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Templates

Software development RFP template (with scoring sheet)

An RFP written by engineers for engineers: what to tell vendors about your project, what to ask them, and how to score the answers side by side.

By the Ryz Labs team · Updated October 2026

A software development RFP (request for proposal) describes the system you need built, the environment it must run in and the questions every vendor must answer, so you can compare proposals on the same terms. The strongest RFPs are short on boilerplate and specific about outcomes, constraints and the team you expect: who will do the work, at what seniority and on whose hours. The template below gives you the sections to send, the questions to ask and a weighted sheet to score responses.

Software development RFP template

Replace everything in brackets. Keep the whole document under ten pages; long RFPs get long, generic answers.

1. RFP sections to send to vendors

Section 1: About us and why now

☐ Company, product and users in two paragraphs
☐ The business problem and why it must be solved this year
☐ Who the vendor team will work with day to day (name the role, such as VP of Engineering)

Section 2: Outcomes and scope

☐ The outcome in one sentence, such as "Customers can open an account in under five minutes on mobile"
☐ In scope: features, integrations and platforms
☐ Out of scope: what you will not ask the vendor to do
☐ What exists today: current system, code, designs or prior attempts

Section 3: Technical environment and constraints

☐ Languages, frameworks, cloud and data stores in use
☐ Systems to integrate with, and how (APIs, files, queues)
☐ Security and compliance standards the work must meet (for example SOC 2 controls, HIPAA, PCI DSS)
☐ Access model: vendor engineers work in our repos, cloud accounts and tools, which we control

Section 4: Team and ways of working

☐ Expected working hours and required overlap with our team
☐ Rituals the vendor team joins: standups, sprint reviews, code review
☐ Who owns architecture decisions, and who approves releases

Section 5: Timeline

☐ Target dates for first release and production launch
☐ Fixed dates that cannot move (regulatory, events, renewals) and why

Section 6: Proposal format and process

☐ Response deadline, question deadline and how questions are answered
☐ Required proposal sections and maximum length
☐ Shortlist presentations, technical interviews with proposed engineers and decision date

2. Questions every vendor must answer

#	Question	What a strong answer includes
1	Who exactly will work on this, and what have they built?	Named or profiled engineers with seniority, stack and comparable systems built; not a generic bench
2	How would you approach the first 60 days?	Concrete plan tied to our scope: discovery, architecture decisions, first shippable increment
3	What are the three biggest technical risks you see in our brief?	Specific risks in our system, with how they would reduce each
4	How do you vet engineers before they join a client team?	A defined process with technical interviews and how few candidates pass
5	What hours will the team work, and how much overlap with our team?	Exact hours in our time zone and how code review and incidents are handled
6	How do you handle an engineer who is not the right fit?	Replacement process and how knowledge is handed over
7	How is cost structured?	Cost per role per month and team total; what changes the cost
8	How will we know the project is on track?	Demos, delivery metrics and who reports them
9	What happens at handover?	Documentation, ownership of code and IP, and knowledge transfer to our engineers
10	References for similar work	At least two clients with a similar system or scale, reachable by phone

3. Proposal scoring sheet

Criterion	Weight	Vendor A (1-5)	Vendor B (1-5)	Vendor C (1-5)	Notes
Understanding of our problem and risks	20%	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Quality and seniority of the proposed team	25%	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Technical approach and first 60 days	20%	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Working hours and collaboration model	10%	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Relevant experience and references	10%	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Cost and cost transparency	15%	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Weighted total	100%	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	Shortlist the top two for technical interviews

Use this template

How to use this RFP template

Write sections 1 to 3 with the engineer who will own the system after launch. Vendors respond to the technical environment more than to the business narrative.
Decide the scoring weights before you send the RFP, and get the buying group to agree on them. Changing weights after seeing proposals invites bias.
Send the RFP to three to five vendors. More than that produces reading, not decisions.
Answer vendor questions in one shared document so every vendor gets the same information.
Score proposals independently, then compare scores as a group and discuss the largest differences.
Shortlist two vendors and interview the actual engineers they proposed. A vendor's sales team is not the team that will write your code.
Check references with the specific questions from the scoring sheet before you decide.

Example: a filled-in outcome and scope section

Field	Example
Outcome	Field technicians close work orders on a tablet without connectivity, and records sync within five minutes of reconnecting.
In scope	Offline-first mobile app (iOS and Android), sync service, integration with the existing work order API, admin views for dispatchers.
Out of scope	Changes to the billing system; replacing the dispatch scheduler.
Exists today	A web app used on laptops, a documented REST API, and design mockups for three core screens.
Fixed date	Pilot with one region before the spring maintenance season.

Common RFP mistakes

Specifying the solution instead of the outcome. If you write the architecture into the RFP, you will only learn which vendor follows instructions best.
Not asking who will do the work. Proposals full of company credentials say little about the engineers you will get. Ask for profiles and interview them.
Scoring cost as the biggest weight. The cheapest team that misses the date costs more than a senior team that hits it. Weight team quality highest.
Leaving out the technical environment. Vendors guess, estimates diverge, and you cannot compare proposals.
Running the process for months. Good teams get booked. Keep the process to a few weeks from sending to deciding.

Sending an RFP for engineers or an AI pod?

Ryz answers RFPs with named engineers, not a generic bench. We staff senior engineers and AI pod teams on your team, reporting to your leads, on US business hours including New York hours. Only the top 1% of the tens of thousands of engineers we interview make it, and Fortune 500 engineering teams work with us. Typical cost is $7,000 to $15,000 per engineer per month. Your code and IP are always yours, and engineers work in accounts you control. Send us your brief, or see how a dedicated development team or software outsourcing engagement works with us.

FAQ

What should a software development RFP include?

Background and why now, the outcome and scope, the technical environment and constraints, team and working-hour expectations, the timeline, the questions every vendor must answer, the proposal format and the evaluation criteria. Keep it specific and under ten pages.

How many vendors should receive a software development RFP?

Three to five is usually enough. Fewer limits your comparison; more creates reading work without improving the decision. Shortlist two for technical interviews with the engineers they propose.

How do you evaluate software development proposals?

Use a weighted scoring sheet agreed before the RFP goes out. Weight the quality and seniority of the proposed team, understanding of your risks and the technical approach above cost. Score independently, compare as a group, then interview the proposed engineers and check references.

Should an RFP ask for a fixed price?

Only if the scope is truly fixed and well specified. For most product work, ask for cost per role per month and the team size, and judge vendors on their plan for the first increments. Our guide on fixed price vs time and materials covers the trade-offs.

What is the difference between an RFP and an RFI?

An RFI (request for information) asks vendors about their capabilities so you can build a shortlist. An RFP asks shortlisted vendors for a specific proposal against your project. Many teams skip the RFI and send a short RFP to a researched list.

Questions we didn't answer? Email info@ryzlabs.com.