Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) Program

This Web application is designed to assist in assessing and prioritizing the relative importance of various criteria when determining the best option for a defined problem. It is based on a mathematical model that was developed in the early 1970s by Thomas Saaty (Saaty, T.L., The Analytic Hierarchy Process, Pittsburgh: RWS Publication, 1990). Saaty’s analytical hierarchy process includes and measures all tangible and intangible, quantitatively measurable and qualitative criteria, and calibrates each into a numerical scale. The process works by providing a sequence of pairs of criteria (i.e. each criterion is evaluated by comparing it with all the others in a sequence of pairings). For each pairing, participants are asked to rank, on a scale from -9 to +9, how important that criterion is compared with the other one. Continuing with this procedure, the mathematical model eventually gives a relative weight for each criterion, and the summation is normalized to 100%. The model also provides a consistency ratio, which shows how consistent the evaluation of the criteria was during the comparison. A low value (ideally below 0.10) is proof of good consistency.