AHP Sensitivity Analysis in SpiceLogic Software

Sensitivity analysis is an important part of a good AHP decision. It helps you see which criteria or judgments have a real effect on the final recommendation, and which ones barely move the result.

In AHP Software, you can check sensitivity in three practical ways.

Observe the Result as a Slider Changes

SpiceLogic AHP Software recalculates the result instantly as you move a slider. When you change a pairwise comparison or another slider value, watch how the charts change. This gives you a quick feel for which variables influence the decision and in what direction.

AHP Software pairwise comparison slider being dragged while the Options Analyzer chart updates live, the simplest way to gauge the sensitivity of a single comparison on the final decision.

Criteria Sensitivity Analysis

In the Options Analyzer panel, you will find a carousel of charts. Select the Weighted Attributes chart.

AHP Software Options Analyzer carousel showing the Weighted Attributes stacked bar chart for Car 1 and Car 2, with callouts noting that Cost dominates the decision and that legend entries can be toggled to see how the result changes.

After you click the "Cost" legend in the chart, the Cost criterion is temporarily turned off. The updated chart shows that if cost is ignored, "Car 2" becomes the better option instead of "Car 1".

AHP Software Weighted Attributes chart after clicking the Cost legend to disable that criterion; the winning option flips from Car 1 to Car 2, demonstrating how sensitive the decision is to Cost.

One-Way Sensitivity Analysis of a Variable

AHP Software can perform one-way sensitivity analysis and show how changing one variable affects the option values. Expand the "Sensitivity Analyzer" tab to see variables sorted by sensitivity rank.

The sensitivity rank is based on how much a variable must change before the final decision changes.

Sensitivity Rank = 100 - percentage of value change needed to alter the decision.

In the screenshot below, the most sensitive variable has a sensitivity rank of 74%. That means a 26% change within its possible value range can change the selected decision.

AHP Software Sensitivity Analyzer tab listing decision variables sorted by sensitivity rank, computed as the percentage change in the variable value that would flip the recommended option.

Click the chart icon beside a variable to open its sensitivity chart. For example, clicking the top variable opens the chart shown below.

AHP Software one-way sensitivity chart for the top-ranked sensitive variable (the Car 1 vs Car 2 comparison for Cost), with the green vertical line marking the current value and the option lines crossing where the winner changes.

In this example, the most sensitive variable is the comparison between Car 1 and Car 2 for the Cost criterion. When you move the pairwise comparison slider, the green vertical line moves with the current value.

The chart shows that if the Car 1 to Car 2 value falls below 2, the winning option changes from "Car 1" to "Car 2". When the comparison changes from 7:1 to 1:1, the green line moves to 1 and the winner changes to "Car 2". The one-way sensitivity chart reflects that change immediately.

AHP Software one-way sensitivity chart with the slider moved so the Car 1 to Car 2 ratio falls below 2; the green vertical line now sits on the other side of the option-line crossover, switching the winning choice from Car 1 to Car 2.

You can open the sensitivity chart for any variable by clicking the chart icon beside it.

AHP Software pairwise comparison panel with the small per-variable sensitivity icon highlighted; clicking it opens the one-way sensitivity chart for just that variable.

View or Export the Data Table

Every chart in the application has a context menu with useful tools. Right-click the one-way sensitivity chart to export the image, copy the image to the clipboard, show the data table, copy the data table, or export the data table to Excel.

AHP Software right-click context menu over a sensitivity chart with Export Image, Copy Image, Show Data Table, Copy Data Table, and Export Data Table to Excel commands.

Click "Show Data Table" to view the chart data in a table.

AHP Software data-table window opened from the sensitivity chart, listing the underlying numeric values per option and offering its own Export to Excel button.

You can export the data table to Excel from this panel as well.

Select Only the Series You Want to View

Like the other charts in AHP Software, the sensitivity chart lets you click a legend to show or hide a series. In the screenshot above, there are two legends: Car 1 and Car 2. Click the Car 1 legend to hide that series, and click it again to show it.

AHP Software sensitivity chart legend with the Car 1 entry clicked to hide its series, demonstrating per-option show/hide toggling shared across every chart in the application.