Foundation Route

A Vendor Comparison Matrix in a Spreadsheet With AI

Replace the 'gut feel' vendor pick with a weighted scoring matrix that shows stakeholders exactly how you reached the decision.

10 steps ~45min For all professionals Free

A vendor comparison matrix scores each vendor on 6-10 criteria, applies weights based on how important each criterion is to your business, and produces a total weighted score that makes the best choice clear and defensible. Without it, vendor decisions rely on whoever spoke last in the meeting or whoever has the strongest opinion. At aidowith.me, the Tables, Plans, and Checklists route covers this in 10 steps over about 45 minutes. You'll define your evaluation criteria, assign weights, collect vendor data, use AI-generated formulas to calculate weighted scores, and build a summary recommendation that explains the top choice. The matrix works in Google Sheets or Excel. AI writes all the SUMPRODUCT formulas and the conditional formatting rules that color-code scores above and below threshold. A stakeholder weight-averaging exercise at the start aligns everyone on priorities before the evaluation begins.

Last updated: April 2026

The Problem and the Fix

Without a route

  • Your last vendor selection was contested by 2 stakeholders because there were no documented criteria: just opinions
  • You've compared 5 vendors but can't present the recommendation without a 20-minute explanation of the reasoning
  • Different team members weight price vs. features differently and the discussion goes in circles without a shared scoring framework

With aidowith.me

  • Build a weighted scoring matrix in one 45-minute session that produces a clear vendor recommendation with a numerical score
  • Align stakeholders on criteria and weights before evaluation so the scoring result is defensible without a long debate
  • Show the final comparison in one spreadsheet view that a decision-maker can understand in under 5 minutes

Who Builds This With AI

Marketers

Content, campaigns, and briefs done in hours instead of days.

Sales & BizDev

Prep calls, draft outreach, research prospects in minutes.

Managers & Leads

Reports, presentations, and team comms handled faster.

How It Works

1

Define criteria and assign weights

List 6-10 evaluation criteria (price, integration, support quality, compliance, scalability, user experience) and assign a weight percentage to each. Weights must total 100%. AI helps you pick weights based on your stated business priorities.

2

Collect vendor scores and build the formula

Score each vendor 1-5 on each criterion based on demos, reviews, and documentation. AI writes the SUMPRODUCT formula that calculates the weighted total for each vendor and applies conditional formatting.

3

Generate the recommendation summary

AI writes a 200-word recommendation that explains the top scorer, notes the second-place option and why it lost, and highlights the 2-3 criteria that drove the decision.

Build Your Vendor Comparison Matrix

Follow the 10-step Tables, Plans, and Checklists route at aidowith.me and build a weighted vendor scoring matrix in about 45 minutes.

Start This Route →

What You Walk Away With

Define criteria and assign weights

Collect vendor scores and build the formula

Generate the recommendation summary

Show the final comparison in one spreadsheet view that a decision-maker can understand in under 5 minutes

"We selected a vendor in 2 days instead of 3 weeks because the matrix got everyone aligned on criteria before we started demos. The scoring made the decision obvious."
- Procurement manager, healthcare services company

Questions

Define 6-10 evaluation criteria, assign weights totaling 100%, score each vendor 1-5 on each criterion based on demos and documentation, and use a SUMPRODUCT formula to calculate weighted totals. AI writes the formula and conditional formatting. The aidowith.me Tables, Plans, and Checklists route covers all 10 steps in about 45 minutes, including a stakeholder weight-alignment exercise.

Six to ten criteria. Fewer than 6 makes the evaluation feel thin and easy to challenge. More than 10 makes it hard to get stakeholder agreement on weights before you start. The route helps you consolidate related criteria so the matrix stays manageable while still covering all the dimensions that matter for your specific vendor type.

Share the draft criteria list and ask each stakeholder to distribute 100 points across them according to their priorities. Average the distributions to set the weights. This process reveals disagreements about priorities before the vendor evaluation starts, not during the final recommendation meeting where stakes are higher and positions are more entrenched.