Decision Matrix (Weighted Scoring)
List your options, weight what matters, score each one — the ranking updates as you type.
Ranking
How to use
- Name your options (rows) and your criteria (columns), and give each criterion a weight from 0–10.
- Score every option against every criterion from 0 (poor) to 10 (excellent).
- The weighted totals and ranking update live — the current winner is highlighted. Your table is saved in this browser.
Examples
Choosing a laptop
Criteria: price (weight 8), battery (6), screen (4). Score three models 0–10 on each. A cheap model with a weak screen can still win if price matters most — exactly what the weights encode.
Picking an apartment
Rent, commute time, size and light as criteria; each candidate flat as a row. The matrix turns a gut feeling into a comparable number.
Choosing between job offers
Salary, commute, growth and team are rarely comparable in one number until you force them into one. Scoring each offer per criterion and weighting what actually matters to you turns an argument with yourself into a table you can look at — and the useful moment is often when the winning total surprises you.
Picking a vendor or tool
Vendor comparisons drift toward whichever option was demonstrated last. Fixing the criteria and their weights before scoring removes that recency effect, and writing the weights down makes the choice explainable to whoever asks later.
Making a group decision visible
When a team disagrees, the disagreement is usually about weights rather than scores — everyone can see that one option is cheaper, they differ on how much cheapness counts. Separating the two makes the real argument findable instead of circular.
FAQ
How is the total calculated?
Each score is multiplied by its criterion weight and summed: total = Σ (weight × score). The table also shows the weighted average (total ÷ sum of weights), which normalizes results to the same 0–10 scale as your scores.
How should I choose weights?
Give the most important criterion a high weight (8–10), minor ones a low weight (1–3). If everything has the same weight, the matrix becomes a simple unweighted average.
What if two options tie?
They share the same rank. A tie is useful information — it means your current criteria do not distinguish the options, so consider adding a criterion that does.
Where is my table stored?
In this browser’s localStorage on your device only. Nothing is uploaded and the table contents are never sent to analytics.
What if the result feels wrong?
That reaction is information, not a failure of the method. It usually means a criterion is missing or a weight does not match what you actually believe. Adjust the model to match your judgement and check whether the answer holds — a matrix is a way of examining a decision, not a machine that makes it for you.
How many criteria should I use?
Enough to cover the decision, few enough to weight honestly — typically four to seven. Beyond that, weights become guesses and small differences in the tail dominate the total. If a criterion never changes the ranking whatever you do to it, it is not carrying weight and can be removed.
Should weights add up to 100?
They do not have to, since only the relative sizes affect the ranking. Using a scale that totals 100 helps in practice because it forces the trade-off into the open: giving one criterion more means taking it from another, which is the decision you are actually making.