A4 document

format

IT services

industry

Software

industry

SaaS

industry

Modern

design

IT RFP template

A free IT RFP template for buying software or IT services: functional and technical requirements, integrations, security and data questions, service levels, a weighted scorecard and a pricing grid. Edit it as is, or let Cobl draft it from your requirements.

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Make this template yours

Turn this template into a real document for your company. Cobl adapts the content, branding and structure to your context.

Use this template

We never train a model on your content.

Format

A4 document

Length

15 pages

Sections

9 sections

Exports

PDF · Word

Time saved

Hosted in the EU. No model training on your data.

What's inside

The nine sections that make IT vendors comparable

IT proposals are hard to compare because every vendor describes the same capability differently. These sections put the answers in the same shape.

Background and current environment

Your current systems, users, volumes and what is not working. Vendors size their solution on these numbers.

Functional requirements

What the system must do, as numbered mandatory and desirable items, each answered as supported, configurable, custom or not available.

Technical and integration requirements

Hosting, architecture, APIs and the systems it must connect to, with the data that moves between them.

Security and data protection

Certifications, data residency, access control, encryption and incident notification. Often the section that decides the shortlist.

Service levels and support

Uptime, response and resolution times, support hours and the credits that apply when targets are missed.

Implementation and migration

The vendor's plan, timeline and data migration approach, and the resources they expect from your team.

Pricing grid

Licenses, implementation, support and other costs over three to five years, in one fixed table. Total cost, not just year one.

Evaluation criteria and weights

The scoring scale and the weight of each section, published up front so vendors know where to spend their effort.

Submission and timeline

Question deadline, demo dates with scripted scenarios, submission format, and the date vendors will hear your decision.

How it works

From this template to client-ready

Start from the template

Click “Use this template”. You start from a real example, with its structure, its method and its design.

Add your context

Nothing to prepare. Cobl asks you the right questions and pulls your company knowledge: your CRM, your tools, your past work and your branding.

Get the best of both

Cobl assembles the two. The rigour of the template, with your content and your branding. So, what comes out is client-ready.

Why this template

Answers you can score line by line

An IT RFP collects dozens of requirements. Without a fixed answer format, each response reads like a brochure.

Fixed answer codes

Each requirement is answered as supported, configurable, custom or not available. A long response becomes a table you can filter.

Security gets its own section

Data residency, certifications and incident terms are asked directly, so the security review starts with the shortlist, not after it.

Five-year cost, not first-year price

The pricing grid covers licenses, services and support over the contract, so a cheap first year cannot hide the total.

FAQ

Questions about this template

Is the IT RFP template free?

Yes. Download it as it is, in Word or PDF, without an account. You only create one when you want Cobl to rewrite it with your own requirements and your branding.

What should an IT RFP include?

A description of your current environment and volumes, numbered functional and technical requirements with a fixed answer format, integration needs, security and data protection questions, service levels, the implementation and migration approach, a multi-year pricing grid, weighted evaluation criteria and the timeline. The fixed answer format is what makes vendors comparable.

What is the difference between an RFP and an RFI?

An RFI gathers information about a market before requirements are fixed, and answers are usually short and exploratory. A request for proposal asks vendors to propose a full solution against defined requirements, and answers are scored against weighted criteria. An RFI often precedes an RFP for the same project, so a strong RFI answer is a positioning exercise for the round that follows.

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How long does an RFP process usually take?

Four to eight weeks is the common range for a mid-market B2B purchase, measured from internal kickoff to contract award. Public sector procurement typically runs three to six months. Vendors normally get two to three weeks of that total to produce their answer.

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Can I use my own branding?

That is the point. Give Cobl your website and it reads your colours, your typography and your tone, then applies them to every page. Upload a past document and it locks onto your real design system.

IT RFP template

The nine sections that make IT vendors comparable

From this template to client-ready

Answers you can score line by line

Questions about this template

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