An RFI template is a ready-made request for information that a buyer sends to possible vendors to learn what they offer, fill gaps in its own knowledge and compare capabilities. It comes before any proposal or quote, so you can decide who is worth inviting further.
It is the starting document for a sourcing project when you are not yet sure what the market can do. Instead of asking for prices, it asks vendors to describe their company, their solution and how they would approach your problem, in a fixed format that makes answers easy to compare.
Procurement and the business owner usually send it to six to ten vendors early in a project, before writing detailed requirements. The answers shape the requirements, the budget and the shortlist for a later RFP or RFQ.
A template saves you from starting with a blank page each time. It keeps the same sections, deadlines and response rules on every RFI, so vendors know what you expect and you can compare replies side by side.
RFI number, issue date, response deadline and contact details for both the buyer and the vendor.
Project name, the background to the need and the goals you want to reach.
The questions you need answered, with any reference to requirements or documents vendors should read.
Indicative cost and timeline ranges from each vendor, so you can test the budget and schedule.
How to answer, in what format and by when, with a signature and date from the vendor.
Ready to use in Word, Google Docs and PDF. Fill it in, save it, reuse it.
Write the problem, the users and what you do not yet know. These gaps become your questions.
Find six to ten vendors from peers, analysts and your existing supplier base.
Send the document with a cover email, a deadline and one named contact for questions.
Share every vendor question and your answer with all vendors, so no one gains an edge.
Compare answers in a table and invite three or four vendors to the RFP or demo stage.
The simplest RFI is one page: who you are, what you need, ten questions, how to reply and by when.
Keep the whole RFI to four to six pages. Vendors answer short RFIs faster and in more detail, and the questions you leave out can go in the RFP. The sample below uses a fictional buyer.
RFI number, title, issue date, deadline for questions, response deadline, and the buyer's single point of contact with email and phone.
Who you are in two sentences, why you are looking, what the project should achieve and any timeline you are working to.
Your questions, grouped by topic, with references to any attached requirements, process maps or volumes vendors need to read.
Ask for indicative cost ranges, pricing model and typical implementation timeline, labelled non-binding, so you can check budget and schedule.
Format, page limit, how to submit, confidentiality, that the RFI is not a commitment to buy, and a signed and dated vendor declaration.
Request for Information: [RFI number] Title: [Project name] Issued: [Date] Questions by: [Date] Responses due: [Date, time, time zone] Contact: [Name], [Title], [Email], [Phone] 1. Project overview [Company] is a [size and industry] organisation with [number] employees in [locations]. We currently [describe current process or system] and want to [goal, e.g. reduce manual work, replace an end-of-life system]. The purpose of this RFI is to understand the solutions available and how vendors would approach our needs. It is not a request for a proposal or a commitment to buy. We expect to [issue an RFP / run demos] in [month] and make a decision by [month].
Pick the ten to twenty that matter most. Part 2 has the full bank.
| Topic | Sample question |
|---|---|
| Company | How long have you offered this solution, and how many customers of our size use it? |
| Capability | How does your solution handle [specific scenario], and what would we need to configure? |
| Implementation | What does a typical implementation look like, and what do you need from us? |
| Impact: cost | What is your pricing model, and what is an indicative annual cost range at our volume? |
| Impact: timeline | How long from contract to go-live for a customer like us? |
| Response | Please confirm you have read and accept the response terms, and sign and date below. |
Ask questions you will actually use to decide the shortlist. A yes-or-no question invites a yes, so ask how a vendor does something and for an example. The download has 40 questions in this format.
| Topic | Question | What a good answer shows |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Who owns the company, and how has headcount changed in two years? | Stability and focus |
| Company | Which three customers most like us would you put us in touch with? | Relevant references |
| Capability | Walk us through how your solution handles [our main process]. | Real fit, not a feature list |
| Capability | What do customers most often need to customise or build around? | Honest limits |
| Delivery | Who would deliver the work, and where are they based? | Team and time zones |
| Support | What support hours and response times are standard? | Service level to expect |
| Commercial | How do you price, and what drives the cost up or down? | Pricing model clarity |
| Risk | Which certifications or audits do you hold? | Compliance baseline |
Software is where an RFI pays off most, because hosting, security and integration gaps are expensive to discover after signing. Copy these rows into the scope section of the RFI template for technology procurement in the download.
| Area | Question to ask |
|---|---|
| Hosting and data | Where is customer data hosted, and can we choose the region? |
| Security | Can you share your latest independent security audit report under NDA? |
| Integrations | Which of our systems ([list]) do you integrate with natively, and who maintains each integration? |
| Identity | Do you support single sign-on and automated user provisioning, and on which plans? |
| Pricing model | Is pricing per user, per usage or flat, and how are renewal increases capped? |
| Exit | How do we export our data if we leave, and in what format? |
| Roadmap | What is on your 12-month roadmap that relates to our needs? |
Send the same email to every vendor on the same day, so nobody gets more time. The single-contact rule stops vendors lobbying stakeholders while the RFI is open.
Subject: Request for Information: [Project name], responses due [Date] Dear [Vendor contact], [Company] is exploring options for [short description of need], and we would like to invite [Vendor] to respond to the attached Request for Information. Key dates: - Questions to [Contact name] by [Date] - Responses due by [Date, time, time zone] Please send all questions in writing to [Email]. We will share questions and answers with all invited vendors. This RFI is for information only and is not a commitment to purchase. Please confirm by [Date] whether you intend to respond. Kind regards, [Name] [Title], [Company]
Do not score RFI answers to two decimal places: the information is high level and often unverified. A simple three-level mark per topic is enough to pick three or four vendors for the RFP.
| Topic | Brightline Software | Orbit Analytics | Kestrel Data | Lumen Systems |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capability fit | Strong | Strong | Adequate | Weak |
| Security | Strong | Adequate | Strong | Adequate |
| Integrations | Adequate | Strong | Strong | Adequate |
| Indicative cost | Adequate | Adequate | Strong | Strong |
| Shortlist? | Yes | Yes | Yes | No: weak on capability |
Illustrative responses from fictional vendors.
Most RFI problems come from unclear deadlines, missing context or one vendor getting extra information. The checklist catches all three. Read more on the procurement RFP process that follows.
Shortlisted software vendors? Spendflo pricing benchmarks show what similar companies pay.
See pricing benchmarksUse when you are still learning the market. No pricing commitment, no evaluation for award.
Use when you know the problem and want vendors to propose a solution and price.
Use when the specification is fixed and price is the main difference between vendors.
| Week | Activity |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Write the RFI, agree questions, build the vendor list |
| Weeks 2-3 | RFI open: vendor questions answered and shared |
| Week 4 | Compare responses and confirm the shortlist |
Illustrative timeline; complex projects take longer. See the difference between RFQ and RFP for the next step.
Vendors give better answers when they know the problem, not just the questions.
Topic groups make answers easy to compare across vendors in one table.
Short deadlines get rushed, generic answers from the vendors you most want.
Sending every answer to every vendor keeps the process fair and avoids repeat questions.
Tell every vendor the outcome, including those not shortlisted.
An RFI is too early for binding prices; ask for ranges and the pricing model.
A 100-question RFI tires vendors and delays the project.
Stakeholders talking to vendors outside the RFI undermines the shortlist.
Every vendor answers yes; ask how and for an example instead.
Add the RFI number, dates and one contact, then write the two-paragraph overview.
Pick ten to twenty from the question bank, plus the technology rows if you are buying software.
State the format, page limit, deadline and that the RFI is non-binding.
Send the cover email to every vendor on the same day and log who confirms.
Northwind Logistics, with 900 staff in four countries, sent an RFI to eight HR platforms with a two-week deadline. Seven replied. Two were weak on multi-country payroll and one would not share a security audit, leaving four. Indicative costs ran from 60,000 to 140,000 a year, so finance raised the budget before the RFP went out to the top three. Figures are illustrative.
Every part on this page, in Word, Google Docs and PDF, with the examples filled in.
Weight the questions towards security, integrations, data hosting and pricing model, and ask for an audit report early.
Ask about team experience, delivery method, rate structure and how they would staff your project.
Focus on capacity, locations, lead times, quality certifications and how pricing moves with volume.
Best for most RFIs sent by email.
Best when several people write questions.
Best for the final issued version.
Spendflo has handled 15,000+ agreements, at 30% average savings on software spend.
See your savingsA good RFI tells you what the market can do, roughly what it costs and which vendors deserve a closer look. What follows, the proposal, negotiation and contract, decides how much value you get.
Five sections and a question bank, grouped by topic.
Open the RFI →2Security, integration and pricing model questions for software buys.
Open the tech RFI →3Compare responses in one table and tell every vendor the outcome.
Open the comparison →Quick answers to what people ask most about the rfi template (request for information).
Write a header with dates and one contact, a short project overview, grouped questions, a request for indicative cost and timeline, and clear response rules. Keep it to four to six pages. Download the template on this page to start from all five sections.
The RFI document on this page is a free download in Word, Google Docs and PDF, since vendors answer in prose. The sample questions and response comparison table copy straight into Excel if you want to track answers in a spreadsheet.
An RFI document is a formal request that asks vendors to describe their company, solution and approach before you ask for proposals or prices. It helps build a shortlist and sharpen requirements, and you can download a ready-made one here.
The RFI checklist is a short list of checks to run before sending an RFI, while it is open and after responses arrive. It covers clear dates, fair sharing of answers and telling every vendor the outcome, and the download includes it.
You can download it free from this page as a Word document, with Google Docs and PDF versions too. It includes the five-section RFI, a question bank, a cover email and a checklist.
Sourcing and RFx
Purchase orders
Contracts
Vendor management
Budgets and business cases
Procurement
Accounts payable
Purchasing
Software buying
Supply chain
Spendflo handles intake, approvals, software pricing benchmarks and contracts once you have chosen a vendor, so the deal matches what the market pays.
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