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Bid checklist
Everything to check before you send a bid to a government agency, in the order you'll need it. Tick each item as you go. Your ticks stay on this device, so you can come back to it while you work on the bid.
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Print Clear ticks Before you decide to bid Your SAM.gov registration is active Search your business on SAM.gov and check the status says Active and the expiration date is after the award date. An expired registration can't receive an award. The work matches your industry code The solicitation lists one NAICS code. Make sure it is one of the codes in your SAM.gov registration and that your business is small for that code if the bid is set aside. You fit the set-aside The first page or the SAM.gov notice says who may bid: open to everyone, small business, 8(a), HUBZone, women-owned, veteran-owned or service-disabled veteran-owned. Only bid on a set-aside you hold. You can do the work where and when they need it Check the place of performance, the start date, the length of the contract and any option years. You have time to finish the bid Note the due date, the time and the time zone. Deadlines are exact: a bid that arrives one minute late is usually not accepted.
Read everything The whole solicitation, every page Read the cover form, the statement of work, the price schedule, the clauses and every attachment. Every amendment Agencies post changes as amendments on the same SAM.gov notice. Many must be signed and returned with your bid, so check the notice again the day before it is due. How they will choose the winner Look for the evaluation section (often Section M, or 'Basis for Award'): lowest price, best value, or lowest price that meets the requirements. What they want you to send Look for the instructions section (often Section L, or 'Instructions to Offerors'): page limits, file types, how many copies, and what goes in each volume. The wage determination, if there is one Service contracts often include a Service Contract Act wage determination and construction contracts a Davis-Bacon one. These set the minimum wages and fringe benefits you must pay on the job.
Ask and visit Questions sent before the question deadline Send questions in writing to the contracting officer named in the notice, before the date given. Answers are usually posted to everyone as an amendment. Site visit, if offered If there is a site visit, sign up by the date listed. Seeing the site often changes the price.
Price it Every line on the price schedule is filled in Price every line item and option year they ask for, in the format they ask for. Your costs are all counted Labor, payroll taxes and insurance, materials, equipment, fuel, travel, subcontractors, permits, bonds and your overhead. Our pricing worksheet adds them up. The math is checked Check that unit prices times quantities equal the totals, and that the total on the form matches your worksheet.
Put it together Every required form is signed Sign the cover form (often an SF 1449, SF 33 or SF 18) and each amendment that asks for a signature. Your past work is described If they ask for past performance, list similar jobs with the customer, dates, value and a contact who will answer the phone. Your files follow the instructions Use their file names, file types and page limits. Keep the same company name, UEI and address on every page. Someone else read it A second person checks it against the instructions section, line by line.
Send it You are sending it the way they asked Email, an agency portal such as PIEE, or another method: use only the one named in the solicitation, and the exact address given. It is sent early Send at least a day before the deadline. Email systems hold large attachments, and portals can be slow on the last day. You have proof it arrived Save the sent email, the portal confirmation or the delivery receipt.
After you send it Watch for questions from the agency Agencies sometimes ask for clarifications or a revised price. Answer by the date they give. Ask for a debriefing if you don't win On many contracts you can ask why your bid was not chosen. The answer helps on the next one.
Next: work out your price , read how to bid, step by step , or find open bids .
Based on the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and the standard federal solicitation forms. Each solicitation sets its own rules; where it differs from this list, follow the solicitation.
