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It takes time and effort to research and apply for funding, but the payoff can be worth it if you secure a grant for your small business. To help you get started, here’s a list of federal, state and private small-business grants and resources.
We’ll start with a brief questionnaire to better understand the unique needs of your business.
Once we uncover your personalized matches, our team will consult you on the process moving forward.
Federal government grants for small businesses
Government agencies are among the biggest distributors of business grants, supporting a range of enterprises from environmental conservation to child care services. Applying may seem intimidating, but federal business grants are great opportunities for entrepreneurs looking to grow.
Grants.gov
Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs
USDA Rural Business Development Grant
Program for Investors in Microentrepreneurs
Regional government grants for small businesses
Because federal grants can be particularly competitive — and limited in number — you might also look into government small-business grants at the state and local levels. Start your search with options like these:
Economic Development Administration
Small Business Development Center
Minority Business Development Agency centers
State Trade Expansion Program
The available funding amounts and eligibility criteria of these government small-business grants vary based on your state, but capital can be used to participate in export trade shows, design international marketing products, support website globalization and more.
Corporate small-business grants
Many corporations and large companies have a philanthropic component that includes small-business grants. While some provide grants to nonprofits servicing specific industries only, some also give to for-profit companies.
National Association for the Self-Employed Growth Grant
FedEx Small Business Grant Contest
The contest is for U.S.-based, for-profit small businesses with fewer than 99 employees. You must also have a valid FedEx business shipping account number and currently ship with FedEx to apply.
American Express Backing Small Businesses
Verizon Small Business Grant
Once these tasks are completed, you can submit a grant application. The latest round of funding is open to businesses located in Houston, Los Angeles, Miami and Phoenix. Applications are accepted from Feb. 26 – April 8, 2024.
Small Business Growth Fund Grant
In 2023, the program awarded grants between $5,000 and $25,000 to for-profit U.S.-based businesses that had less than $1 million in gross revenue in 2022. Application information has not yet been announced for 2024.
Venmo Small Business Grant
Amazon Small Business Grant
Winners can also receive a one-year membership to Business Prime and free products from eero Wifi and Kindle Scribe. Information has not been announced for 2024, but business owners can sign up for email updates on the Amazon website.
U.S. Chamber of Commerce Top Small Business Awards
Although you must have an existing business to qualify, you only need to have been in operation for one year. Applications for the 2024 cycle are not yet available.
Visa Everywhere Initiative
Visa will select the top five finalists in each region, and these businesses will move forward to a global finals event. The overall winner of the competition is awarded a $50,000 small-business grant. Additional grants are awarded to second- and third-place finalists, audience favorites, as well as regional and local winners.
Lenovo Evolve small-business grant
Grants to start a business
Fast Break for Small Business
If you have less than three months in operation or haven’t started your business yet, you can also apply to receive a LegalZoom product of your choosing (up to $500). Applications for the 2024 cycle of this grant program are open until Sept. 13, 2024.
The UPS Store Small Biz Challenge
To qualify, you must have started your business (meaning you’re conducting active daily operations) no later than January 29, 2024. Applications closed in March 2024, and semi-finalists will be announced in April.
Bizee Fresh Start Business Grant
To qualify, you must be planning to start a new business or grow an existing business. Bizee also offers a Young Entrepreneur Grant for students interested in starting their own businesses. The next cycle will be held in 2024.
Hello Alice grant platform
Amber Grant for women
SubSummit Pitch Competition
To apply, you have to send in a short video describing your business, the inspiration behind your brand — and if you want — what you plan to do with the grant funding. Semi-finalists will compete virtually and finalists will compete for the grand prize at a live event. You can sign up now to join the waitlist for 2024 applications.
Small-business hardship grants
Small-business hardship grants can help you recover after an emergency situation, like a natural disaster or public health crisis. These grants may be available from the government, nonprofits or corporations, among other sources.
Depending on the emergency, certain business hardship grants may only be available within a specific time frame, so it’s particularly important to check funding deadlines.
Here are some options to consider:
State and local small-business recovery grants
Some states and cities also run ongoing small-business grant programs to assist business owners when they suffer from damages as the result of fires, floods and hurricanes, among other disasters.
Etsy Emergency Relief Fund
Etsy partners with the nonprofit organization, CERF+, to provide its sellers with financial relief after they’re affected by a disaster. To qualify for this small-business hardship grant, you’ll need to have experienced a federally declared natural disaster within the last year, as well as have had an active Etsy seller account in good standing for at least one year.
DoorDash Restaurant Disaster Relief Fund
To qualify, you’ll also need to have three restaurant locations or fewer, 50 or fewer employees, been in business for at least six months and made $3 million or less per location in the last year.
Applications are accepted on a quarterly basis but they must be submitted within 12 months of the declared disaster. Recipients will be notified within 30 days after the application period closes. The current application cycle is open until March 29, 2024.
Small Business Readiness for Resiliency Program
Emergency relief funding is issued in amounts of $5,000 and you must be able to show that you incurred disaster-related damages or losses that equal or exceed that amount. You’ll also need to have fewer than 500 employees, among other requirements, to qualify for this small-business hardship grant.
State grants for small businesses
Some state and local governments, nonprofits and private companies offer business grants that are unique to their communities. Click on your state below to find small-business grants in your area.
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Employability Business Grant: This grant offers small- and medium-sized businesses in California an opportunity to grow their operations and create job opportunities for individuals with disabilities. The program is designed to cover new hire costs, including advertising, onboarding, training and first month’s wages. Grants are available in amounts ranging from $20,000 to $200,000. Businesses must qualify with the California Department of Rehabilitation which will create a contract that determines the schedule for funding reimbursement.
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Restaurants Care Resilience Fund: Restaurants Care runs an annual grant program to support independently owned restaurants in California. Eligible restaurant owners can receive $5,000 small-business grants to upgrade their kitchen equipment or retain employees. To qualify, restaurants must be located in California and owned by a California resident, have under $3 million in annual revenue and have been open for at least one year. You must also be a customer of SoCalGas, Pacific Gas and Electric or San Diego Gas & Electric.
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Office of Economic Development and International Trade grants. The Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade offers a wide range of business grant opportunities. There are grant options for technology businesses, cannabis businesses, arts and film initiatives, among others. Depending on the individual program, funding amounts can range from up to $10,000 to up to $350,000.
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First Southwest Community Fund grants. Through a partnership with the Colorado Startup Loan Fund, First Southwest Community Fund offers small-business grants of up to $15,000. These grants are available to underserved small businesses (those with 10 or fewer employees) located in rural Colorado. The organization also offers grants and funding opportunities through its Rural Business Development- and Microentrepreneur Assistance programs.
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Prospera Business Grants: Prospera is a Florida-based nonprofit organization that focuses on providing bilingual support to Hispanic entrepreneurs who are trying to grow their businesses. Through the Prospera grant program, small-business owners can receive free professional business development services, including legal and accounting assessments, marketing and sales planning, branding development, QuickBooks consulting and more. Prospera’s consultants meet with applicants and award grants for professional services based on their individual needs.
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Enterprise Florida Trade Grants: Florida export businesses can apply for a variety of government business grants through the Florida Export Diversification and Expansion Program. In order to qualify, businesses must have been in operation for at least two years; must employ between three and 500 workers; and must have at least $250,000 in annual sales in the previous calendar year. Each individual grant has additional eligibility requirements.
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New York Public Library StartUP! Business Plan Competition: The New York Public Library runs an annual small-business grant competition for startup entrepreneurs located in Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island. Applicants enter a business plan and then must attend training workshops and meet with a business advisor and business librarian during the competition. Entrepreneurs can win $7,500, $10,000 or $15,000 to start their business. Applications are due by May 31, 2024. The Brooklyn Public Library and the Queens Economic Development Corporation both run similar grant programs for startup businesses located in those boroughs.
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Wayne County Microburst Grant Program: Entrepreneurs in Wayne County, New York, can earn grants from $5,000 to $20,000 to fund their startup businesses. Through this program, microbusinesses (with fewer than five employees) submit a potential project and provide a minimum of 10% cash to match the total project cost. With the proposed project, businesses must be able to create one full-time job for an individual from a low-to-moderate-income family. To qualify, small businesses must be in business for less than a year at the time of application. Small-business owners are also required to complete business classes from SCORE, a nonprofit organization of business mentors and SBA resource partner, in order to apply.
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JobsOhio Inclusion Grant: The JobsOhio Inclusion Grant is designed to provide up to $50,000 for small- to medium-sized businesses in distressed communities, as well as those that are minority-owned, woman-owned, veteran-owned or owned by an individual with a disability. Eligible companies must have at least part of their operations devoted to business-to-business activities.
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Texas Workforce Commission Skills for Small Business Program: Small businesses in Texas with newly hired workers can receive grants to cover employee training. The program offers up to $1,800 for each new employee being trained and $900 for existing employees per 12-month period. Training must be provided by a public community or technical college, or the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service. To qualify, your business must have fewer than 100 employees.
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Amegy Bank Small Business Boost Program: Through this program, Amegy Bank partners with the Houston Texans to provide $5,000 grants to local small businesses. To qualify, businesses must have under 500 employees, be independently owned and operated and operate primarily in the Houston area. Winners for the 2023 cycle have been announced and nominations are currently closed.
Specialty small-business grants
To help spread entrepreneurial success across demographics, many organizations focus their free funding efforts on specific communities.
We’ve put together lists of:
How to get a small-business grant
1. Research and identify the right grants.Narrow down online search results by using keywords that are specific to your business or searching by location.
2. Prepare your grant applications.Verify that you meet all eligibility requirements and gather the necessary paperwork.
3. Submit and track your applications.Make sure you submit your applications by the appropriate deadline. Set up a tracking document to monitor different grant timelines.
4. Consider hiring a grant writer.Professional grant writers can provide expertise to help you get funding. They can draft proposals, track eligibility requirements and manage deadlines.
Alternatives to small-business grants
Finding and applying for the right grants for your small business can be difficult, as well as time-consuming. If you don’t qualify for certain grants, there are other ways to fund your business. Here are some avenues to explore:
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Small-business loans. Compare loan options — including bank loans, SBA loans, business lines of credit, term loans and equipment financing — plus, learn how to choose the right financing for your needs.
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Small-business credit cards. Explore dozens of cards and find the best choice for funding your everyday business purchases — and earn rewards in the process.
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Crowdfunding for business. Raise money for your small business by tapping into the power of the internet and promoting your product or service through a crowdfunding campaign.
Former NerdWallet writer Steve Nicastro contributed to this article.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can find small-business grants at government agencies, state organizations and private corporations. A few good places to start your search include the government database Grants.gov, your local Small Business Development Center and nonprofits such as the Local Initiatives Support Corp.
Some of the most common types of small-business grants include government grants, such as federal, state and local grants, nonprofit grants, corporate or private grants, as well as hardship and emergency grants.
Business grant qualifications will depend on the awarding organization. Priority may be given to businesses in rural or low-income locations or those run by women or minority groups, for example. Read a grant’s complete eligibility criteria before applying to understand if your business qualifies.
