[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":181},["ShallowReactive",2],{"article-blog_en-\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-is-bid-tabulation":3,"tag-counts-blog_en":179},{"id":4,"title":5,"author":6,"body":7,"category":163,"cover":164,"coverAlt":165,"date":166,"description":167,"draft":168,"extension":169,"meta":170,"navigation":171,"path":172,"seo":173,"stem":174,"tags":175,"updated":177,"__hash__":178},"blog_en\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-is-bid-tabulation.md","What Is Bid Tabulation? Definition and Example","mira-holt",{"type":8,"value":9,"toc":155},"minimark",[10,18,23,26,86,91,100,104,115,121,125,128,132,138,149],[11,12,13,17],"p",{},[14,15,16],"strong",{},"Bid tabulation"," (often shortened to \"bid tab\") is the process of recording the key figures from every submitted bid side by side in a single table — one row per bidder, one column per field — so the proposals can be compared at a glance. In public procurement, the bid tab is also part of the official record of the award.",[19,20,22],"h2",{"id":21},"what-a-bid-tabulation-contains","What a bid tabulation contains",[11,24,25],{},"A typical bid tab records, for each bidder:",[27,28,29,42],"table",{},[30,31,32],"thead",{},[33,34,35,39],"tr",{},[36,37,38],"th",{},"Field",[36,40,41],{},"Why it's there",[43,44,45,54,62,70,78],"tbody",{},[33,46,47,51],{},[48,49,50],"td",{},"Total bid price",[48,52,53],{},"The primary ranking figure",[33,55,56,59],{},[48,57,58],{},"Bid bond \u002F security",[48,60,61],{},"Pass\u002Ffail against the RFP requirement",[33,63,64,67],{},[48,65,66],{},"Duration and warranty",[48,68,69],{},"The non-price commitments",[33,71,72,75],{},[48,73,74],{},"License class, revenue",[48,76,77],{},"The qualification gates",[33,79,80,83],{},[48,81,82],{},"Responsiveness and exceptions",[48,84,85],{},"Whether the bid can be compared on price at all",[87,88],"figure-mini-table",{"caption":89,"kind":90},"A bid tab for three of the six proposals.","tab",[11,92,93,94,99],{},"A filled-in, clickable example is here: ",[95,96,98],"a",{"href":97},"\u002Fworkbench?template=bid-comparison","six proposals tabulated, with the source of every cell",".",[19,101,103],{"id":102},"what-bid-tabulation-is-not","What bid tabulation is not",[11,105,106,109,110,114],{},[14,107,108],{},"It is not bid leveling."," Tabulation records what was submitted, as submitted. ",[95,111,113],{"href":112},"\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-is-bid-leveling","Bid leveling"," is the next step: adjusting for scope differences and exclusions so the numbers are genuinely comparable.",[11,116,117,120],{},[14,118,119],{},"It is not the award decision."," The tab is the evidence the decision rests on. In public work the standard is usually \"lowest responsive and responsible bidder\" — the tab is how you test both adjectives.",[19,122,124],{"id":123},"who-uses-it","Who uses it",[11,126,127],{},"General contractors comparing subcontractor bids (the highest-volume users — a mid-size project can mean 200-400 subcontractor proposals), owners and their representatives comparing GC proposals, and public agencies, where the bid tab is a statutory artifact that gets published with the award.",[19,129,131],{"id":130},"frequently-asked-questions","Frequently asked questions",[11,133,134,137],{},[14,135,136],{},"Is a bid tabulation legally required?","\nFor most public procurement in the US, yes — agencies must document the bids received and the basis of the award, and the bid tab is that document. In private work it's not required, just prudent.",[11,139,140,143,144,148],{},[14,141,142],{},"What software do people use for bid tabs?","\nMost bid tabs are still built in Excel. The manual part isn't the table — it's reading six forty-page PDFs to fill it. That's the part tools like Docabra automate; see the ",[95,145,147],{"href":146},"\u002Fblog\u002Fbid-tabulation-template","bid tabulation template"," for the full column setup.",[11,150,151,154],{},[14,152,153],{},"How long should a bid tab be kept?","\nFollow your organization's records policy; for public projects, bid tabs are typically retained for several years after contract closeout, since they're the first document requested in any protest or audit.",{"title":156,"searchDepth":157,"depth":157,"links":158},"",2,[159,160,161,162],{"id":21,"depth":157,"text":22},{"id":102,"depth":157,"text":103},{"id":123,"depth":157,"text":124},{"id":130,"depth":157,"text":131},"glossary","\u002Fcovers\u002Fwhat-is-bid-tabulation.jpg","Vintage engraving of an open ledger with ruled columns and a gavel beside it.","2026-08-05","Bid tabulation is the process of recording every bidder's price, schedule, and qualifications side by side in one table — what it contains, who uses it, and what it is not.",false,"md",{},true,"\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-is-bid-tabulation",{"title":5,"description":167},"blog\u002Fwhat-is-bid-tabulation",[176],"bid-tabulation",null,"W2wVbQS3iOLunHjawrFFa9qcyK2bicbR6t9JPhLXXQM",{"bid-tabulation":180,"pdf-to-excel":157,"bid-evaluation":180},3,1786355080591]