Federal agencies committed about $793 billion on contracts in fiscal year 2025, but there is no single website that lists every government contract. Federal solicitations, procurement forecasts, award data, GSA Schedule orders, defense supply bids, state and local bids and subcontracting leads all live in different systems. This guide shows where each type of opportunity is posted in 2026, which official sources are free, and how to set up searches and alerts so the right opportunities come to you.
Quick answer: Federal government contracts are posted on SAM.gov, which is free to search. Use the GSA Forecast of Contracting Opportunities tool to see planned buys early, USAspending.gov to research past awards, GSA eBuy for Schedule orders, DIBBS for Defense Logistics Agency bids and SBA SubNet for subcontracts. State and local contracts are posted on each state's procurement portal and on aggregators such as BidNet Direct.
Government contracts are posted in different places depending on who is buying. Federal solicitations above $25,000 go on SAM.gov. Planned buys appear in agency forecasts, Schedule orders go through GSA eBuy, Defense Logistics Agency bids go through DIBBS, and state and local bids sit on separate state, city and county portals. Subcontracts are posted by prime contractors.
That fragmentation is why finding the right contract is often harder than writing the proposal. Federal agencies alone post new notices every day, and a search without a NAICS code filter or a saved search buries the few that fit your business. Contractors who win consistently do not rely on one feed. They know which source covers which stage of the procurement cycle and check each one on a routine.
It helps to think in four layers:
The core federal sources are SAM.gov for open solicitations, the GSA Forecast of Contracting Opportunities tool and agency forecasts for planned buys, USAspending.gov and SAM.gov contract data for past awards, SBA SubNet for subcontracts, DIBBS for Defense Logistics Agency supply bids, and GSA eBuy for orders under GSA Schedules and other GSA vehicles. All of them are free.
SAM.gov (the System for Award Management) is the official government-wide point of entry for federal contract opportunities. Under FAR 5.101, contracting officers must synopsize proposed contract actions expected to exceed $25,000 there, with limited exceptions. You will also find presolicitation notices, sources-sought notices, special notices and award notices. Searching is free without an account, but you need an active SAM.gov registration, which is also free, before you can receive a federal award.
Two FAR thresholds shape what you see. Since the inflation adjustment effective October 1, 2025, the FAR 2.101 micro-purchase threshold is generally $15,000 and the simplified acquisition threshold is generally $350,000. Purchases under the micro-purchase threshold are often made by government purchase card with no public posting, while buys up to the simplified acquisition threshold use faster, simpler procedures. Our guide to simplified acquisitions explains how those buys work.
A procurement forecast lists contracts an agency expects to award in the coming months, often well before a solicitation reaches SAM.gov. GSA's Forecast of Contracting Opportunities (FCO) tool on the Acquisition Gateway gives a governmentwide view of forecasts from participating agencies. Other agencies publish forecasts through their Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) or small business office. Forecasts are planning information and can change or be canceled, so check them alongside SAM.gov.
Use forecasts to do the pre-RFP work that wins contracts: respond to sources-sought notices, send capability statements to the listed small business specialist or contracting office, and attend industry days. Firms that engage during the forecast stage understand the agency's real need before the RFP drops. When the formal solicitation arrives, our RFP, RFQ, RFI and SOW guide explains each document type.
USAspending.gov shows federal contract awards: who won, how much, from which agency, under which NAICS code, and when the period of performance ends. That tells you which agencies buy what you sell, who the incumbents are and which contracts are coming up for recompete. The Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS) is the source of that contract data. GSA retired the FPDS.gov ezSearch tool on February 24, 2026, and contract data search now lives in SAM.gov, with public access still available through USAspending.gov.
SBA SubNet is the SBA's subcontracting network, where large prime contractors post subcontracting opportunities for small businesses. Its companion is SBA Small Business Search (SBS), which replaced the Dynamic Small Business Search (DSBS). Contracting officers and primes use SBS to find small businesses by NAICS code, certification and capability, so a complete SAM.gov profile helps buyers find you. Both are covered in the subcontracting section below.
The DLA Internet Bid Board System (DIBBS) is where the Defense Logistics Agency posts requests for quotations on the spare parts, supplies and equipment it buys for the military. Vendors can search for, view and submit quotes on RFQs, and view RFPs, IFBs and award information. DIBBS carries a high volume of small, frequent buys that many contractors never check, which makes it worth a look for manufacturers and distributors.
GSA eBuy is where federal, state and local buyers send requests for quotes, proposals and information to holders of GSA contracts, including the Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) and governmentwide acquisition contracts (GWACs). Sellers see only requests issued under the vehicles and categories in which they hold a contract, so competition is limited to a pre-qualified pool. To participate, you register your contract with the GSA Vendor Support Center and load a catalog. Mark a request as Interested or watch it to get email notices when the buyer amends it, cancels it or posts Q&A.
Many eBuy requests never appear on SAM.gov, so if you sell services or products that agencies buy off the Schedule, getting on it opens a separate stream of opportunities. Our guide to the GSA Schedule contract walks through the process, and GSA Schedule vs open market helps you decide whether it is worth it.
State and local government contracts are posted on each state's central procurement portal and on the separate portals of cities, counties, school districts, transit authorities and other public entities. There is no SAM.gov equivalent for state and local bids, so you register on the portals that cover your service area and use aggregators to fill the gaps.
Start with your state's central portal. Examples include California's Cal eProcure, the Texas Electronic State Business Daily (ESBD) and MyFloridaMarketPlace. Then add the cities and counties you can realistically serve, since many large local agencies run their own bid systems. Register as a vendor with each one and choose the commodity codes (often NIGP or NAICS) that match your work, because many portals send notices only to registered vendors in those codes.
Aggregators such as BidNet Direct and DemandStar collect bids from many local agencies in one place. Cooperative purchasing contracts, where one public entity competes a contract that others can buy from, can extend a single award across many jurisdictions. Local presence also helps: a nearby firm often has an edge on responsiveness and local past performance. Our breakdown of the top states for SLED opportunities shows where state and local spending is strongest.
Monitoring dozens of portals is the main cost of state and local work. OryonIQ Polaris puts SAM.gov opportunities, refreshed daily, alongside state and local bids including BidNet, SBIR and OTA opportunities and simplified acquisitions in one search, filterable by keyword, agency, NAICS code, set-aside and response date. For a side-by-side look at bid databases and paid tools, see our guides to the best places to find government bids and RFPs and the top tools to find government bid and RFP opportunities, so this guide can stay focused on the official sources.
Subcontracting opportunities come from prime contractors, not agencies. Find them on SBA SubNet, on the supplier portals of large primes, through SBA Small Business Search where primes look for partners, and at industry days and matchmaking events. For a small business without federal past performance, subcontracting is often the fastest route to a first government contract.
Demand for subcontractors is built into the rules. Under FAR 19.702, contracts awarded to other than small businesses that are expected to exceed $900,000 ($2 million for construction) and have subcontracting possibilities generally require a small business subcontracting plan. Those plans set goals for subcontracting to small, small disadvantaged, women-owned, HUBZone and service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses, so primes actively look for qualified partners. The SBA explains how this works on its prime and subcontracting page.
To find primes worth approaching, search USAspending.gov for the companies winning large awards in your NAICS codes, then register on their supplier portals and contact their small business liaison officers. A curated supplier list of primes and specialist suppliers, filterable by industry, city and state, shortens that research. Industry days and matchmaking sessions are where many teaming conversations start, and the OryonIQ events calendar tracks them in one place.
Teaming arrangements blur the line between prime and sub, and a subcontract today can lead to a joint venture or a prime bid tomorrow. Our articles on building your GovCon network, teaming partnerships and the SBA Mentor-Protégé Program cover how to find and structure those relationships.
To set up useful alerts, list every NAICS code that fits your work, confirm your size status for each, then save SAM.gov searches that combine those codes with your set-aside eligibility, agencies and geography, with email notifications turned on. Add forecast checks, eBuy and DIBBS if they apply, and register on your state portals.
Every federal solicitation is tagged with a six-digit NAICS code, and that code also sets the size standard for small business set-asides. Most small businesses fit three to six codes. Check each one against the SBA table of size standards, and do not claim codes you cannot perform. Review your codes at least once a year, since the NAICS system and your capabilities both change.
Set-asides restrict competition to small businesses or to a certified group, which keeps large firms out. The SBA's government-wide goals are 23% of prime contract dollars for small businesses, 5% for small disadvantaged businesses, 5% for women-owned small businesses, 5% for service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses and 3% for HUBZone small businesses. Filter SAM.gov by total small business, 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB or WOSB set-asides to see contracts you can actually win. Our FAR Part 19 guide and 8(a) certification guide explain eligibility.
In SAM.gov Contract Opportunities, build a search for each core NAICS code with your set-aside and notice-type filters, save it and turn on email notifications. Include sources-sought and presolicitation notices, not just solicitations, so you hear about requirements early. Add keyword searches for the products and services you describe in your capability statement, because not every buyer picks the NAICS code you expect.
Put a recurring reminder on your calendar to check the Forecast of Contracting Opportunities tool and your target agencies' forecasts. If you hold a GSA contract, watch eBuy for requests in your categories. If you sell supplies the military uses, search DIBBS. For state and local work, confirm you are registered under the right commodity codes on each portal.
Log every promising opportunity with its agency, due date, NAICS code and bid or no-bid decision so amendments and deadlines do not slip. Then qualify hard: read the full solicitation, weigh the incumbent and the competition, and pursue only the work you can realistically win. Our opportunity mapping playbook shows how to turn a long list of found contracts into a focused pipeline.
Yes. SAM.gov, the GSA Forecast of Contracting Opportunities tool, USAspending.gov, SBA SubNet, DIBBS and most state procurement portals are free to search, and SAM.gov registration is free. Paid tools save time by combining sources and adding alerts, but you can find and win government contracts using only free sources.
Under FAR 5.101, contracting officers must synopsize proposed contract actions expected to exceed $25,000 on SAM.gov, subject to the exceptions in FAR Part 5. Smaller purchases, many orders under existing contract vehicles such as GSA Schedule orders placed through eBuy, and most state and local bids do not appear there.
In SAM.gov Contract Opportunities, filter by set-aside type (total small business, 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB or WOSB) and by your NAICS codes, then save the search with email notifications. Confirm you meet the SBA size standard for each NAICS code before you bid on a set-aside.
Search SBA SubNet for opportunities posted by prime contractors, keep your SAM.gov profile current so primes can find you in SBA Small Business Search, and register on the supplier portals of large primes in your industry. Industry days and matchmaking events are also good places to meet primes.
Use USAspending.gov or the contract data search in SAM.gov, which replaced FPDS.gov ezSearch on February 24, 2026. Search by NAICS code, agency or company name to see award amounts, incumbents, contract end dates and the agencies that buy what you sell.
Start with your state's central procurement portal, such as Cal eProcure, Texas ESBD or MyFloridaMarketPlace, then register with the cities, counties and school districts you can serve. Aggregators like BidNet Direct and DemandStar collect bids from many local agencies in one place.
Are you curious about the networking events near you? Together we can expand your network and watch your pipeline exponentially grow.
Our mission is to empower the GovCon community to make better data driven decisions based on social relationships and opportunity data that is actionable, measurable, and trackable.
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