adjusted EPS guidance in May 2025. I am pleased to note that due to the hard work and discipline of our team, our final annual results for fiscal 2025 exceeded the midpoint of our revised guidance. These results demonstrate the strength and resilience of our core business and our potential to unlock further value in the future.

In the coming year, we intend to remain focused on the significant upside of our traditional industrial gases business including our onsite business that Air Products pioneered as well as our merchant business. We also intend to continue to optimize the performance of our large clean energy projects while maintaining capital discipline. There is a lot of work to be done, but I am confident that we are making meaningful progress and will continue to do so this coming year.

Thank you for your investment and interest in Air Products.

Sincerely,

Eduardo Menezes

Chief Executive Officer

NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS