About PlainGrants

Our Mission

PlainGrants exists because navigating the federal grant landscape should not require a professional grant writer or days of research across multiple government websites. The federal government offers thousands of assistance programs across dozens of agencies, but finding the right ones — and understanding whether you qualify — is a challenge that disproportionately affects small nonprofits, first-time applicants, and under-resourced organizations.

We believe that access to federal funding information should be democratized. PlainGrants organizes the official SAM.gov Assistance Listings into a clear, searchable format — filterable by agency, category, and eligibility type — so grant seekers can quickly identify relevant programs before investing time in the application process. Our goal is not to replace SAM.gov or Grants.gov, but to provide a more accessible front door to the federal grant ecosystem.

Our Data Source

All program data comes directly from SAM.gov Assistance Listings (formerly the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance, or CFDA). The Assistance Listings catalog is the official U.S. government database of all federal financial assistance programs, maintained by the General Services Administration (GSA). It is the authoritative source for program descriptions, eligibility criteria, and application information. Official source: SAM.gov Assistance Listings.

Our data includes:

  • Program descriptions: What each program funds and its objectives
  • CFDA/Assistance Listing numbers: The unique identifiers in XX.XXX format
  • Eligibility types: Which organization types are authorized to apply
  • Funding ranges: Typical award amounts where reported by agencies
  • Agency information: The federal agency administering each program
  • Application links: Direct links to official program pages

How We Process the Data

We download program data from the SAM.gov Assistance Listings catalog and process it through the following steps:

  • Parsing and normalization: Each program record is extracted with its CFDA number, title, description, administering agency, and eligibility categories. Program titles and descriptions are reproduced verbatim from official sources.
  • Eligibility classification: Programs are categorized using the standard SAM.gov eligibility types: nonprofits, for-profit small businesses, individuals, state and local governments, tribal governments, and educational institutions. Programs eligible for multiple applicant types are cross-listed.
  • Agency and category organization: Programs are grouped by administering agency and by subject category (education, health, agriculture, housing, etc.) to enable browsing from multiple entry points.
  • Funding range extraction: Where agencies provide typical award ranges, we display these to help applicants gauge program scale. Not all programs report funding ranges.

Data Currency

PlainGrants reflects SAM.gov Assistance Listings data as of our most recent database refresh. SAM.gov is updated continuously by federal agencies as programs are created, modified, or closed. We refresh our database periodically to capture these changes.

Because program availability, eligibility requirements, funding amounts, and deadlines change frequently, always verify current program status and requirements at SAM.gov or Grants.gov before beginning an application. PlainGrants is a discovery tool, not a real-time application system.

Editorial Independence

Content on PlainGrants is compiled by our editorial team. Raw data from Grants.gov, USAspending.gov, SAM.gov, and federal agency award announcements is transformed into readable profiles by our continuous editorial pipeline, validated against the source before publication. The PlainGrants editorial team, operating under Kiznis Studio, is responsible for editorial standards, methodology, and corrections.

We do not accept payment, sponsorship, or promoted placement from grant applicants, awardees, consultants, or any covered entity. Our only revenue source is contextual display advertising served by Google AdSense — advertisers do not influence which programs we cover or how we present data, and they do not receive preferential placement.

Limitations and Disclaimers

PlainGrants is an informational resource designed to simplify grant discovery. It has important limitations:

  • Not real-time: Our data may lag behind SAM.gov by days or weeks. Programs may have closed, changed eligibility, or modified funding since our last refresh.
  • Discovery only: PlainGrants shows what programs exist and who is generally eligible. The actual application process, deadlines, and detailed requirements must be verified on SAM.gov or Grants.gov.
  • Eligibility is indicative: SAM.gov eligibility categories are broad. A program listed as eligible for "nonprofits" may have additional requirements (e.g., specific mission areas, geographic restrictions, or organizational size limits) that are not captured in the top-level classification.
  • Funding ranges are estimates: Not all programs report funding ranges, and reported ranges may not reflect actual award amounts, which can vary significantly based on available appropriations and applicant qualifications.

PlainGrants is not affiliated with SAM.gov, Grants.gov, or any federal agency. We do not provide legal or financial advice. Consult a qualified grant professional or the administering agency before investing significant time in a grant application.

Contact

For questions, corrections, or feedback, email hello@plaingrants.com.

We welcome:

  • Questions about our data sources or methodology
  • Reports of outdated or incorrect program information
  • Suggestions for improving the grant discovery experience
  • Media and research inquiries

PlainGrants is published by ", a data intelligence company that builds free, public-interest data portals.