Vendor Evaluation Template

Vendor evaluation is one of the most common high-stakes decisions in business. Whether you're selecting a CRM, cloud provider, analytics platform, or consulting firm, the wrong choice costs months of migration pain and tens of thousands in switching costs.

Most teams rely on ad hoc spreadsheets with arbitrary weighting. This template replaces that with a structured multi-framework approach: AHP for pairwise comparison, TOPSIS for distance-to-ideal scoring, cost-benefit analysis for financial rigor, and risk matrix for downside protection.

The result is a defensible vendor recommendation with full methodology transparency — ideal for procurement committees, board presentations, and audit trails.

Best For

  • Procurement teams evaluating enterprise software
  • IT leaders comparing cloud or SaaS providers
  • Product managers selecting third-party integrations
  • Consultants running vendor evaluations for clients

How to Use This Template

  1. 1

    Enter 3-5 vendor options with a brief description of each.

  2. 2

    Describe your evaluation criteria: cost, features, support, scalability, security.

  3. 3

    SolveRight runs 6 frameworks simultaneously and scores each vendor 0-100.

  4. 4

    Review the ranked results, contradiction detection, and sensitivity analysis.

  5. 5

    Export the evaluation as a PDF or presentation for stakeholder review.

Frameworks in This Template

These frameworks are pre-selected for this template. All 155 frameworks are available in every analysis.

Weighted Decision Matrix

Scores options against weighted criteria for systematic comparison

Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP)

Derives priority weights from pairwise comparisons with consistency check

TOPSIS

Ranks alternatives by closeness to ideal solution and distance from anti-ideal solution

Cost-Benefit Analysis

Compares total costs against quantified benefits for each option

Risk Assessment Matrix

Maps risks by probability and impact to quantify overall risk exposure

Pugh Matrix

Compares options against a baseline across multiple criteria

Sample Options

Example options you might compare with this template:

Vendor A (incumbent)Vendor B (challenger)Vendor C (startup)

Use This Template Free

14-day free Pro trial. No credit card required.

Start Solving Free

Full access to all 155 frameworks during trial

Vendor Evaluation Template — Frequently Asked Questions

How many vendors can I compare at once?+
SolveRight supports 2-10 options per decision. For vendor evaluations, 3-5 is the sweet spot — enough to cover the market without diluting analysis quality.
Can I customize the evaluation criteria?+
Yes. Describe your criteria in plain language and SolveRight's AI extraction translates them into structured framework inputs. You can also adjust framework weights in real-time sensitivity analysis.
Is the evaluation audit-ready?+
Every score includes extracted data points, reasoning traces, and the specific rubric computation. The PDF export is designed for procurement committees, board decks, and compliance reviews.

Ready to Make This Decision?

Join professionals who make decisions with evidence, not instinct.

Start Your Free Trial

14-day Pro trial, no credit card required