Recommendation Scorecard

Score up to three financial recommendations on the same eight criteria, with your own weights.

What Are You Comparing?

Give each recommendation a short name. Leave the third blank if you only have two. Names stay on this page.

Recommendation 1

Recommendation 2

Recommendation 3

Cost per year (1)

Cost per year (2)

Cost per year (3)

Years you would pay (1)

years

Years you would pay (2)

years

Years you would pay (3)

years

Score Each One

Weight: how much the criterion matters to you (1 a little, 3 a lot). Score: 1 is poor for you, 5 is good for you. Leave a score blank if you do not have the answer yet.

Criterion	Weight	Option 1	Option 2	Option 3
Solves a stated need Which need of mine does this meet, in one sentence?
Cost per year What will I pay each year, and can I keep paying it if my income drops?
Total cost over the term What is the total I will pay over the whole term, including all fees and charges?
Guaranteed vs non-guaranteed Which figures are guaranteed in writing, and which are only projections?
Flexibility and lock-in Can I pause, reduce or change it, and for how long is my money tied up?
Exit cost What would I get back, or have to pay, if I stopped after 1, 3 and 5 years?
Who benefits from the sale How is the person recommending this paid, and has the commission been disclosed?
Alternatives considered What simpler or cheaper ways of meeting the same need were compared, including doing nothing?

Highest weighted score so far–

Side By Side

Measure	Option 1	Option 2	Option 3
Cost per year	–	–	–
Total cost over the term	–	–	–
Criteria scored	–	–	–
Weighted points	–	–	–
Weighted score	–	–	–

A higher score is not a recommendation. It reflects only the weights and scores you entered, and it cannot tell you whether any option suits you.

Some criteria are not scored. Compare the options only on questions you have answers to in writing.

Questions Still Unanswered

Option 1

Option 2

Option 3

A thinking aid for education only. It is not financial advice and does not recommend any product.

How To Use The Scorecard

Recommendations are hard to compare because each one arrives with its own brochure and its own way of presenting numbers. The scorecard puts every option through the same eight questions, so a strong sales pitch gets no extra marks.

Set the weights first, before you look at the options again. Then score each option from 1 to 5 on each criterion, using only what you have been told in writing. For the cost rows, a higher score means it is cheaper or easier for you to bear. If you cannot answer a question, leave it blank: the blank will appear under "Questions still unanswered", and that list is what to bring to your next meeting.

The weighted score is each score multiplied by its weight, added up and shown as a percentage of the most that option could have earned on the criteria you scored.

Assumptions And Limits

The scores and weights are entirely yours. The tool only multiplies and adds them; it has no view on any plan, product or provider and does not know what you are comparing.
Each criterion is scored from 1 (poor for you) to 5 (good for you) and weighted from 1 to 3. The weighted score is shown as a share of the maximum for the criteria you have scored, so an option is not marked down for a blank, but blanks are listed as unanswered questions.
Total cost is simply the yearly cost multiplied by the number of years you enter. It ignores the time value of money, any payouts and any changes in premiums or fees.
A higher score is not a recommendation. A single criterion, such as a cost you cannot keep up, can outweigh everything else.
The names you type stay in this page. They are not saved or sent anywhere, and they disappear when you close or refresh the page.

This calculator was built with AI tools from published rules and may contain errors. Results are estimates for education only, not financial advice and not a guarantee. Rates and rules change; confirm with the official source before you act. Your figures stay in your browser: nothing you type is sent to us.

What Are You Comparing?

Score Each One

Side By Side

Questions Still Unanswered

How To Use The Scorecard

Assumptions And Limits

Sources