Three levels of project results: outputs are what you produce directly; outcomes are the changes in behaviour or capacity of those the project reaches; impact is the broader long-term change to which the project only contributes. Confusing them is the most common reason for a weak impact section.
- Outputs
- Under your control
- Outcomes
- Influenced, not controlled
- Impact
- Contribution among other factors
- Test
- If you control it, it is an output
These three levels differ not in scale but in how much of them you control. That is the point that matters.
Outputs
The goods, services and tangible results of your activity: people trained, a methodology written, equipment installed, a paper published. The international definition adds plainly: outputs are within the control of the implementing team and attributable to it.
So if you do not control it, it is not an output.
Outcomes
The short- and medium-term effects of your outputs: trained people start applying the skills, an institution adopts the methodology, practice changes.
The key point: an outcome is already not fully within your control – external conditions stand between your output and a change in behaviour. That is exactly why assumptions sit next to this level in a logframe.
Impact
Higher-level, longer-term change to which outcomes lead. Here your contribution is one factor among many, and the honest formulation is "contribute to", not "achieve".
A terminological trap the international glossary warns about: "impacts" and "results" are often used interchangeably, which creates confusion. And impact as a result level is not the same as impact as an evaluation criterion.
How to test this in a proposal
The simplest check: if you claim you will achieve impact, you are either overstating or you have called an outcome an impact. Conversely, if your "outcome" is entirely within your control, it is an output.
Frequently asked questions
How do we tell an outcome from an output?
By control. You create an output yourself and you are fully responsible for it. An outcome is a change in the behaviour or capacity of others, and it is affected by external conditions. If you can guarantee that it will be achieved, it is an output.
Can we promise impact?
It is correct to promise a contribution to impact. A claim such as “our project will reduce unemployment in the region” will be read by an evaluator as a failure to understand the levels, not as ambition.
Official materials
Read on GetGrant
Sources
- OECD-DAC Glossary, 2nd ed., 2023 oecd.org · checked 27.07.2026
Data current as of 27.07.2026. Verify the terms with the donor’s official portal before applying.
Updated 27.07.2026 · Reviewed by: GetGrant editorial team
