The Cost-Benefit Analysis provides a way to decide which proposed option or project is the most valuable. This template will allow decision makers to compare among several solutions or projects and select the one that offers the greatest return against the cost of implementation. For simplicity, the analysis results here are expressed as a payback period and as a benefit-cost ratio, assuming that all projects are short-term in nature.

To use the template, first you need to select those options or projects that show the greatest potential. Then you need to identify the various costs of each alternative, estimate the benefits you will receive from each, fill out all these details in a worksheet per alternative, and then compare them using either the payback period method or the benefits-cost ratio. Selecting the most promising and profitable project could also be made using one of the two numerical scoring methods used by the project selection template.

This template runs in Excel, and you can use and modify to suit your specific needs. For example, you may want to add more fields if you have many costs to be considered. You may also want to use your own benefit-cost formula. You can also have a separate worksheet per alternative, then create another worksheet to summarize all the results which makes it easier to compare between the different alternatives.