Business Grants

Browse business grants, innovation vouchers, SME programs, export support, local incentives, and growth funding.

88 current matching opportunities found Official-source verification recommended

Business grants can support innovation, expansion, export development, workforce training, energy upgrades, resilience, digital adoption, equipment, research partnerships, and local economic development. Some are run by national agencies. Others are state, city, regional, university, chamber, or foundation programs with narrower eligibility.

The first filter is business fit. Check company size, revenue, age, location, ownership, sector, legal structure, and whether nonprofits or sole proprietors are allowed. Then check cost fit. A program may fund consulting but not equipment, prototypes but not marketing, training but not salaries, or reimbursement only after approved expenses are paid.

Many business grants require more administrative discipline than founders expect. You may need tax clearance, financial statements, quotes, project budgets, insurance, procurement documentation, job-creation estimates, environmental information, or proof that the business is in good standing. A simple grant can become slow if those records are scattered.

Use this page to find current business funding leads, then verify the official rules and prepare a practical application. Funders tend to favor businesses that can explain the opportunity, the barrier, the funded activity, and the measurable result in plain language.

Current matching opportunities

These listings are limited to open, rolling, or upcoming opportunities that match this guide. Check the official source before applying.

NSF 26-511: SBIR/STTR Pilot Emphasis on Scientific Instrumentation (Phase I, Phase II, Fast-Track)

Current NSF SBIR/STTR solicitation for U.S. small businesses with pilot focus on scientific instrumentation and a 2026-2027 submission cadence.

Status: Open Type: Grant Amount: Phase I: up to $305,000; Phase II: up to $1,250,000; Fast-Track: up to $1,555,000 Deadline: Jul 27, 2026 Location: United States

NIH SBIR/STTR Commercialization Readiness Pilot (CRP) Program (Parent SB1 Clinical Trial Optional): PAR-27-098

A late-stage small business commercialization bridge for U.S. NIH SBIR or STTR Phase II projects that need outsourced technical development, clinical studies, or market-readiness work before full commercialization.

Status: Open Type: Grant Deadline: Sep 5, 2026 Location: United States

Interregional Innovation Investments Strand 1 (I3-2026-INV1): EU Scale-Up Support for Cross-Regional Innovation

EISMEA's I3-2026-INV1 call supports cross-border innovation investments through EU consortia with financial and advisory support, with a total 2026 budget of EUR 28.2 million and a single-stage deadline of 12 November 2026.

Status: Open Type: Grant Amount: Total call budget EUR 28.2 million; up to EUR 10 million per project Deadline: Nov 12, 2026 Location: European Union and EU Member States and EEA contracting parties

DE-FOA-0003624: IGNIITE 2026 (Inspiring Generations of New Innovators to Impact Technologies in Energy)

ARPA-E’s DE-FOA-0003624 is a 2026 cohort-focused energy innovation grant path for early-career researchers, with up to $500,000 per award and possible follow-on support.

Status: Rolling Type: Grant Amount: Approximately $10,000,000 in total program funding Deadline: Rolling or ongoing Location: United States

CBE JU 2026: HORIZON-JU-CBE-2026 Call for Project Proposals

The Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU) open call for 2026 projects under HORIZON-JU-CBE-2026 offers up to €20 million for flagship innovation actions and a total call budget of €170.7 million for circular bioeconomy solutions.

Status: Open Type: Grant Amount: Total call budget €170.7 million; flagship topics up to €20 million each Deadline: Sep 22, 2026 Location: Europe

ESF-SI-2026-ECG-01 and ESF-SI-2026-ROMA NEETs-01: Strengthening the European Child Guarantee and supporting access to the labour market for Roma NEETs

This EU Social Innovation+ transnational call funds consortium-led projects that improve access to child-poverty prevention services and support Roma young people aged 15-29 to enter or sustain employment and self-employment across at least two EU-linked countries.

Status: Open Type: Grant Amount: EUR 800,000 to EUR 2,000,000 per project (estimated) Deadline: Sep 30, 2026 Location: European Union and Selected third countries eligible under ESF+ transnational rules

Horizon Europe EU Mission: €10 million for joint demonstration of solutions to build soil resilience and support food security (HORIZON-MISS-2026-06-CLIMA-SOIL)

Horizon Europe mission call for innovation actions to scale and deploy climate-resilient solutions at the soil and food-system level, with a joint focus on the Mission on Soil Deal and the Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change.

Status: Open Type: Grant Amount: EUR 10,000,000 indicative EU contribution; topic budget listed as EUR 20,000,000 (single-stage) Deadline: Sep 23, 2026 Location: EU Member States and associated countries

Growth Cohorts: Next generation low carbon concrete cohort entry

Innovate UK is running a two-stage Growth Cohorts competition for UK startups, SMEs, and businesses building concrete decarbonisation solutions, with a £50,000 stage 1 grant application and further stage 2 funding for successful participants.

Status: Open Type: Grant Amount: £50,000 for stage 1 entry round (up to £1,000,000 available in stage 1) Deadline: Jul 8, 2026 Location: United Kingdom

RIVCircular Interregional Circular Economy Open Call 2026: EU Call for Proposals

RIVCircular’s 2026 interregional call funds practical circular economy innovation pilots (TRL 6-8) in selected EU and EEA territories with consortium-based project budgets up to €2 million per topic and targeted local relevance.

Status: Open Type: Grant Amount: Total budget €12,950,000; maximum €600,000 per single beneficiary Deadline: Sep 17, 2026 Location: Madrid (Spain), Hauts-de-France (France), Innlandet (Norway), Kosice (Slovakia), Kyiv-Oblast (Ukraine), Extremadura (Spain), Vienna (Austria) and Greece

USDA NRCS CIG On-Farm Conservation Innovation Trials FY2026

National Resources Conservation Service on-farm trials for innovative conservation practices, with up to 30 competitive awards, a $50 million federal funding pool, and no cost-sharing requirement.

Status: Open Type: Grant Amount: US$250,000 minimum, US$5,000,000 maximum per award (up to $5M), total FY2026 pool $50M Deadline: Jul 27, 2026 Location: United States

ERC Proof of Concept Grant (ERC-2026-POC): applications close 2026-09-17 (second cut-off)

ERC-2026-POC provides EUR 150,000, 18-month proof-of-concept grants for current or recently completed ERC Frontier research PIs to validate innovation and societal impact pathways from existing ERC-funded research.

Status: Open Type: Grant Amount: EUR 150,000 (lump sum) Deadline: Sep 17, 2026 Location: Europe

NSF AI Efficiency Challenge (STRIDE Ventures) 2026

NSF-supported STRIDE Ventures AI Efficiency Challenge funds translation-ready teams building software-oriented AI efficiency solutions for large-scale AI/ML systems and data centers through milestone-based awards in 2026.

Status: Open Type: Grant Amount: Up to $21 million in total challenge funding; up to $3.5M or $1.75M per project Deadline: Jul 13, 2026 Location: United States

Application guidance

Use the listings above as a shortlist, then build your application from the official instructions. Save the source page, deadline, eligibility rules, required documents, contact details, and any program-specific scoring criteria. If the deadline is rolling, apply early enough for review queues and budget limits. If the deadline is fixed, work backward from the closing date and leave time for recommendations, institutional approvals, financial documents, and portal errors.

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Business Grants FAQ

Are business grants only for startups?

No. Some support new companies, while others target established small businesses, exporters, manufacturers, local employers, or sector-specific firms.

Can grants cover payroll?

Sometimes, but many programs restrict payroll, owner compensation, overhead, capital purchases, or past expenses. Check eligible costs carefully.

What makes a business grant application stronger?

Clear use of funds, local or sector fit, credible financials, measurable outcomes, and proof that the business can complete the proposed work.