Startup Grants Open Now — November 2026
33 true grant programs are open to startups as of November 3, 2026 — 0 with a live dated deadline (0 close within 60 days) and 33 rolling. They come out of 213 catalog programs a new business can reach; the other 180 are why most “startup grant” lists mislead — 53 loans, 13 tax credits, 22 competitions or accelerators, 19 no-cash support programs, and 73 grants whose window is shut today. Every row below says which it is.
Updated November 3, 2026 — every deadline, amount and status below was verified against the GrantCompass catalog and the official program pages on November 3, 2026. Monthly refresh, permanent URL.
See every program you qualify for — free →A two-minute eligibility check ranks all 665 US programs against your business. No card, no pitch deck.
Applying for a grant this month? We draft applications for seventeen of them, free preview ↓
Every startup program, labelled
All 147 startup-relevant programs, open grants first, then competitions, support programs, and the 94 between intakes. Filter by lane, state, industry and minimum award. Loans and tax credits are counted in the numbers section, not printed here as grants.
Showing 147 of 147 startup programs
| Program | Amount | Deadline or status | What it is | Level | Win Layer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Orleans Façade RENEW Plus Program (NORA) | 85% reimbursement, up to $50K per 50 linear feet | Rolling | Grant | Local | 6 locked |
| SBIR Phase I — NSF (America's Seed Fund) | Up to $305K (Phase I) | Rolling | Grant | Federal | 1 locked |
| Colorado Rural Jump-Start Grant and Tax Credit Program | Up to $15,000 ($25,000 in Just Transition communities) | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| ARPA-H Innovative Solution Openings (ISOs) — Health Technology OT Agreements | Varies — typically $1M–$50M | Rolling | Grant | Federal | 6 locked |
| SBIR Phase II — Department of Defense | Up to $2M (Phase II) | Rolling | Grant | Federal | 7 locked |
| SBIR Phase II — NSF (America's Seed Fund) | Up to $1M (Phase II) | Rolling | Grant | Federal | 7 locked |
| Ben Franklin Technology Partners — Seed Investment Program | $50,000–$500,000 | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation — Impact Funding | Up to $300K over 3 yrs | Rolling | Grant | Foundation | 6 locked |
| Alabama Innovation Grant (SBIR/STTR State Match) | Up to $250,000 | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Chicago Neighborhood Opportunity Fund (NOF) | Up to $250,000 | Rolling | Grant | Local | 6 locked |
| Wyoming SBIR/STTR Match Grant | Up to $100K (Ph I) / $200K (Ph II) | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Connecticut Innovations Pre-Seed Investment Program | Up to $150K pre-seed | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Nebraska Innovation Fund Prototype Grant | Up to $150,000 | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Connecticut Innovations Proof-of-Concept Fund | $50K–$100K convertible note | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| WorkInvestNH (New Hampshire Job Training Fund) | $750–$100,000 (50% match) | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Arizona Advanced Manufacturing Facilities (AMF) Grant | Up to $75,000 (1:1 match) | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Illinois Innovation Voucher Program | Up to $75,000 | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Indiana FAST Program — SBIR/STTR Matching Grant | Up to $75,000 per Phase II award | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Amber Grant for Women | $10K/mo + $50K year-end | Rolling | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| Elevate Vermont — SBIR/STTR Matching Grant | Up to $50,000 | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| SCRA Technology Startup and Acceleration Grants | $25K–$50K non-dilutive | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| VIPC Launch Program (Commonwealth Commercialization Fund) | $50,000 | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| California Underserved and Small Producer Program (CUSP) | Up to $20K each (drought + extreme weather) | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Montana SBIR/STTR Matching Funds Program | Up to $30,000/phase | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Maryland TEDCO Rural Business Innovation Initiative (RBII) | $25,000 | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Portland Small Business Repair / Restore Grant | Up to $25,000 | Rolling | Grant | Local | 6 locked |
| South Dakota Proof of Concept Program | Up to $25,000 | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| SF Shines Storefront Improvement Grant | Up to $10,000 | Rolling | Grant | Local | 6 locked |
| Baltimore Facade Improvement Grant (FIG) | Up to $5,000 (1:1 match) | Rolling | Grant | Local | 6 locked |
| Utah Technology Innovation Funding (UTIF) — SBIR/STTR Microgrant | Up to $5,000 (Microgrant) | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Skip — Small Business Instant Grants | $1,000 per winner | Rolling | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| 1517 Fund Medici Grant | $1,000+ no-strings grant | Rolling | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| NJEDA Small Business Lease Grant | 2 × 20% of annual lease | Rolling | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Startup World Cup | $1M grand prize (investment) | Rolling | Competition | Private | 6 locked |
| TEDCO Seed Fund | Seed equity investment | Rolling | Equity | State | 6 locked |
| Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator (IN2) | Up to $250,000 | Rolling | Accelerator | Private | 6 locked |
| gener8tor Investment Accelerator | $100,000 investment (for equity) | Rolling | Equity | Private | 6 locked |
| California IBank Venture Capital Program (Expanding Venture Capital Access) | Equity co-investment (state-managed $250M) | Rolling | Equity | State | 6 locked |
| BARDA DRIVe — Division of Research, Innovation and Ventures | Varies (project-based) | Rolling | Support | Federal | 6 locked |
| 1 Million Cups — Kauffman Foundation Entrepreneur Program | Free (no funding) | Rolling | Support | Foundation | 7 locked |
| APEX Accelerators (formerly PTAC) — Government Contracting Assistance | Free counseling & bid help | Rolling | Support | Federal | 6 locked |
| Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans (EBV) | Free (travel + housing paid) | Rolling | Support | Private | 6 locked |
| Hot Bread Kitchen — HBK Incubates Food Business Program | In-kind (free program) | Rolling | Support | Private | 6 locked |
| Minnesota Angel Tax Credit | 25% investor credit (refundable) | Rolling | Support | State | 6 locked |
| ONABEN — Native American Entrepreneurship Programs (Indianpreneurship) | Free training & TA | Rolling | Support | Private | 6 locked |
| SBA 7(j) Management & Technical Assistance — Empower to Grow (E2G) | Free training & consulting | Rolling | Support | Federal | 6 locked |
| SBA Mentor-Protégé Program (MPP) | Capacity + JV contract access | Rolling | Support | Federal | 6 locked |
| SBA Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) Network | Free counseling services | Rolling | Support | Federal | 6 locked |
| SBA Veteran Small Business Certification (VetCert) — VOSB / SDVOSB | Contract access (no cash award) | Rolling | Support | Federal | 6 locked |
| SBA Women's Business Centers (WBC) Network | Free to low-cost services | Rolling | Support | Federal | 6 locked |
| SBA Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB / EDWOSB) Federal Contract Program | Contract access (no cash award) | Rolling | Support | Federal | 6 locked |
| SCORE Business Mentoring | Free (no cash award) | Rolling | Support | Federal | 6 locked |
| Warrior Rising Entrepreneurship Programs | Free programs + selective grants | Rolling | Support | Private | 6 locked |
| DivInc Startup Accelerator The Women in Tech cohort closed August 23, 2026. DivInc runs multiple cohorts a year; the next window is not yet posted. | $10,000 equity-free grant | Aug 23, 2026 | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| NC IDEA SEED Grant Twice yearly — spring cycle (applications open late January, close late February) and… | $50,000 | Closed Aug 24, 2026 | Grant | Private | 7 locked |
| NC IDEA MICRO Grant Twice yearly — spring and fall cycles. Fall 2026: applications open July 27, close… | $10,000 | Closed Aug 24, 2026 | Grant | Private | 7 locked |
| Montana Indian Equity Fund Small Business Grant Annual — applications accepted July 1 through September 30, 2026. | Up to $40,000 | Sep 30, 2026 | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| America's Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI) — Food Access and Retail Expansion (FA… 2026 FARE Fund: the Funding Inquiry window closed July 31, 2026. Applicants invited… | $20,000–$250,000 | Oct 30, 2026 | Grant | Federal | 6 locked |
| Minnesota Beginning Farmer Equipment and Infrastructure Grant Annual cycle — the application deadline was 4:00 p.m. CT on March 26, 2026. | $1,000–$10,000 | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Black Girl Ventures BGV Pitch Program 2026 cycle — application deadline May 15, 2026 (Interest Call Q&A on May 7, 2026) | $5,000 + audience crowdfund | Cycle dates unpublished | Competition | Foundation | 6 locked |
| American Farmland Trust — National Farm Viability Grant (Brighter Future Fund) Annual cycle — 2026 application window June 8–18; awards notified by August 31, with… | Up to $10,000 | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| Maryland Stem Cell Research Fund (MSCRF) Commercialization Award FY funding cycles. The 2026 summer cycle closed June 23, 2026; the next cycle is not yet posted. | Roughly $300K–$400K per award | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| One North Carolina Small Business Program (SBIR/STTR Incentive & Matching Funds) FY2026 applications accepted until June 30, 2026 or until funds are exhausted,… | Up to $12K (Incentive) / up to $75K (Matching) | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| North Dakota Agricultural Products Utilization Commission (APUC) Grant Quarterly — application deadlines of January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1, with… | Varies by category (recent max ~$115K) | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| CPRIT Product Development Research Awards (Seed / Texas Therapeutics / Diagnostics & Devi… Cyclical RFAs. Seed Award (RFA C-26.1-SEED): preliminary applications due April 16,… | Up to $3M (Seed); larger for therapeutics | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| SBIR Phase II — NIH (PHS Omnibus) Between intakes — NIH SBIR Phase II receipt dates align with Phase I cycles:… | Up to $2.15M (Phase II) | Between intakes | Grant | Federal | 7 locked |
| STTR Phase II — NIH (PHS Omnibus) Between intakes — NIH STTR Phase II receipt dates align with Phase I and SBIR cycles:… | Up to $2.15M (STTR Phase II) | Between intakes | Grant | Federal | 7 locked |
| SBIR Phase I — NIH (PHS Omnibus) Between intakes — next standard receipt date: September 5, 2026. Standard annual… | Up to $323,090 | Between intakes | Grant | Federal | 7 locked |
| STTR Phase I — NIH (PHS Omnibus) Between intakes — next standard receipt date: September 5, 2026. Annual cycles:… | Up to $323,090 (STTR Phase I) | Between intakes | Grant | Federal | 7 locked |
| Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Therapeutics Development Award (TDA) Cyclical. The Foundation periodically invites letters of intent (LOIs) for the… | Up to $3M–$5M (Component II) | Cycle dates unpublished | Competition | Foundation | 6 locked |
| NSF STRIDE Ventures — AI Efficiency Challenge Applications closed July 13, 2026, 11:59 PM PT; selected teams pitched July 30–31,… | $1.75M–$3.5M | Between intakes | Competition | Federal | 6 locked |
| ARPA-E IGNIITE 2026 — Inspiring Generations of New Innovators to Impact Technologies in E… Two-stage program: concept papers were due May 28, 2026; invited applicants' full… | Varies (cooperative agreement) | Between intakes | Grant | Federal | 6 locked |
| USGS Earthquake Hazards Program External Research Support — FY2027 FY2027 external research grants solicitation closed — deadline was June 4, 2026, 6:00… | $50K–$500K/yr (typical) | Between intakes | Grant | Federal | 6 locked |
| SBIR Phase II — Department of Energy Invitation-only — DOE invites Phase I awardees to submit Phase II applications… | Up to $1.6M (Phase II) | Between intakes | Grant | Federal | 7 locked |
| STTR Phase II — Department of Energy Invitation-only — DOE invites STTR Phase I awardees to apply for Phase II… | Up to $1.1M (STTR Phase II) | Between intakes | Grant | Federal | 7 locked |
| Black Ambition Prize Black Ambition will NOT accept new applications for the Prize Competition in 2026.… | Up to $1,000,000 total | Paused | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| SBIR Phase II — NASA Invitation-based — Phase II proposals are submitted within 90 days of the Phase I… | Up to $750K (Phase II) | Between intakes | Grant | Federal | 7 locked |
| CalSEED — California Sustainable Energy Entrepreneur Development Initiative Annual Concept Award call (one per year, historically opening ~March). The March 31,… | $150K Concept, up to ~$650K total | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Missouri Child Care Innovation Grants Annual cycle. FY2026: Start-Up Grant closed Nov 30, 2025; Expansion Grant closed Feb… | Up to $625,000 (matching grant) | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Connecticut Bioscience Innovation Fund (CBIF) Quarterly evaluation. Connecticut Innovations evaluates CBIF applications on a… | Stage-based (grants, convertible loans, equity) | Cycle dates unpublished | Support | State | 6 locked |
| Hawaiʻi Small Business Innovation Research (HSBIR) Matching Grant FY26 HSBIR applications are closed. Per HTDC's official page: "Grant applications for… | Up to 50% match (Phase 0: $3K) | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| MassVentures START Grant Program Application window opens February 1 annually; 2026 Round 1 deadline was February 23.… | $100K / $200K / up to $500K | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| OCAST Industry Innovation Program Annual fiscal-year cycle. FY2026 window opened July 1, 2025 with applications due… | $10K–$500K | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Maryland Innovation Initiative (MII) Quarterly submissions due by 5:00 PM on January 15, April 15, July 15, and October 15… | Up to $480K in two phases (joint) | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| STTR Phase I — NSF Rolling Project Pitches (paused as of May 2026 — expected to resume in coming weeks… | Up to $305,000 | Paused | Grant | Federal | 1 locked |
| Activate Fellowship Annual — Cohort 2027 applications open September 15; selections in early spring;… | $100K R&D + stipend ($300K+ total) | Between intakes | Competition | Private | 6 locked |
| Launch Tennessee SBIR/STTR Matching Fund Annual cycle — FY27 applications expected to open July 2026. Submit an interest form… | Up to $100K (Ph I) / $300K (Ph II) | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Colorado Advanced Industries Accelerator (AIA) Grant Program Annual — typically one application cycle per fiscal year opening in late fall/winter.… | Up to $150K or $250K | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Nevada Catalyst Fund Annual cycle — typically one application round per fiscal year. Applications… | Up to $250,000 | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Entrepreneurship World Cup (EWC) Annual — applications typically open late fall and close in spring; global finals in… | $20K-$200K (equity-free) | Between intakes | Competition | Private | 6 locked |
| New York NYSTAR Innovation Matching Grants Program Rounds open on the second Wednesday of April and October for one week each. | Up to $100K (Ph I) / $200K (Ph II) | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Ohio Third Frontier Technology Validation and Start-up Fund (TVSF) Multiple rounds per year. Most recent proposals due May 7, 2026 (Round 37); awards… | Up to $200,000 (Phase 2) | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Rice Business Plan Competition (RBPC) Annual — applications open early November, close late January; competition held in… | $950–$200K (>$1M pool) | Between intakes | Competition | Private | 6 locked |
| West Virginia SBIR/STTR Matching Grant Program Semi-annual — applications accepted in January and July windows only. | Up to $200,000 | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Delaware EDGE Grant (Encouraging Development, Growth & Expansion) — EDGE 2.0 Annual competition with periodic funding rounds (a Spring 2026 round concluded with… | Up to ~$175,000 (scaled; no fixed cap) | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| FuzeHub Commercialization Competition (Jeff Lawrence Innovation Fund) 2026 Commercialization Competition is closed — application period ended August 10,… | Up to $150,000 | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Kentucky SBIR-STTR Matching Funds Program Competitive, award-cycle based; companies apply after receiving a federal SBIR/STTR… | Up to $100K (Phase I) / $150K (Phase II) | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Alaska SBIR/STTR Matching Grant Program Annual — FY2025 deadline was May 9, 2025. FY2026 deadline expected April–May 2026.… | Up to $25K (Ph I) / $100K (Ph II) | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Arizona Innovation Challenge (AIC) Two cycles per year: Spring (typically February–March application window, awards in… | Up to $100,000 | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 7 locked |
| Backstage Capital Accelerator Program Cohort-based — application windows announced on backstagecapital.com and via… | $100K for 5% equity | Between intakes | Accelerator | Private | 6 locked |
| Echoing Green Fellowship Annual — application window opens in fall (e.g. opened Sep 17, closed Oct 8 for the… | $100K over 18 months | Between intakes | Competition | Foundation | 6 locked |
| Louisiana Innovation Retention Grant (IRG) Between rounds — application windows open by legislative authorization; the most… | Up to $100,000 | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| MassChallenge US Early Stage Accelerator Annual industry cohorts — US early-stage applications are currently CLOSED (waitlist… | Equity-free cash prizes ($25K–$100K per winner) | Between intakes | Competition | Private | 6 locked |
| Missouri Technology Corporation (MTC) Proof of Concept Grant Quarterly application cycles — specific deadlines published on MTC website.… | Up to $100,000 | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Montana Growth Through Agriculture (GTA) Grant and Loan Program Periodic application windows announced by the Agriculture Development Council; sign… | Grants up to $50K; loans up to $100K | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| New Mexico SBIR/STTR Matching Grant Annual competitive round — FY26 applications open per KRQE coverage (early 2026… | Up to $50K (Ph I) / $100K (Ph II) | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Visa Everywhere Initiative No confirmed US cycle since 2024 — the program continues in some international… | Up to $100K (non-dilutive) | Paused | Competition | Private | 6 locked |
| Wisconsin SBIR Advance Matching Grant Per-round — intent-to-apply and full-application deadlines are published each round… | $75K–$100K | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| DC Great Streets Retail Small Business Grant Annual cycle — the FY26 application opened December 12, 2025 and closed January 23,… | Up to $90,000 (FY26) | Between intakes | Grant | Local | 6 locked |
| Ulta Beauty MUSE Accelerator Applications for the current cohort are closed. The official page states: "Check back… | $50,000 + potential retail access | Between intakes | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| I-Corps at NIH — Commercialization Training for SBIR/STTR Phase I Awardees Cohort-based. Two cohorts typically run per year; applicants apply by cohort-specific… | Up to $55,000 | Cycle dates unpublished | Support | Federal | 6 locked |
| Block Advisors Fund Her Future Grant Annual — applications typically open mid-year with winners announced in August (2025… | $50K + 5×$10K | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| Boundless Futures Foundation — EmpowHer Grant Round-based — multiple grant cycles per year (e.g. a 2026 round opened ~May 1);… | Up to $50,000 (EmpowHer) | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | Foundation | 6 locked |
| Innovate ND Entrepreneurship Grant Both 2025–2027 biennium rounds have closed (spring round closed May 14, 2026). The… | Up to $50,000 (2 phases) | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| NBMBAA Scale-Up Pitch Challenge Annual — applications typically open spring/summer; semifinalist notifications by… | Up to $50,000 | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| NSF National Innovation Corps (I-Corps) Teams Program Proposals accepted anytime. Teams first submit a short Executive Summary for internal… | Up to $50,000 | Cycle dates unpublished | Support | Federal | 6 locked |
| New Mexico Science & Technology Business Startup Grant Annual competitive round — most recent FY26 round closed. Next application period to… | $25,000–$50,000 | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| New York Craft Beverage Micro Grant Program Periodic rounds via the NYS Consolidated Funding Application (CFA) | $25,000–$50,000 | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| SBIR/STTR Technical and Business Assistance (TABA) Requested in connection with an SBIR/STTR award — Phase I TABA at proposal time,… | Up to $6.5K (Phase I) / $50K (Phase II) | Cycle dates unpublished | Support | Federal | 6 locked |
| Launch Minnesota Innovation Grant Periodic — application windows track annual appropriation; confirm the open cycle on… | Up to $35,000 | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Black Kitchen Initiative Grant (Heinz × The LEE Initiative) Recurring annual program with no fixed open month — deadlines have shifted between… | Up to $25,000 | Between intakes | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| Camelback Ventures Fellowship Annual cohort — FY2026 cycle applications expected to open Q3/Q4 2026. Monitor… | $25,000 seed grant | Between intakes | Grant | Foundation | 7 locked |
| Connecticut Child Care Business Start-Up Grant Annual cycle — historically a February application window (Feb 1–28). FY2025 round… | Up to $5K–$25K | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Greentown Labs ACCEL — BIPOC Climatetech Accelerator Annual — applications typically open in Q4 of the prior year. Year 3 cohort… | $25,000 per company | Between intakes | Grant | Private | 7 locked |
| Michigan Match on Main Annual — 2026 window ran March 1 to April 24, 2026 (local deadlines may be earlier). | Up to $25,000 | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| Venmo Small Business Grant Annual when active — historically May through late May/early June. The 2024 cycle ran… | $20,000 (10 winners) | Between intakes | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| Second Service Foundation Military Entrepreneur Challenge Annual — regional events held throughout the year; National Finale at the Military… | Up to $15,000 + $50K legal services | Between intakes | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| Pennsylvania Small Business Advantage Grant Annual cycle — 2025–2026 window ran August 1, 2025 to March 13, 2026 (or until funds… | Up to $7,500 (up to $12,000 in EJ Areas) | Between intakes | Grant | State | 6 locked |
| 2Gether-International Startup Accelerator for Founders with Disabilities Between intakes — cohorts run several times a year. The 2025 Health Innovation Cohort… | Up to $10,000 + accelerator | Between intakes | Accelerator | Private | 6 locked |
| DAV Patriot Boot Camp Per-cohort — applications close when seats fill or by the stated event deadline | Pitch prizes (thousands) | Cycle dates unpublished | Competition | Private | 6 locked |
| FHLBank New York — Small Business Recovery Grant The 2026 FHLBNY Small Business Recovery Grant Program is closed — funding was fully… | Up to $10,000 | Between intakes | Grant | Foundation | 6 locked |
| FedEx Entrepreneur Fund and Boost Camp Program Annual — 2025 cycle: applications Oct 14 – Nov 21, 2025; Boost Camp January 2026 | $10,000 | Between intakes | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| First Peoples Fund — Artist in Business Leadership (ABL) Fellowship The 2027-award-year ABL Fellowship application window (June 3, 2026 8am MT – July 15,… | $10,000 | Between intakes | Grant | Foundation | 6 locked |
| Halcyon Incubator Fellowship Annual / by cohort — track-specific deadlines (e.g. Global Climate eligibility form… | ~$6K stipend + $10K AWS credits | Cycle dates unpublished | Competition | Foundation | 6 locked |
| LA County Small Business Mobility Fund — Launch Grant Launch Grant applications closed June 1, 2026 at 11:00 PM. No new Launch Grant round… | $5,000–$10,000 | Between intakes | Grant | Local | 6 locked |
| Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream — Pitch Room Competition The spring 2026 Pitch Room Competition tour (Cincinnati May 19, Los Angeles ~March… | $10,000 | Between intakes | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| SoGal Foundation Black Founder Startup Grant Not accepting applications — program page returns 404 as of May 2026. | $5,000–$10,000 (historical) | Winding down | Grant | Foundation | 6 locked |
| The Coramino Fund — LISC & Gran Coramino Tequila Small Business Grants The Coramino Fund is in its fourth year; the 2026 round (opened March 31, closed… | $10,000 | Between intakes | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| eBay Up & Running Grants The 2026 window has closed (applications ran May 28 – June 25, 2026, 4:00 PM PST). No… | $10,000 + equipment kit | Between intakes | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| Halstead Grant Annual — applications typically open in June/July; deadline in late September; winner… | $7,500 + $1K supply credit | Cycle dates unpublished | Competition | Private | 6 locked |
| Colorado Family Child Care Home Facilities Improvement Grant Two rounds a year (spring and fall), funding permitting. The most recent spring round… | Up to $5,000 | Between intakes | Grant | Foundation | 6 locked |
| Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund Annual cycle — opens once per year for at least four weeks; awardees usually notified… | $1,000–$5,000 | Cycle dates unpublished | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| The FruitGuys Community Fund Grant Annual cycle — applications typically open in December and close late January (the… | Up to $5,000 | Between intakes | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| National Pride Grant (Founders First CDC) The 2026 Pride Grant cycle has closed. The next LGBTQIA+ National Grant cycle opens… | $1,000 + program access | Between intakes | Grant | Private | 6 locked |
| SXSW Pitch Annual — entry opens late June, closes early November; competition held in March at… | Cash prize (undisclosed) + exposure | Between intakes | Competition | Private | 7 locked |
| Sephora Accelerate 2026 applications closed March 31, 2026, 5PM PST. The 2027 cycle has not opened;… | Grant (amount varies by cohort) | Between intakes | Accelerator | Private | 6 locked |
| StartOut Growth Lab — LGBTQ+ Startup Accelerator The official Growth Lab page still displays 'Applications are now open for Cohort 18.… | Free (no equity, no cash grant) | Between intakes | Accelerator | Private | 6 locked |
This table is the map. Your list is shorter. The free eligibility check runs your state, stage, industry and ownership against all 665 US programs and ranks what you actually qualify for — and you get free deadline alerts on anything you star.
See your matches — free →33 true grant programs are open to startups today, November 3, 2026. 33 of them are rolling, meaning you apply on your own schedule, and 0 have a dated deadline, 0 of which fall inside 60 days. A startup should read those two groups very differently: the rolling group is where a pre-revenue founder starts, because microgrants like the Amber Grant for Women and the 1517 Fund Medici Grant ask what you are building rather than what you billed last year. “Open” here means the program’s status is active and its intake is either rolling or dated on or after today. It does not mean money remains — several state funds are first-come and close early when the appropriation runs out.
Apply-Ready
Applying for a grant this month? We'll draft it with you.
For these seventeen grants, answer a few short questions once and we draft your application from what you tell us: only your facts, with a blank wherever the judges want a detail only you know. You submit it yourself. Six are for women-owned businesses; eleven are open more widely.
You see a free preview first and pay only if you want the full draft: $9 per grant. You can add the other month-end grants you qualify for at $5 each (never more than $15 extra).
For women-owned businesses
- Hey Helen Grant$10,000 monthlyWomen-owned · US · under $1M revenueCloses the last day of every month, 11:59pm ETDraft my applicationit →
- Amber Grant$15,000 monthlyWomen-owned (50%+)Closes the last day of every monthDraft my applicationit →
- HerRise MicroGrant$1,000 monthly51%+ women-owned · US · under $1M revenueCloses the last day of every monthDraft my applicationit →
- Big Idea Grant (YippityDoo)$1,000 monthlyWomen-owned and run · ideas welcomeCloses the last day of every month, 11:59pm PTDraft my applicationit →
- The Hustle Grant$1,000 monthlyWomen-owned · USMonthly; winner named on the 15thDraft my applicationit →
- Tory Burch Foundation Fellows$2,000 + a year's fellowshipWomen-owned · $75K+ revenue · no entry feeFinal deadline November 17, 2026Draft my applicationit →
Open more widely
- Business Freedom Grant$1,000Idea stage welcome · no entry feeReview rounds until the final deadline, December 31, 2026Draft my applicationit →
- IFW Startup Accelerator Grant$5,000Any US owner (50%+) · idea stage welcome · $5 entry feeFinal deadline November 30, 2026Draft my applicationit →
- Seated Together Microgrant$750 ($1,000 veteran-owned)Any US for-profit · startups welcome · $5 entry feeRolling; reviewed each quarterDraft my applicationit →
- Hustler's MicroGrant$1,000 monthlyAny US small-business owner · $15 entry feeMonthly; no published closing dateDraft my applicationit →
- Freed Fellowship$500 monthlyAny US for-profit businessCloses the last day of every monthDraft my applicationit →
- SecretSoS Small Business Grant$2,500 quarterlyWomen-, veteran- or minority-owned, or turned down for a bank loan · USCloses the last day of each quarterDraft my applicationit →
- Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant$10,000–$25,000Veteran or military-spouse owned · 3–20 people · no entry feeFinal deadline December 15, 2026Draft my applicationit →
- Sephora Beauty Grant$100,000Beauty brands · $100K+ revenue · 51%+ underrepresented-owned · no entry feeFinal deadline November 6, 2026Draft my applicationit →
- Awesome Foundation Micro-Grant$1,000 monthlyAnyone with a community project · no entry feeRolling; most chapters choose monthlyDraft my applicationit →
- Outta Excuses Grant$3,000 quarterlyRegistered LLC · under $500K revenue · $15 entry feeFinal deadline December 31, 2026Draft my applicationit →
- Thiel Fellowship$250,000 over 2 yearsAge 22 or under · no university degree · no entry feeRolling; open all yearDraft my applicationit →
What a startup grant application actually asks
We read the live application forms for eighteen private essay grants. Most ask the same three things: what your business is, why it matters to you, and exactly how you would spend the money. The shortest is the HerRise MicroGrant (two answers of up to 250 characters each); the longest is the Tory Burch Foundation Fellows Program (eight written questions). Entry fees run from nothing (Business Freedom Grant) to $25.
Which of these close next
One of the eighteen closes on November 6, 2026: Sephora Beauty Grant. After that, the Business Freedom Grant has a review round closing November 15, 2026 and a final deadline of December 31, 2026; the Tory Burch Foundation Fellows Program closes November 17, 2026; the Amber Grant for Women closes November 30, 2026; the Freed Fellowship Grant closes November 30, 2026; the HerRise MicroGrant closes November 30, 2026; the Hey Helen Grant closes November 30, 2026; the IFW Startup Accelerator Grant closes November 30, 2026; the YippityDoo Big Idea Grant closes November 30, 2026; the Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant closes December 15, 2026; the Outta Excuses Small Business Empowerment Grant closes December 31, 2026; the SecretSoS Small Business Grant closes December 31, 2026; the Her Agenda Breakthrough Grant closes January 19, 2027. The Hustle Grant: Monthly (winner named on the 15th; The Hustle announces each cutoff in its newsletter). Seated Together Small Business Microgrant: Rolling; reviewed in quarterly cycles. Hustler's MicroGrant: Applications open monthly (no published closing date). Awesome Foundation Micro-Grant: Rolling; most chapters choose a project each month. Thiel Fellowship: Rolling: applications are accepted year round. Each link opens that grant’s page with the draft form ready.
What each form asks, shortest application first. The question wording for each grant is on its own page, and a dash means we found no hard cap on the form.
| Grant | Award | Entry fee | Written questions | Form limit | What the judges look for | Who can apply | Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amber Grant for Women | $15,000 monthly (plus $75,000 year-end grants) | $15 | 2 | — | Your story: passion, business savvy and vision; Your plan to grow or start the business; Exactly how you'd spend the $15,000 | Women-owned businesses | Last day of each month |
| HerRise MicroGrant | $1,000 monthly | $15 | 2 | 250 characters per answer | The essence of your business story; A specific use for the $1,000 | Women-owned businesses | Last day of each month |
| Hustler's MicroGrant | $1,000 monthly | $15 | 2 | 250 characters per answer | Vision; Impact; How the funding moves the business forward | Any founder | Applications open monthly |
| Outta Excuses Small Business Empowerment Grant | $3,000 (one winner each quarter, plus 30 days of weekly coaching) | $15 | 2 | — | Your story and what you've pushed through; What the business does and who it serves; Real progress so far; A specific use of the $3,000; How the money and coaching help you grow | Any founder | December 31, 2026 at |
| The Hustle Grant | $1,000 monthly | $15 | 2 | — | Your story: passion, business skills and vision; How you'll grow or start the business; Exactly where the $1,000 goes | Women-owned businesses | Monthly |
| Awesome Foundation Micro-Grant | $1,000 (no strings attached; most chapters give one a month) | $0 | 3 | 2000 characters per answer | A clear, specific project people can picture; Something new or experimental that delights or inspires; Benefit to the chapter's community, not only to you; A visible difference made by $1,000; Roots in the community you're applying to | Any founder | Rolling; most chapters choose a project each month |
| Freed Fellowship Grant | $500 monthly (plus a $2,500 year-end grant) | $19 | 3 | — | Context: your market; Content: your core story; Community: who you've found or built; Chemistry: what makes you special; Commerce: your business model | Any founder | Last day of each month |
| IFW Startup Accelerator Grant | $5,000 (one winner) | $5 | 3 | 1000 characters per answer | Vision and story: clarity of purpose, passion, your connection to the business; Use of funds: a specific plan for how $5,000 reaches a concrete next milestone; Potential for success and impact, socially or commercially | Any founder | November 30, 2026 |
| Sephora Beauty Grant | $100,000 (one grant, plus pro-bono consulting and a meeting with Sephora merchants) | $0 | 3 | — | The founder's background and 'why'; The problem the product solves and why it beats competitors; Proof of traction: sales, marketing metrics, retail relationships; A specific plan for the $100,000 and what it achieves; Fit for prestige beauty retail: customer, differentiation, positioning | Any founder | November 6, 2026 |
| Business Freedom Grant | $1,000 | $0 | 4 | 150–250 words per answer | Clarity of your business idea (3 pts); Feasibility of your plan (3 pts); Impact of the grant (2 pts); Passion and commitment (2 pts) | Any founder | December 31 |
| Hey Helen Grant | $10,000 monthly | $15 | 4 | — | Your drive and determination; A clear, realistic plan for the money (within 6 months); Evidence you can sustain and grow what you've built; A compelling vision for the future | Women-owned businesses | Last day of each month |
| Seated Together Small Business Microgrant | $750 (up to $1,000 for veteran-owned businesses) | $5 | 4 | 300 words per answer | Demonstrated business need; A specific, feasible use of the funds; Potential for business growth; Community impact or jobs; Fit with the program's purpose | Any founder | Rolling; reviewed in quarterly cycles |
| SecretSoS Small Business Grant | $2,500 each quarter | $15 | 4 | — | Use of funds, tied to a listed purpose (45%); Your qualities: passion, commitment, drive (40%); Your business: mission and the need it meets (15%) | Women-, veteran- or minority-owned, or turned down for a bank loan | Last day of each quarter (March 31, June 30, September 30, December 31) |
| YippityDoo Big Idea Grant | $1,000 monthly | $15 | 4 | — | Vision: your big idea (40%); Passion: why it matters to you (40%); Use: where the $1,000 goes (20%); Voice: an authentic story in your own words | Women-owned businesses | Last day of each month |
| Hiring Our Heroes Small Business Grant | $10,000 (four winners) or $25,000 (grand prize) | $0 | 6 | 2000 characters per answer | Leadership and impact in your local community (33.3%); Contribution to local economic growth: jobs, skills, services, tax base (33.3%); An effective path to business success (33.3%) | Any founder | December 15, 2026 |
| Her Agenda Breakthrough Grant | $5,000 (one winner) | $25 | 7 | 200–300 words per answer | Business clarity; Potential impact of the grant; Alignment with Her Agenda's mission; Readiness | Any founder, in business a year or more | January 19, 2027 |
| Thiel Fellowship | $250,000 over two years | $0 | 8 | — | What you're building now, concretely; Things you've built before; Original views on important problems; Honest, personal answers | Any founder | Rolling: applications are accepted year round |
| Tory Burch Foundation Fellows Program | $2,000 education grant plus a year of the Fellows program (coaching, advisors, an in-person Founder's Circle event) | $0 | 8 | 200–250 words per answer | Positive, lasting impact from the business; What sets the business apart; The problem it solves; Your passion and the obstacles you've overcome; Real traction and room to grow; Specific, substantive answers | Any founder | November 17, 2026 at |
Two things follow from the table. A short form is not an easy one: a 250-character limit leaves room for one or two sentences, so every word has to carry a fact. And four of the eighteen publish point or percentage weights, which differ from funder to funder, so read them before deciding where to spend your words.
GrantCompass drafts all eighteen of these applications from your own answers: four short questions, a free preview with no card, and $9 for the full draft. We use only what you tell us, and you submit it yourself on the funder’s form. Start from the box above, or read how the drafting works.
Closing in the next 60 days
0 startup programs have a firm deadline between today and January 2, 2027, sorted soonest first. Every program below is a true grant, not a competition or a loan.
No tracked startup grant carries a dated deadline inside the next 60 days.
How we sorted 213 programs into four honest lanes
A startup grant list is only useful if it tells you what the money is. These four lanes are the whole classification, and every row in the table above carries one.
Two families are excluded from the table entirely. 53 of the 213 programs are loans — overwhelmingly CDFI and microloan products that get published as “startup grants” because they are easy to qualify for; if borrowing is genuinely on the table, the honest starting point is the SBA microloan guide rather than a grant list. 13 are tax credits, which reduce a liability you have to have first, so they are worth nothing to a business with no filed return. Neither is a grant, and printing them as one is the single biggest distortion in the published lists.
The numbers behind “open now” for startups
106 of the 213 startup-relevant programs are structured as grants, and 33 of those 106 are open today — 31% of the grant universe a startup can see. The median maximum award among the open grants is $75K.
The 33 open startup grants, by level of government
- Federal 4
- State 20
- Local / municipal 5
- Private / foundation 4
What the 213 “startup funding” programs actually are
- 25% of what gets called startup funding is debt. 53 of 213 programs in this slice are loans, and they dominate the “easy to qualify for” end of every listicle.
- State money is the startup’s real market. 20 of the 33 open grants are state programs, against 4 federal ones — the inverse of where founders look first.
- Rolling beats deadline-chasing at this stage. 33 of the 33 open grants have no fixed cutoff, so a founder with no revenue can apply the week they are ready.
- Closed is the normal state. 94 programs here are between intakes right now — more than are open. A list without dated statuses is mostly pointing at shut doors.
programStatus active AND (rolling intake OR deadlineDate ≥ 2026-11-03). Lane assignment uses the catalog’s fundingType field first (grant, loan, tax-credit, award, program) and program-structure tags second, so a competitive grant such as NC IDEA SEED stays in the grant lane while a prize or cohort program does not. The median maximum award uses each open grant’s published amountMax, n=31 of 33 open grants that publish a numeric ceiling. Every program featured in the closing-soon cards and in the prose below was re-read on its official source on November 3, 2026; where the official source disagreed with the catalog, the official value is the one printed here.Why most “startup grant” lists are wrong
Published startup-grant lists fail in three specific ways: they print loans as grants, they print pitch competitions as grants, and they never re-check whether the window is open. In this slice of 216 programs, those three errors cover 56 loans, 22 competitions and 72 further programs whose window is shut — 69% of everything a startup will find published.
Error one: loans dressed as grants. A CDFI microloan is a good product and a terrible grant. It is repayable, it is underwritten, and it appears on lists because its eligibility page reads like a grant page. 56 of the 216 startup-reachable programs in the catalog are loans. If a page tells you a “grant” is available from a community lender in amounts from $500 to $250,000, you are reading a loan product.
Error two: competitions counted as grants. A pitch competition pays one winner out of hundreds. It is still worth entering, and some are genuinely generous — the Activate Fellowship pays more than $300,000 across two years for zero equity — but the expected value of an application is not comparable to a rolling microgrant you can win by writing well. 22 programs here are competitions, accelerators or fellowships, and 17 of them are between intakes today.
Error three: nobody re-checks the window. This is the failure that wastes the most founder time. The Black Ambition Prize is the clearest example on this page: it is a real, well-funded, up-to-$1,000,000 program for Black and Hispanic founders, and it is not accepting new applications — the organisation has said it is concentrating on the founders already in its portfolio. It still appears on live “apply now” lists. The FedEx Entrepreneur Fund and Boost Camp is a second: its last published window ran October 14 to November 21, 2025, and no 2026 cycle has been announced. Both are in our between-intakes lane, labelled, rather than deleted or dressed up.
The honest version of a startup grant list is smaller and duller than the ones that rank well, and it is the only kind you can act on. That is why this page shows 38 open grants rather than “101 grants for startups.”
What a new business with no revenue can actually get
Three families fund a pre-revenue startup: rolling private microgrants of $1,000 to $10,000, state proof-of-concept and prototype funds of $5,000 to $150,000, and SBIR Phase I at up to $305,000 for genuine technical research. Everything else on this page effectively requires payroll, a lease or a filed tax return.
Rolling microgrants are where a founder with no revenue starts. The Amber Grant for Women awards $15,000 monthly and runs a dedicated startup track for businesses in the idea phase or under $10,000 in total sales; applications close at 11:59pm ET on the last day of each month and carry a $15 fee, waivable on request. The 1517 Fund Medici Grant pays $1,000 with no strings to student, dropout and deep-tech builders, and the application is a Loom video of the thing working rather than a business plan. Skip runs recurring $1,000 drawings several times a week. None of these asks for revenue, and all three can be applied for this week.
If no private grant fits, the money for a main-street start-up is usually local; see where start-up money actually is, state by state.
State proof-of-concept money is the most underused layer. These programs exist to pay for the build that comes before revenue. The South Dakota Proof of Concept Program awards up to $25,000 on a rolling basis; the Nebraska Innovation Fund Prototype Grant goes to $150,000 and runs until funds are exhausted; the Connecticut Innovations Pre-Seed program takes pitch decks year-round. 21 of the 38 open grants on this page are state programs, and they are the ones a founder is least likely to have heard of.
SBIR is the biggest cheque and the narrowest gate. NSF SBIR Phase I awards up to $305,000 and requires an invited Project Pitch before a full proposal, with the next full-proposal deadline on November 4, 2026; Department of Defense SBIR releases topics on a rolling monthly cadence instead. Neither cares how old your company is, and neither funds a business that is not retiring a specific technical risk. If your startup is a restaurant, an agency or a shop, SBIR is not a near-miss — it is the wrong door, and the state and microgrant layers above are the right ones. Our SBIR guide for startups walks the pitch-to-proposal sequence.
What counts as a startup to a grant funder
US grant funders do not share one definition of a startup. Private microgrants define it by sales, state programs by company age and size, competitions by money raised, and SBIR by who owns the company. Find the one number each program tests before you write a word of the application, because that number decides eligibility and the essay does not.
The five tests in the official rules
| Test | How the rules word it | Programs that use it |
|---|---|---|
| Sales or revenue | A ceiling on sales, or less often a floor | WomensNet Startup Grant: under $10,000 in sales. Outta Excuses: under $500,000 a year. HerRise MicroGrant: gross annual revenue under $1,000,000. Tory Burch Fellows: at least $75,000 a year. |
| Company age and size | Years in business, full-time staff, assets | Delaware EDGE: in business for less than 7 years, 15 or fewer full-time employees, under $700,000 in assets, and a match of $1 from the business for every $3 from the state. |
| Money raised | A cap on equity capital already raised | Rice Business Plan Competition: no more than $300,000 in equity raised and no more than $150,000 of revenue in any 12-month period. |
| Registration | A registered entity, or none needed | Outta Excuses: a registered LLC or a registered 501(c)(3). The Amber Grant, Skip and the 1517 Medici Grant list no incorporation requirement. |
| Ownership and residency | Who owns the business and where it is based | SBIR: more than 50% owned by US citizens or permanent residents, and 500 employees or fewer counting affiliates. Tory Burch Fellows: a US legal resident. Amber Grant: a business based in the United States or Canada. |
The pattern gives a quick sort. With no sales yet, the private microgrant layer is built for you and most state job-creation money is not. A few years in and still small, check the state programs with an age cap. After a seed round, a competition with an equity cap may already exclude you. And if any owner is not a US citizen or permanent resident, read the SBIR ownership rule before you spend a week on a proposal.
Six founder situations, and the grants each one fits
The same startup can fit one grant perfectly and be ineligible for the next. These six situations come up most in what founders search for, and each row names a program that fits, one that does not, and the decision that follows from the rules.
| Your situation | Fits | Does not fit | The decision |
|---|---|---|---|
| Idea stage, no sales yet | WomensNet Startup Grant, for women-owned businesses under $10,000 in sales; Skip’s $1,000 drawings, with no minimum revenue | Tory Burch Fellows, which needs at least $75,000 a year | Apply to the rolling microgrants now with one reusable core application, and leave revenue-floor programs for later. |
| Student or dropout with a prototype | 1517 Medici Grant, $1,000 for students, dropouts and deep-tech scientists; Rice Business Plan Competition, for student-led teams with at least two current student founders | Revenue-floor programs such as Tory Burch Fellows | Show Medici the working thing. Rice runs once a year, with applications opening in November, so put it in your calendar. |
| Not incorporated yet | Amber Grant, Skip and the 1517 Medici Grant, which list no incorporation requirement; Awesome Foundation, where individuals can apply | Outta Excuses, which requires a registered LLC or 501(c)(3) | Do not form an LLC only to enter a $1,000 drawing. Form it when a program you want requires it, and keep the legal name identical across bank, EIN and application. |
| An owner is not a US citizen or permanent resident | Amber Grant, written around a business based in the United States or Canada; 1517 Medici Grant, for builders based in North America | SBIR, which needs more than 50% ownership by US citizens or permanent residents; Tory Burch Fellows, which needs a US legal resident | Read the residency line first. Some private grants test where the business is; SBIR tests who owns it, and a US-registered company does not clear that on its own. |
| Nonprofit startup | Amber Grant, where nonprofits are eligible; Outta Excuses, which accepts a registered 501(c)(3); Awesome Foundation | Tory Burch Fellows and Seated Together, both for-profit only | A nonprofit can enter a few business microgrants, but its main market is foundation grants for its mission, not business grants. |
| Women-owned, already selling $75,000+ a year | Tory Burch Fellows: 51% women-owned, founder 21 or older, at least $75,000 a year; HerRise MicroGrant, up to $1,000,000 in revenue | WomensNet Startup Grant, built for under $10,000 in sales (the monthly Amber Grant still accepts you) | You have outgrown the startup tracks. Put the hours into the annual fellowship and the larger awards. |
Most founders sit in two of these rows at once. See which grants you qualify for across every program, not just these.
Opens later in 2026 — the watch list
90 startup programs are between intakes today, and a handful have published or historically stable reopening windows worth diarising. The rest are in the table above with whatever the funder has actually said.
- Activate Fellowship — Cohort 2027 applications open September 15, 2026. Two years of salary, more than $300,000 total including $100,000 of research funding, zero equity and zero fees, for scientist-founders. Applications for Cohort 2027 close at the end of October, and selection runs into spring; check activate.org for the next cohort.
- Rice Business Plan Competition — expect a November opening. The 2026 cycle opened November 3, 2025 and closed in late January 2026, with the competition held at Rice in April. Rice has posted the 2027 cycle: applications open in November and close at the end of January. Student teams only, but the prize pool exceeds $1,000,000.
- FedEx Entrepreneur Fund and Boost Camp — last window October 14 to November 21, 2025. 150 accelerator seats, 30 of them carrying a $10,000 grant. No 2026 cycle has been announced; the pattern has been an autumn opening.
- Black Ambition Prize — not accepting applications. Up to $1,000,000 for Black and Hispanic founders when it runs, but the organisation has said it is supporting its existing portfolio rather than opening a 2026 prize round. Treat any page that lists it as open as out of date.
- HFFI FARE Fund — full applications due October 30, 2026, by invitation. The funding inquiry that gates the invitation closed July 31, 2026, so this cycle is now shut to new entrants; the next inquiry window is the one to watch if you are a food-access or food-retail startup.
Starring a program in the database puts it on the deadline watch we run for you — that is how a reopening reaches you without you re-reading this page.
How startup grant rounds run: five calendars
Searching for startup grants by month only works for programs that run monthly. Startup money runs on five calendars: monthly microgrants, quarterly rounds, annual cohorts, federal solicitations and state budgets. Knowing which calendar a program is on tells you whether a missed date costs you four weeks or a full year.
One monthly round, start to finish
- Apply any dayThe form is open all month. One Amber Grant application puts you in the running for every WomensNet grant your business fits.
- Cutoff, last dayThe Amber Grant and the HerRise MicroGrant both close each round on the last day of the month.
- JudgingJudges read that month’s entries. Nothing you send after the cutoff counts toward this round.
- Winners namedWomensNet announces Amber winners by the 21st of the following month.
- Go againHerRise lets applicants who did not win reapply in later months, so a rejection costs one cycle.
The Amber Grant’s monthly cycle, from the funder’s own pages. Other monthly programs set their own cutoff and announcement days.
The five calendars side by side
| Calendar | Examples | A missed date costs | How to work it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly | Amber Grant ($15,000 each month), HerRise MicroGrant, Awesome Foundation chapters, most of which meet monthly | About four weeks | Keep one core application and resubmit it every cycle you are eligible. |
| Quarterly | Outta Excuses ($3,000 each quarter), Seated Together (reviewed in quarterly cycles) | About three months | Check each round’s dates on the program page, since every funder sets its own quarter. |
| Annual cohort | Tory Burch Fellows (opens in September, fellows chosen in May); Rice Business Plan Competition (opens in November, competition in April) | A full year | Mark the opening, not the deadline, and draft before the window starts. |
| Federal solicitation | NSF SBIR and STTR: a Project Pitch first, then an invited full proposal against a dated deadline | Months | Treat the Project Pitch as the gate and send it as soon as the technical risk is clear. |
| State budget | State seed, prototype and SBIR-match funds | Up to a fiscal year if the money runs out | Apply early in the program year; first-come funds stop when the budget is spent. |
For what is taking applications in the current cycle, filter the live table at the top of this page. That table carries the dated statuses; this guide covers how the calendars work.
The questions founders actually type
There is no federal “free money to start a business” program; the closest real thing is SBIR for research and state proof-of-concept funds for everyone else. Tech startups have the deepest grant market, non-tech startups have the shallowest, and your state is almost always the highest-yield place to look.
“Free government grants to start a business”
No federal program gives money to start an ordinary business. Grants.gov lists federal opportunities, and the ones a for-profit startup can win are research awards, food-system and rural-development programs, and energy or defence technology work — not general startup capital. Of the 38 open grants on this page, 5 are federal, and most of those are SBIR or agency research vehicles. The phrase “free government grants” is also the exact phrase that fee-charging grant-writing services and outright scams buy ads against. The genuinely free government layer for a new business is advisory rather than financial: SBA Small Business Development Centers, Women’s Business Centers and SCORE mentoring cost nothing and are staffed by people who know which state programs are actually funded this year.
“Startup grants for tech companies”
Technology startups have by far the deepest non-dilutive market, and it runs through three doors. SBIR and STTR are the largest: NSF Phase I pays up to $305,000, DoD and Air Force run rolling topic releases. State SBIR match programs then top the federal award up — nineteen states in this slice run one, thirteen currently active, including Wyoming at up to $100,000 for Phase I and Vermont at up to $50,000, which is non-competitive and first-come until the budget is gone. The third door is state commercialization and prototype funding that does not require a federal award at all, such as the Nebraska Innovation Fund and South Dakota Proof of Concept. Technology is the most common industry tag in this slice, on 89 of the 147 programs in the table.
“How do I actually get $10,000 for my startup?”
At the $10,000 level the realistic route is volume across rolling microgrants rather than one big application. The Amber Grant awards $15,000 every month and rolls its monthly winners into three $75,000 year-end grants. NC IDEA MICRO is $10,000 twice a year for North Carolina founders validating a business model, and its fall 2026 deadline is August 24. Skip’s recurring $1,000 drawings and the 1517 Medici Grant’s $1,000 are small but take under an hour each. The pattern that works is a reusable core application — what you are building, who it is for, what the money buys, what happens next — applied to every rolling program you are eligible for, rather than one perfect submission a quarter.
“Startup grants in my state”
Your state is statistically the best place to look and the last place most founders check. 21 of the 38 open grants here are state programs, against 5 federal and 5 municipal, and 44 states appear somewhere in this table. State programs also tend to be less competitive than national brand grants, because the applicant pool is bounded by geography rather than by the internet. The catch is that they are administered by economic-development agencies with unpredictable web presence, and their windows open and close with appropriations rather than on a calendar — which is exactly why a dated status column matters more here than anywhere else on this page. Filter the table above to your state, or open the database and filter there.
How to spot a fake startup grant
A real grant never asks you to pay to receive money you have already won, and no government agency contacts you out of the blue to offer one. A small entry fee, published in the rules and paid when you apply, is a different thing, and several legitimate private grants charge one.
| The pattern | What it sounds like | The check |
|---|---|---|
| Unsolicited “you qualify” | A call, text, email or social message saying your startup was selected for a government grant | The FTC says the government will not get in touch out of the blue about grants. Real awards start with an application you sent. |
| Pay to release the money | A processing, tax or release fee after you are told you won | The FTC: no government agency will ever contact you to demand that you pay to get a grant. Private funders that charge do it at entry, in published rules. |
| Paid grant lists | A fee for a database of free government money for startups | Every federal grant is listed free at grants.gov, and the FTC says not to pay for a list. |
| Bank details up front | A request for a bank login, card number or Social Security number from someone who contacted you | The FTC’s rule: never share financial or personal information with anyone who contacts you. |
| A loan called a grant | An interest rate, a repayment term or a credit check | If you repay it, it is a loan, whatever the headline says. |
| A grant that takes equity | Funding in exchange for a share of your company | That is an investment. NSF’s seed fund takes zero equity, and Awesome Foundation chapters claim no ownership of the projects they fund. |
What a legitimate fee looks like. Seated Together charges a non-refundable $5.00 processing fee and Outta Excuses a non-refundable $15 entry fee, both stated on the application page before you submit. The test is timing and size: a few dollars to enter, disclosed up front, against a fee to collect money you never applied for.
Spotted a fake? Report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Every row carries locked intel
Knowing a program exists is the easy half. Every row in the table above also carries a Win Layer — our analysis of who actually wins it and why applications fail. Across the 147 programs on this page, 145 carry at least five of the seven Win Layer fields and 16 carry all seven.
- Approval odds
- What winners look like
- How it is judged
- Rejection traps
- Required documents
- When cash actually lands
- Clawback risk
Pro unlocks all seven fields on all 665 programs, plus deadline alerts. $49/mo · $249/yr.
See what Pro unlocks →Work the full database, not one page
This page is one slice, frozen on August 23, 2026. The database holds all 665 US programs with what is true about each: type, level, status, deadline and who it is genuinely for. Filter to your state and stage, star what fits, and we watch the deadlines for you. Free.
- 1. Filter to startups, open now
- 2. Star what fits
- 3. We watch the deadlines
Frequently asked questions
Are there grants for startups with no revenue?
Yes, but they are a specific family, not the whole market. Of the startup grant programs open now, the ones that fund a pre-revenue business are microgrants and proof-of-concept funds: the Amber Grant for Women runs a dedicated startup track for founders in the idea phase or under $10,000 in total sales, the 1517 Fund Medici Grant pays $1,000 no-strings to technical builders with a working prototype, Skip runs recurring $1,000 drawings, and state proof-of-concept funds such as the South Dakota Proof of Concept Program (up to $25,000) and the Nebraska Innovation Fund Prototype Grant (up to $150,000) fund the build, not the balance sheet. What a pre-revenue business generally cannot get is the state job-creation, workforce-training and facade-reimbursement money, which pays back costs an operating business has already incurred.
What startup grants are open right now?
The live table at the top of this page lists every startup program with its current status and deadline. Filter it to true grants and your state to see what is open in the current cycle.
Is SBIR a startup grant?
SBIR is the largest source of non-dilutive startup funding in the United States, but it funds research, not a business. NSF SBIR Phase I awards up to $305,000 and requires an invited Project Pitch before a full proposal; the next NSF full-proposal deadline is November 4, 2026. Department of Defense SBIR runs rolling topic releases rather than one annual date. The catch is scope: SBIR pays for a specific technical risk you are retiring, so a retail, restaurant or services startup will not qualify no matter how new it is. Nineteen states in this slice run their own SBIR or STTR match programs that top up a federal award — 13 of them are currently active — including Vermont at up to $50,000 and Wyoming at up to $100,000 for Phase I.
Do I need an LLC to get a startup grant?
You almost always need a registered US business entity, but rarely an LLC specifically. Federal programs require an entity with an EIN and, for grants.gov awards, a free SAM.gov Unique Entity ID; corporations, LLCs and in some cases sole proprietorships all qualify. SBIR is the notable exception in the other direction: it requires a for-profit US company that is majority owned by US individuals, and a C-corporation is the usual structure because it is what follow-on investors expect. Private microgrants are the loosest, and several accept sole proprietors. What matters far more than entity type is whether you can be paid: a business bank account, an EIN, and a matching legal name across your registrations.
Are pitch competitions the same as startup grants?
No, and conflating them is the single most common error in published startup grant lists. This page separates 22 competitions, accelerators and fellowships from the 106 true grant programs, because the money behaves differently: a competition pays one or a handful of winners out of hundreds of entrants, an accelerator usually requires a multi-week cohort commitment, and some take equity. Some are genuinely non-dilutive and worth the time, such as MassChallenge and the Activate Fellowship, which pays over $300,000 across two years for zero equity. But 17 of the 22 are between intakes today, and a list that prints them as open grants is telling you about a door that is closed.
What startup grants close in the next 60 days?
One: the HFFI FARE Fund full application is due October 30, 2026, and it is invitation-only from a funding inquiry that closed July 31, 2026. The dated windows that ran through late summer have all closed: the DivInc Women in Tech accelerator on August 23, 2026; the NC IDEA SEED Grant ($50,000) and NC IDEA MICRO Grant ($10,000), whose fall 2026 cycle closed on August 24, 2026 with no spring 2027 dates posted (you may apply to only one of the two per cycle); and the Montana Indian Equity Fund Small Business Grant (up to $40,000, Native-owned Montana businesses, dollar-for-dollar match required), whose 2026 window closed September 30, 2026 with the next one not yet dated.