Price in Public Procurement Law 2026

Price as an award criterion in public procurement: significance, weighting and relationship to quality criteria when evaluating tenders.

Definition: Price is a central award criterion in public procurement law, on the basis of which contracting authorities assess the economic advantageousness of tenders; it may be used as the sole criterion or as one of several weighted criteria when evaluating tenders.

Last updated: January 2026 · Legal basis: Art. 67 Directive 2014/24/EU, § 58 VgV, § 43 UVgO, § 16d VOB/A, BVergG 2018

Significance of price in public procurement law

Price is traditionally the most important award criterion in public procurement and directly reflects the duty to handle public funds economically. Public procurement law obliges contracting authorities to award the contract not necessarily to the cheapest tender but to the most economically advantageous tender. Price must therefore always be viewed in relation to quality, scope of services and further criteria.

Price as the sole award criterion

Under certain conditions, price may be the sole award criterion, in particular where the service to be procured is fully standardised and clearly defined. This is expressly provided for in the German Procurement Regulation (§ 58 (2) VgV) and in VOB/A. For standardised goods and simple services without variations in quality, an evaluation purely on price can be appropriate. For complex or innovation-focused services, by contrast, a multi-criteria evaluation is required.

Price as part of overall evaluation

In most tender procedures, price flows into the overall evaluation as a weighted criterion alongside other award criteria such as quality, delivery time, sustainability or service concept. The weighting of price must be determined in advance in the tender documents and published. It may not be changed during the procedure. Typical price weightings range between 30% and 60%, depending on the type and complexity of the service.

Lowest price vs. most economically advantageous tender

EU procurement law clearly distinguishes between the lowest-price principle and the most economically advantageous tender (MEAT). Since the 2014 procurement reform, the MEAT principle is the standard; price alone may only be used as the sole criterion in justified exceptional cases. The reasoning is that the cheapest tender is not necessarily the most economical when quality and life-cycle cost perspectives are taken into account.

Life-cycle costs

A modern form of price evaluation is life-cycle costs (LCC), which in addition to the purchase price also cover operating, maintenance and disposal costs. Under § 59 VgV, contracting authorities can apply a life-cycle costing method, provided that this is transparently described in the tender documents. The instrument is gaining particular importance for energy-intensive products and infrastructure projects.

Price transparency and confidentiality

Tendered prices are confidential until the tender opening; subsequent price negotiations are in principle inadmissible in the open and restricted procedures. An exception applies to the negotiated procedure and the competitive dialogue, in which price elements can form part of the negotiations. After the contract award, prices are in principle to be published as part of the award notice.

FAQ

May a contracting authority award solely on the basis of the lowest price? Yes, under certain conditions. For standardised services, awarding on the lowest price is permissible and can be appropriate.

How is price weighted in the evaluation? The weighting must be determined by the contracting authority in advance and published in the tender documents. Subsequent changes are inadmissible.

What are life-cycle costs? Life-cycle costs cover all costs over the entire useful life of a product or service, i.e. acquisition, operation, maintenance and disposal.

May price be negotiated after the tender opening? In the open and restricted procedures, in principle no. In the negotiated procedure, by contrast, price negotiations are expressly admissible.

Last updated: January 2026 All information provided without guarantee. For legally binding advice, please consult a law firm specialising in public procurement law.