An example of Pareto ranking on two criteria.

Each point represents a cell (or other spatial unit) being ranked. The first criterion is plotted on the x-axis and the second criterion is plotted on the y-axis. If no other solutions fall within a rectangle defined by a focal solution and the origin (dashed line), the focal solution is said to be non-dominated. All non-dominated solutions are given a rank of 1 and fall along a curve called the Pareto front (solid line). All rank1 solutions are removed, and then the non-dominated solutions of those that remain are given rank 2. The process is repeated until all solutions are ranked.