Before you can bid
You need a government registration before you can bid. It is free. It is not easy.
Anyone can look at bids on OpenBid. To send in a bid, your business or nonprofit must first be registered in SAM.gov, the federal System for Award Management. Many people give up partway through. We help you get through it.
See how OpenBid helpsWhere people get stuck
The registration was built for people who already know the system. These are the places newcomers lose days or weeks.
Two accounts, not one
SAM.gov has no sign-up of its own. You first create an account on a separate government site, Login.gov, and then come back.
Government words everywhere
Entity, UEI, CAGE code, NAICS, representations and certifications. The forms use these without explaining them.
Your details must match your tax records
Your business name and address are checked against official records. A small difference can get you sent back to fix it.
One wrong choice shuts you out of contracts
Early on, the form asks what you are registering for. Pick the grants-only option by mistake and you cannot bid on contracts.
Documents get turned down
You may be asked to prove who you are. It is not always clear which documents are accepted, and a rejected one costs you time.
The waiting, and the deadline
A new registration can take three weeks or more to become active. A mistake adds to the wait, and the bid you wanted may close first.
Part of OpenBid membership
We walk you through it, start to finish.
You should be spending your time on the work you do, not on decoding a government form. Here is what our help gives you.
A checklist before you start
Everything to gather, in one list, so you are not sent hunting for a number halfway through.
Every screen in plain English
What each question is really asking, one screen at a time. Add a screenshot and Sabrina, our AI assistant, explains it. Your answers stay yours.
A check before you submit
Sabrina looks over your review screen for the mistakes that most often get a registration sent back.
Renewal, made plain
Registrations must be renewed every year. The guide tells you when to start and what to check. Give us your expiry date and we email you 60, 30 and 7 days before it.
You stay in charge of your own account. We guide and we check. You are the one who presses submit.
Get the SAM guideThe registration itself is free.
The government does not charge to register in SAM.gov or to renew. What OpenBid charges for is our help getting you through it. You can always do it on your own.
OpenBid cannot guarantee results.
The government decides whether a registration is approved and how long it takes. Nobody can promise an approval date or a winning bid, and we will not.
The steps, in plain English
This is the road, so you know what is ahead of you.
Gather your information
Have these ready before you start. It saves a lot of going back and forth.
- Your legal business name and street address, exactly as they appear on your tax records
- Your taxpayer ID number (the EIN from the IRS)
- The bank account where the government would pay you
- A short description of the work you do
- The name, email and phone number of the person in charge of the registration
Create your sign-in
Go to SAM.gov and choose Sign In. SAM.gov uses a separate government sign-in service called Login.gov, so you create your account there first. Use an email address your organization will keep, because the registration is tied to it.
Register your organization
Once signed in, choose to register your entity. "Entity" is the government's word for your business or nonprofit.
When it asks what you are registering for, choose the option that covers contracts (shown as "All Awards"). The other option is for grants only and will not let you bid on contracts.
Wait for the checks
The government checks your name and address, your taxpayer ID, and your bank details. It may ask you for documents that prove who you are. During this step you are given two numbers: a Unique Entity ID and a CAGE code. You will see both asked for on bids.
Become active, then renew every year
You can bid once your registration shows as Active. It must be renewed every year. If it lapses, you cannot bid or be paid until it is active again.
Would you rather not do this alone?
The SAM guide is included with a yearly OpenBid membership. For monthly members it is a one-time $19. Registering in SAM.gov itself is free. OpenBid cannot guarantee results.
Get the SAM guideCheck the official site
The rules and the steps on SAM.gov change from time to time. This page is a plain-English guide, not official instructions. OpenBid is an independent service. It is not a government website and is not endorsed by any agency. SAM.gov is always the final word.
The government also runs its own help desk for SAM.gov, the Federal Service Desk, and funds local counseling offices called APEX Accelerators.