Every term explained simply.

Government contracting is not complicated — it's badly explained. Here is every term the paperwork throws at you, written the way you'd explain it to someone who has never bid. Free, no account, nothing to sign up for.

8

8(a)

A nine-year program for firms owned by socially or economically disadvantaged people. While you're in it, you can receive contracts without open competition.

A

Amendment

An official change to a posted contract: a new date, a changed requirement, answers to questions. You're told about every one, because missing an amendment disqualifies your bid.

Award notice

The announcement that a contract was decided — who won, when and for how much. It's not something you can bid on, which is why these live in 'who won' intelligence and never in your feed of open work.

B

Bonding

A surety guarantee that you'll complete the work and pay your subs. Larger contracts (especially construction) require it, up to a capacity your surety approves.

C

CAGE code

Another company identifier, used mostly in defense. You get it automatically when your SAM.gov registration completes — you don't apply for it separately and you never pay for it.

Capability statement

Your one-page résumé for the government: what you do, what you've done, your codes and how to reach you. It's the first thing a buyer will ask for when you call.

Combined Synopsis / Solicitation

The announcement AND the solicitation in one notice — the agency skipped the separate heads-up. It usually means a shorter runway: read it now, the deadline is often close.

Cost Plus

The agency reimburses your costs and adds a fee on top. Less risk for you, but it demands you keep the books the way they ask and can prove every expense.

D

Days left

Calendar days until the offer deadline the notice publishes, not business days. 'Closed' means the deadline passed — agencies sometimes extend, so the notice is still worth opening. When no deadline is published we say so rather than showing a zero.

De-obligation

A negative line on a contract: the agency taking money back off it. Usually the scope shrank, an option year wasn't exercised, or funds were released at closeout. It doesn't mean anyone did anything wrong — but a contract that keeps shedding money is worth reading twice before you chase the recompete.

DFARS

The Defense Department's add-on to the general rulebook. If you sell to DoD it brings extra requirements — mostly cybersecurity and where your materials come from.

F

FAR

Federal Acquisition Regulation. The government's buying rulebook. You don't need to study it: the clauses that apply to you are listed in each contract, and we explain them one by one.

FAR Part 12

The part of the rulebook for buying COMMERCIAL things — what you already sell to private customers. It's the simplest route in: less paperwork and no special accounting.

Firm Fixed Price

Fixed price: you're paid what was agreed, whatever happens. Do it for less and you keep the difference; go over and it's on you. The most common type, and the one that rewards costing it right.

Forecast

A planned buy the agency expects to make later this year — not open yet. The earliest possible signal: months of runway to position before anyone's competing.

G

GWAC

An umbrella contract that EVERY federal agency can buy from, not just the one that set it up. Almost always technology. Same game as an IDIQ, with more buyers behind it.

H

Historical award values

What similar contracts under this NAICS code were awarded for, from public federal spending records. A reference range — not this contract's value.

HUBZone

A program for companies located in areas designated as needing jobs. You certify on the address of your office and where your employees live.

I

IDIQ

Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity. An umbrella contract: the agency picks a group of companies and then hands them work for years without re-competing it. Getting in is hard; once you're in, the work comes to you.

IDV

Indefinite Delivery Vehicle — the umbrella-contract family as a whole: IDIQs, GWACs, BPAs, Schedules. The agency sets one up once, then orders work against it for years. This is the type public award records report; the exact sub-kind isn't always stated.

IFB

Invitation for Bid. Lowest compliant price wins, and nothing else is scored. If your costs are good, it's the cleanest kind to win.

Incumbent

The company holding the contract right now. They start ahead because they already know the buyer — and they also leave a record you can examine to find where they can be beaten.

J

Justification (J&A)

The agency is explaining why it's giving the work to one company WITHOUT open competition. There's nothing to bid on — it's market intelligence: who won, and the door being closed.

M

Match score

How well a contract fits your business, 0–100, scored by AI against your codes, states, size and the profile you filled in. Higher = more of your must-haves line up. It ranks your feed; it isn't a win probability.

N

NAICS code

A 6-digit industry code that classifies the work being bought. It also sets the size standard that decides whether you count as a 'small business' for that contract.

O

Obligated amount

The dollars the government has actually committed on the award so far. On multi-year or task-order contracts it can be less than the total ceiling — money is obligated in stages.

Obligated in your work

Every dollar the government has committed on awards under your NAICS codes, from public spending records. It sizes the market you're competing in — it is not money available to you, and it isn't a forecast.

Open in your codes

Contracts still accepting offers whose NAICS code is one of yours and whose place of performance you can work in. Awards and cancelled notices aren't counted — only work you could still bid.

P

Past performance

How you did on earlier contracts. It carries real weight in an RFP. If you're starting from zero, private-sector work and customer references count too.

Period of performance

The window during which the work must be done — the contract's start and end dates. When it's running out, the agency usually re-bids the work (a recompete).

Presolicitation

The agency has announced it's coming but hasn't opened the bid yet. No proposal to submit today — it's your heads-up to get ready (team, bonding, questions) before the clock starts.

Price-to-win

The range similar contracts under this code were actually awarded for — the middle 50% (25th–75th percentile) and the typical (median), from public award records. A reference to price against, not a quote.

Prime vs. subcontractor

The prime holds the contract with the government. Subcontractors work under the prime. Subcontracting is a common way to build past performance before bidding as a prime.

PSC (Product/Service Code)

A federal code that classifies WHAT is being bought — a product or a service — alongside the NAICS industry code. Together they pin down the type of work.

PWS

Performance Work Statement. The document that says WHAT result the agency wants and leaves the how to you. Unlike a classic SOW, it gives you room to propose your own way of doing it.

R

Recompete

When an existing contract nears the end of its period of performance, the agency usually re-bids it. Spotting one early lets you prepare before it's posted.

Recompete window

Contracts under your codes whose period of performance ends soon. Agencies normally re-bid that work, so the months before it ends are when an incumbent can be displaced — after the solicitation posts it's usually too late.

RFI

Request for Information. Like a Sources Sought — the agency is gathering market intel. It isn't a competition and you win nothing by answering, except that they know your name before they know anyone else's.

RFP

Request for Proposal. The real competition, and price isn't the only thing that decides it: your technical approach, your track record and your team all count. The most work to answer, and the one you can win on quality.

RFQ

Request for Quote. A price request for something already defined, usually a small buy. Quick to answer, quick to decide.

S

SAM.gov registration

The registration you must have to get paid by the federal government. It's FREE, takes a few weeks, and nobody can charge you for it. You can't bid without it, so start before you need it.

SDVOSB

Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business. For veterans with a recognized disability. One of the most valuable set-asides — there are mandatory spending targets behind it.

Set-aside

A contract reserved for a specific type of business (small business, 8(a), WOSB, HUBZone, SDVOSB). Only firms in that category can compete.

Simplified acquisition

Buys under a threshold (around $250K) with a far lighter process. It's how almost everyone gets their first one.

Solicitation

The real thing: the agency is accepting bids now. There's a deadline and a package to submit. This is what you compete on.

Sources Sought

The agency is asking who's out there before it writes the solicitation. You CAN'T bid yet. Answering is cheap and worth a lot: it's while you can still shape how they word the requirement.

SOW

Statement of Work. The document spelling out the exact work: what, where, when and with what. It's the first thing to read to know whether the contract is yours.

Special Notice

A catch-all for anything that isn't a normal bid: an industry day, a pre-bid meeting, a policy note. Read it — sometimes it's the only warning that a big buy is coming.

Subcontracting plan

Under FAR 19.702, a large business that wins a federal contract over $750K ($1.5M for construction) has to submit a plan for subcontracting part of it to small businesses — with goals it reports against. If you qualify, filling that plan is their obligation, not a favour.

T

Task order

A specific job placed under a larger umbrella contract (an IDIQ). The umbrella sets the terms; each task order funds a defined piece of work with its own scope and value.

Teaming

Partnering with another company — as a subcontractor or in a joint venture — to bid on contracts you can't win alone.

U

UEI

Unique Entity ID. The number that identifies your company to the government. It's free when you register on SAM.gov, and it replaced the old DUNS number.

Unrestricted

No set-aside — any qualified business can compete, large or small. The opposite of a small-business or socioeconomic set-aside.

W

WOSB

Women-Owned Small Business. A certification for majority women-owned firms. It opens contracts set aside for that group.