How to Find Federal Contract Opportunities on SAM.gov

Cost to search SAM.gov

Free, no login needed

Micro-purchase threshold

$15,000 (since Oct 1, 2025)

Simplified acquisition threshold

$350,000 (since Oct 1, 2025)

Previous thresholds

$10,000 and $250,000

SAM.gov posting required above

$25,000

Presolicitation notice

At least 15 days before solicitation

Response time above SAT

30 days (non-commercial)

Commercial simplified limit

$9 million

Where federal opportunities are posted

SAM.gov is the official government-wide point of entry for federal contract opportunities. Agencies post their notices in the Contract Opportunities section, which replaced the older FedBizOpps site. Searching is free and open to the public, so you can browse notices without an account.

You need a free SAM.gov account, signed in through Login.gov, to save searches, follow notices and get email alerts. You also need an active SAM.gov entity registration before you can win most federal prime contracts. Registering early lets you act quickly when the right notice appears.

Searching Contract Opportunities

Go to SAM.gov, choose Search, and select Contract Opportunities as the domain. You can type keywords, a solicitation number or an agency name. The filters on the left side are where the search becomes powerful, so use them to narrow the list to work you can do.

The most useful filters are NAICS code, product and service code, set-aside type, notice type, place of performance and response date. For example, you can search for small business set-asides under your NAICS code in your state with responses due in the next 30 days. Each notice shows the agency, the contracting office, the response deadline and the contact person, along with attached documents.

Many notices include an Interested Vendors List. Adding your business to it shows prime contractors and other firms that you want to take part, which can lead to teaming and subcontract work.

Notice types and what they mean

A sources sought notice, or request for information, is market research. The agency is asking which businesses can do the work, and your answer can help it decide to set the contract aside for small businesses. Responding is free, and it is one of the best ways to shape a future contract.

A presolicitation notice tells you a solicitation is coming. It describes the work and usually gives an expected release date. A solicitation notice is the actual request for proposals, quotes or bids, with the full documents and the deadline for your response.

A combined synopsis/solicitation puts the announcement and the solicitation in one notice, and agencies use it for many purchases of commercial products and services. A special notice covers other announcements, such as industry days, small business events and draft documents. An award notice reports who won a contract and the dollar amount, and agencies also post justification notices when they award without full competition.

Saved searches and alerts

Once you have a search that fits your business, save it while signed in. SAM.gov lets you name the search and turn on email notifications, so you hear about new matches daily or weekly. Most businesses keep a few saved searches, such as one for each primary NAICS code and one for keywords that describe their products.

You can also follow a single notice. Following sends you an email when the agency posts an amendment, answers to questions or an award, which keeps you up to date through the whole competition.

Dollar thresholds as of October 2026

The micro-purchase threshold is $15,000. Purchases at or below this amount can be made without getting competing quotes when the price is reasonable, often with a government purchase card. This figure rose from $10,000 on October 1, 2025, under the FAR Council's inflation adjustment rule.

The simplified acquisition threshold is $350,000. Purchases above the micro-purchase threshold and up to this amount use simplified procedures with less paperwork, and they are generally reserved for small businesses when two or more can compete. This figure rose from $250,000 on October 1, 2025. Commercial products and services can use simplified procedures up to $9 million, up from $7.5 million on the same date.

When notices must be posted

Agencies must post a notice on SAM.gov for proposed contract actions expected to exceed $25,000, unless an exception applies. This posting threshold did not change in the 2025 inflation update because trade agreements tie it to $25,000. For purchases above $20,000 and up to $25,000, agencies display the opportunity in a public place or by electronic means instead.

For notices that must be posted, the agency publishes the presolicitation notice at least 15 days before it issues the solicitation. For contracts above the simplified acquisition threshold that are not for commercial products or services, offerors get at least 30 days from the date the solicitation is issued to respond. Research and development contracts above that threshold allow at least 45 days.

Commercial purchases follow a faster track. Agencies can use a combined synopsis/solicitation and set a shorter response time that still gives businesses a fair chance to respond. Contracts covered by trade agreements allow at least 40 days from the notice to the deadline for offers.

Other free places to find work

Agency procurement forecasts list contracts planned for the coming year, often months before a notice appears on SAM.gov. You can reach many of them from the Acquisition Gateway and acquisition.gov forecast pages, or from each agency's small business office. USAspending.gov shows past awards, so you can see who buys what you sell and when contracts are due for renewal.

The SBA SubNet database lists subcontracting opportunities from prime contractors. APEX Accelerators offer free bid-matching services and help you read notices and prepare responses. Your local SBA district office can introduce you to agency small business specialists in your area.

A note on the FAR overhaul

The Federal Acquisition Regulation is being rewritten through the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul. Agencies adopted model deviations for most FAR parts in 2025, and the FAR Council published the first proposed rules in June 2026, including a rewrite of Part 5 on publicizing contracts. Posting on SAM.gov remains the central requirement under the new text.

The proposed Part 5 would raise the lower posting tier to purchases above $20,000 and up to $45,000. Until a final rule takes effect, the figures in this guide are the current ones. The proposed rules and model deviations are posted at acquisition.gov/far-overhaul.

Sources

https://public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2025-16412.pdf
https://sam.gov/search/?index=opp
https://www.acquisition.gov/far/5.203
https://www.acquisition.gov/far-overhaul
https://www.whitehouse.gov/releases/2026/06/omb-advances-revolutionary-far-overhaul-with-formal-publication-of-regulatory-changes/
https://www.acquisition.gov/index%2ephp/node/55729/printable/pdf
https://www.usaspending.gov

Checked October 2026. Thresholds and rules change; each source above is the official page.