A Tale of Two Impacts: Comparing Projects in IMPLAN

INTRODUCTION

The choice between competing initiatives is rarely a straightforward comparison of raw dollar amounts; it is a strategic decision about a community's long-term trajectory. 

Utilizing project comparison tools allows decision-makers to move beyond superficial metrics and evaluate the distinct qualitative and quantitative ripples an investment sends through a local economy. Whether a city council is weigh-pricing competing bids for municipal funding, an economic development agency is evaluating the deep supply-chain impacts of a manufacturing plant versus the high-wage consumer spending of a tech hub, or a developer is assessing the cash-flow impacts of multi-phase timelines, comparative analysis provides the empirical baseline necessary for objective evaluation. 

But how do we do this inside the IMPLAN application? Luckily, IMPLAN has a new feature that allows you to easily compare the results between two projects and provides quick statistics to show you the differences in the project results.   

ESTABLISHING A BASELINE 

In order to accurately compare projects in IMPLAN, models must share similar foundations to ensure mathematical integrity and comparability. Achieving this "apples-to-apples" baseline requires data alignment across a series of modeling inputs. One of the most important considerations to think about when you want to compare projects in IMPLAN is Data Year consistency. If you compare projects that have differing Data Years, you’re comparing results that occurred in two different snapshots of the economy, which is not always useful.

There are some cases where comparing results across Data Years would be appropriate, such as comparing results for a project that happens in different time periods. This would include things like analyzing grant funding received every year, multiple years of operations, etc. Using different data years while comparing projects can be useful in some cases, but it should be done thoughtfully and intentionally. 

Another concept to keep in mind when you’re comparing projects is the event types that are used in your analysis. Comparing results from projects that use similar event types will provide that “apples-to-apples” consistency we’re looking for when we utilize the project comparison tool in IMPLAN. This consistency is important because IMPLAN utilizes distinct mathematical frameworks for different Event Types—such as Industry Output, Commodity Output, or Household Income—each introducing the initial economic shock into the model through different underlying assumptions. For example, Commodity Events analyze the change in the sale of a specific Commodity. These events account for the value chain associated with producing a specific Commodity, such as transportation, wholesale, and retail. On the other hand, Industry Events are designed to model changes in an Industry’s production level. Because we’re looking at an Industry’s production as a whole, margins wouldn’t be applied in these types of events (except Wholesale and Retail Industries). 

Because of the mathematical calculations that IMPLAN does on the backend for each event type, it’s important to compare projects that have similar event types (i.e. Industry vs. Industry, Commodity Output vs. Commodity Output, etc.). Comparing different event types across projects might end up skewing your comparative analysis results. Differences in your results may appear as a byproduct of conflicting modeling methodologies rather than the actual economic attributes of the projects themselves. 

HOW DO I COMPARE PROJECTS IN IMPLAN? 

You can compare projects in IMPLAN using the Project Comparison feature, available from the Projects screen in the application. 

This can be done in three easy steps:

1. Navigate to the Projects Screen. 
2. Select two projects that have been run in IMPLAN by checking the box to the left of the project name. It is important that you select projects that have been run in IMPLAN, as this feature is pulling data from the Results tab of your project. Each of the project progress icons should be blue, none should be gray. 
3. Click the ‘Compare (2/2)’ button on the top right hand side of the screen.

The Project Comparison dashboard displays a side-by-side comparison of the economic impacts generated by two distinct projects, focusing on core key metrics that you normally see in the results for an IMPLAN analysis. These metrics include Employment, Value Added, Labor Income, Output, and Tax Revenue. IMPLAN also runs basic percentage change calculations, detonated by green tags, between results to allow for easy comparison between projects. 

Additionally, the Project Comparison dashboard provides data on the Top 5 Industries that were impacted by each project. This can be filtered to look at Total, Direct, Indirect, or Induced effects, and even gives a percentage of the total by each Industry. 
 

The results presented in this dashboard aren’t comprehensive of everything you can see in the Results tab of a specific project, but it gives an overview of key metrics that are most commonly reported on from IMPLAN reports. 

⚠️ Note: The Project Comparison tool is currently available in the U.S. product only and is not supported in the IMPLAN International or IMPLAN Canada Products.

HOW CAN WE USE THE PROJECT COMPARISON IN ACTION?

Let’s take a look at a real-world application of the project comparison tool! 

Layla has decided that she wants to open a brand new bakery in South Louisiana, dedicated to celebrating the rich heritage of South Louisiana through culinary arts. She scouted two potential locations for her new store called Layla’s Laginappe. One location option in the historic and bustling New Orleans-Metairie, LA Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) and the other location option in the smaller, industrious Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA MSA. 

According to her market research, Layla found regardless of which location she chose, her projected initial revenue was remarkably stable. Because of the region’s deep-rooted love for local bakeries and a steady stream of pastry-loving locals and tourists, Layla estimated that Layla’s Lagniappe would bring in about $550,000 within its very first year at either location.

However, as she looked closer at the economic ripple effects of her potential business, she realized that $550,000 would behave very differently depending on where she planted her roots.

In the Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA MSA her bakery would be a job creator for the local community. Because of lower relative labor costs and the structure of the local supply chain, her $550,000 business would support 4.22 jobs—slightly higher than in the New Orleans-Metairie, LA MSA.

But the New Orleans-Metairie, LA MSA told a different story of economic ripple effects. While the New Orleans location supported slightly fewer individual jobs (4.08), the value of those jobs and the economic churn was significantly higher. Labor income in New Orleans skyrocketed to $260,031 (a massive 66% higher than Houma), meaning she would be paying higher wages into a competitive metro market. Furthermore, Value Added, the contribution to the regional GDP, was 59% higher in New Orleans. The total economic output in New Orleans would ultimately total about $890,979, about 20% higher than in Houma.

With these two different economic stories unfolding in different locations, now Layla has a choice to make. Should she open her shop in the New Orleans-Metairie, LA MSA or in the Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA MSA? 

If she chose Houma, she would be a big fish in a smaller pond, directly creating more jobs where they were deeply appreciated and embedding Layla’s Lagniappe into the cultural fabric of the bayou communities.

If she chose New Orleans, she would be stepping into a high-octane economic engine where every dollar she made amplified significantly, contributing heavily to the city's GDP, generating more tax revenue for parish infrastructure, and paying out higher overall wages.

The revenue was guaranteed, but the rest was up to her. Now she has enough information to decide exactly what kind of lagniappe—that little something extra—she wanted to give back to South Louisiana. 

CONCLUSION

Ultimately, the ability to compare project impacts equips decision-makers with the objective, data-driven insights needed to navigate complex economic landscapes. Whether a city council is deciding between competing infrastructure bids, an investor is evaluating regional site options, or a policymaker is weighing the trade-offs of different regulatory frameworks, project comparison transforms raw economic data into actionable strategy. By standardizing variables and isolating the true economic drivers of each scenario, organizations can move past guesswork and confidently choose the path that yields the greatest prosperity. In a world of finite resources and competing priorities, project comparison isn't just an analytical exercise—it is the foundation for responsible, forward-thinking economic stewardship.

Written July 1st, 2026