Analytic Hierarchy Process - Managing Criteria and Sub-criteria

There are two ways to open the Criteria/Subcriteria page.

Option 1: On the Options page, click the "Manage Criteria" button. This opens the Criteria/Subcriteria page.

AHP Software Options page with the 'Manage Criteria' button highlighted; clicking it navigates to the Criteria and sub-criteria diagram page.

Option 2: Open the "View" menu and click "Criteria".

AHP Software View menu expanded with the 'Criteria' command highlighted, an alternate way to open the Criteria and sub-criteria diagram page.

After you click the button, the Criteria page opens as shown below.

AHP Software Criteria and sub-criteria diagram page showing the hierarchical model tree with the Goal node at the top branching into criteria such as Safety, Cost, and Comfort.

Adding a New Criterion or Subcriterion

The diagram represents your Analytic Hierarchy Process model. The root node is your goal, and the other nodes are your criteria and subcriteria.

Select any node and a small fly-over menu appears with a plus sign. Click that plus sign to add a criterion or subcriterion. For example, to add a subcriterion under "Comfort", select the Comfort node and click the plus button on that node.

AHP Software criteria diagram with the Comfort node selected and a fly-over menu next to it exposing the plus (Add) button used to attach a new sub-criterion.

After you click the Add button, the wizard starts collecting the new subcriteria.

AHP Software Add Criterion wizard launched from the diagram's fly-over plus button, ready to capture the name of a new criterion or sub-criterion.

This is the same wizard you used when you first created the model. Add the subcriteria you need and click "Proceed". After the new items are added, the software asks for the required pairwise comparisons, because the new subcriteria must be compared against each other.

AHP Software Add Criterion wizard pairwise comparison step shown after a new sub-criterion is added, prompting the user to capture comparisons against the existing siblings.

The panel also includes an "Add another criterion" button. Use it when you want to create another criterion in the same flow. After you finish all pairwise comparisons, the software returns to the Criteria/Subcriteria diagram page and shows the newly added subcriteria.

AHP Software criteria diagram updated to show two newly added sub-criteria branching beneath the Comfort node after the Add Criterion wizard finishes.

To add a top-level criterion, select the root node, which is your goal node, and click the plus button. In this example, select "Buy a car" and then click the plus button from its fly-over menu.

Editing or Renaming a Criterion or Subcriterion

To rename a criterion or subcriterion, double-click the node. The node turns into an editable text box. Change the text and press Enter to save it. Press Esc if you want to cancel the edit.

AHP Software criteria diagram with a node double-clicked into an inline editable textbox so the criterion can be renamed without leaving the diagram.

Deleting a Criterion or Subcriterion

Select a node in the diagram and press Delete to remove it. You can also right-click a node and choose Delete from the context menu.

The context menu also includes "Delete Children". Use that command when you want to delete the whole subtree under the selected node.

AHP Software criteria diagram right-click context menu on the Comfort node, exposing Deselect, Edit Text, Delete, and Delete Children commands for renaming the node or removing it (with or without its sub-tree).

Changing the Diagram Layout or Zoom

On the Criteria/Subcriteria page, open the Diagram Navigator tab to adjust the diagram view. From there you can change the zoom level, pan the diagram, increase node width, and change horizontal or vertical spacing.

AHP Software Diagram Navigator panel with controls for zoom level, panning, node width, and horizontal and vertical spacing of the criteria diagram.

Copy or Save the Diagram Image

Right-click the diagram to open its context menu. From there you can copy the diagram or save it as an image.

AHP Software criteria diagram right-click context menu offering Copy Diagram Image, Save Diagram Image As, and Refresh Diagram commands for exporting or rebuilding the criteria hierarchy view.

Changing Pairwise Comparisons for Criteria and Subcriteria

To change the pairwise comparison for a criteria set or subcriteria set, select the related node and use the "Priority Trade-offs" panel at the bottom. For example, if the "Comfort" node is selected, the pairwise comparison panel shows the subcriteria under Comfort.

AHP Software Priority Trade-offs bottom panel loaded with the pairwise comparisons of the sub-criteria under the currently selected Comfort node.

If you select the root node "Buy a car", the pairwise comparison panel shows the first-level criteria: Safety, Cost, and Comfort.

AHP Software Priority Trade-offs panel showing the first-level criteria comparisons (Safety, Cost, Comfort) that load when the root goal node 'Buy a car' is selected.

Check the "Matrix view" checkbox to see the pairwise comparison matrix.

AHP Software Priority Trade-offs panel with the 'Matrix view' checkbox ticked, which switches the panel from one-pair-at-a-time slider mode to a full reciprocal matrix view.

Click a cell in the matrix to open the corresponding pairwise comparison window.

AHP Software pairwise comparison matrix view where clicking a cell opens the corresponding single-pair comparison dialog for editing that judgment.