In view of the fact the electricity meter industry lacks an evaluation method for R&D capabilities in China, a comprehensive evaluation method for R&D capabilities of electricity meter manufacturers is proposed in this paper. Firstly, based on the internationally accepted quality maturity model (QMM), combining with the construction requirements of the national quality foundation (NQI) basic elements, an evaluation index system covering the main links of R&D of electricity meters is established. And then, each index was quantified through analytic hierarchy process, the corresponding weight was calculated, and the evaluation formula is derived. Finally, taking five electricity meter manufacturers as an example, the method of combining subjective scoring and objective data is used to evaluate the comprehensive R&D capability. The results show that the method can objectively evaluate the R&D capabilities of electricity meter manufacturers, which provides a basis for bidding work of electricity meters and the improvement of own R&D capabilities of manufacturers.