RFQ software helps a buying team create requests for quotation, send them to suppliers, collect the quotes and compare them on equal terms before an award. When you choose a tool, look past the sending part. The award depends on whether quotes become comparable line by line, with deviations visible and a person approving the result.
What does RFQ software actually do?
RFQ software covers the path from a purchase need to a supplier award. Most tools describe that path in five steps. Where they differ is the point at which they stop: some end once the quotes are collected, others carry on until the quotes are comparable and the decision is recorded. Check that point first when you read a product page.
- Create: the buyer turns a purchase need into an RFQ with item lines, quantities, specifications and the delivery terms that apply.
- Send: the RFQ goes to the selected suppliers, ideally with one deadline and one response format for all of them.
- Collect: quotes come back as PDFs, spreadsheets, emails or portal entries, and someone has to chase the ones that are missing.
- Compare: lines are matched across suppliers, and units, currencies and commercial terms are brought to one basis.
- Decide: the buyer picks a supplier, writes down why and informs the people involved.
What types of RFQ tools are there?
You will mostly meet three kinds of RFQ platform: a module inside an ERP or source-to-pay suite (source-to-pay means the whole purchasing chain from sourcing to payment), a standalone RFQ tool, and a layer that works on the quotes themselves to support comparison and decision. Which one fits depends on what your team already runs and where the hours go today.
| Type | What it covers | Fits teams that |
|---|---|---|
| RFQ module in an ERP or source-to-pay suite | Request creation and supplier communication, tied to master data and purchase orders | already run the suite across purchasing and want one system of record |
| Standalone RFQ tool | Sending, a supplier portal, collecting responses; usually lighter to set up | run many RFQs outside the ERP and mainly want order in sending and collecting |
| Comparison and decision layer | Turns quotes in mixed formats into comparable lines, shows deviations, supports the award | already have a way to send RFQs but lose their time reconciling quotes in spreadsheets |
The types can be combined. Many teams keep the ERP for orders and add a comparison layer for the step where quotes have to be matched and weighed against each other.
RFQ automation: what should you automate first?
Start with work that repeats and that a buyer can check quickly: bringing quotes to one basis, flagging gaps and calculating total cost. Negotiation and supplier relationships stay with people. A buyer can verify a converted unit in seconds, while no tool can judge whether a long-standing supplier deserves another chance after one late delivery.
- Normalization of units (pieces against packs, kilograms against tonnes), Incoterms (the standard rules that say who carries freight, insurance and risk up to which point) and payment terms, so that a price with long payment terms and a price with prepayment can be compared fairly.
- Flagging of missing and substitute items. A line a supplier did not quote, or quoted with an alternative part, should show up as a flag instead of disappearing inside a total.
- Total cost per supplier: unit price plus freight, packaging, tooling and minimum order effects, on one line you can explain to your manager.
Negotiation, the supplier relationship and the final award with a written reason should remain manual.
How should you review the comparison logic?
Before you look at automation features, check how the tool compares. It should normalize lines, units, currencies and terms in a way you can follow, and keep the original quote line next to each converted value. If a buyer cannot trace a number back to the supplier's document, the comparison will not hold up in an internal review. For what to compare beyond the unit price, see how to compare supplier quotes beyond price.
Which open points should stay visible in the workflow?
Missing data, substitutes and technical uncertainty each need a named owner. A single overall score hides them. In a demo, look for:
- explained differences for each RFQ line
- human review and recorded approvals
- an audit trail for the award that you can export
How do you run a pilot for RFQ software?
Test the tool on recurring RFQs your team already knows well, so the results can be checked against experience. Measure the time to a comparison someone can review, the deviations the tool found that the team would have missed, the amount of rework, and whether buyers keep using it once the vendor is no longer in the room. Agree on the success measure before the pilot starts.
Which criteria matter when choosing an RFQ tool?
| Criterion | What to check |
|---|---|
| Line matching and normalization | Every converted value traces back to the original quote line |
| Deviations | Commercial and technical deviations are shown per line, including missing and substitute items |
| Roles and approvals | Who may approve, and whether the decision history is stored and exportable |
| Data and integration | Where data is stored, how data moves to and from the ERP, which privacy controls exist |
| Pilot success measure | Agreed before the start, with a baseline from your current process |
The RFQ quote comparison checklist goes through the comparison step itself in more detail.
What does a pilot evaluation look like in practice?
This is an illustrative example with no real company behind it. A buying team at a machine builder picks recurring RFQs from the last quarter for parts it orders often. For each RFQ it measures how long it takes to reach a comparison someone can review, counts the missing lines the tool flagged and checks that every recommendation traces back to an original quote line. Then it puts these results next to how the same RFQs were handled in the spreadsheet at the time.
When is a spreadsheet enough?
A spreadsheet is enough when you ask a few suppliers for quotes a few times a year and the item lists are short. A clean template with fixed columns for unit, Incoterms, payment terms and delivery time does the job, and software would add setup work without much return.
It stops working when RFQs recur every week, quotes arrive in different formats, or several people need to see why a supplier won. If you want a template, we have a German one: Preisspiegel template for quote comparison (German). A Preisspiegel is the price comparison sheet German buying teams use. There is no English version yet.
Where does StableScore fit?
StableScore works mainly in the compare and decide steps. Quotes in different formats become comparable line items, and payment terms, delivery dates, prepayment, currency and missing or substitute items are shown separately. Each RFQ ends in a decision card: a score out of 100, a recommendation, three reasons and the next action. The buyer picks the winner and adds a short justification. Writing to suppliers, collecting their quotes and asking them to correct incomplete ones are steps that can be switched on per customer. More on the flow: automated RFQ quote comparison and Procurement Intelligence.
Frequently asked questions
- What is RFQ management software?
- RFQ management software organizes requests for quotation from creation to award. It sends RFQs to suppliers, collects the quotes, puts them side by side and records the decision. The term covers ERP modules, standalone tools and comparison layers, so check which of these steps a given product really handles.
- Does RFQ software integrate with ERP?
- Many tools offer some kind of ERP connection, but the depth varies. Ask which data flows in which direction (item master, supplier master, purchase orders), whether it runs through an API or a file export, and who maintains the connection when the ERP changes. For a pilot, a file export is often enough. StableScore is set up for each customer, so the connection to your ERP is built around the systems you already run.
- Where is our quote data stored?
- Ask this before the pilot starts, because it differs from vendor to vendor. With many SaaS tools the data sits on the vendor's servers. StableScore can run in your private cloud or on-premise, so quote and supplier data stay under your company's control, and you choose the models and infrastructure. Review the setup with your data protection officer as part of the pilot.
- What data does RFQ software need at minimum?
- RFQ lines, plus supplier quotes that give a quantity, a unit and a price for each line. Delivery, payment and specification data add value when they are structured or can be reviewed in the original document.
- Is a fully automatic award a good selection criterion?
- No. The award should stay with a person who can see why one quote ranks ahead of another and what is missing from it. Look for explainable comparisons and visible exceptions rather than an auto-award button.