Grants for women-owned businesses 2026: open now, reopening in 2027, and ended

Women own a large share of U.S. businesses[1], yet women-led startups receive a small fraction of venture capital and have historically received smaller loans. Grants help close that gap, but many women's grant lists online still show programs that have closed. We checked every program against its own website on 24 September 2026: this guide shows which grants are open now, which women's programs reopen in 2027, and which have ended, plus WOSB federal contracting, SBIR, a comparison table, and an application strategy. If you need help writing your application, our grant proposal writing guide covers every section. If you're still deciding between grants and loans, read grants vs. loans for small business first.

Why the funding gap matters, and what grants do differently

Women founders have historically raised far less equity than men and have been approved for smaller loans, and lower personal assets on average mean less collateral for traditional lending.

Grants change this equation structurally. No credit score required. No collateral. No monthly payments. No equity diluted. For women entrepreneurs at the earliest stages, when traditional capital is hardest to access, grants can be the difference between launching and not launching. And unlike crowdfunding, grant money doesn't require a public campaign or a built-in audience. You apply, you win, you deploy capital.

There are many women's business grants, spanning federal agencies, private foundations, corporate programs, and state economic development offices, but they open and close on their own schedules and some quietly end. The challenge is knowing which ones are actually open when you apply.

Open now, reopening, and ended: at a glance

Every program below was checked against its own website on 24 September 2026. Open programs come first, then the federal programs that run year-round, then the women's grants that are closed until their 2027 rounds, and finally the programs that have ended or paused, so you do not waste an application.

Open now: women-focused grants

Amber Grant: three $10,000 grants every month

WomensNet's Amber Grant, named after Amber Wigdahl, awards three $10,000 grants every month, and three monthly winners receive an additional $50,000 grant at year-end. The application is a short description of your business and how you would use the money, with no business plan or financial statements. It costs $15, and applications close on the last day of each month, so you can apply every month.

Eligibility: Women 18 or older whose business is at least 50% women-owned, in the U.S. or Canada. Apply at ambergrantsforwomen.com.

Tory Burch Foundation Fellows: $2,000 education grant, closes November 17, 2026

Each Tory Burch Foundation Fellow receives a $2,000 education grant and a year of training, mentorship and community. It is free to apply. For many fellows the program and network are worth more than the cash.

Eligibility: U.S. businesses at least 51% women-owned with $75,000 or more in annual revenue. Applications close November 17, 2026. Apply at toryburchfoundation.org.

Galaxy Grants: $2,500, closes October 31, 2026

Galaxy Grants, run by the nonprofit Hidden Star, awards grants to women and minority business owners throughout the year. The current grant is $2,500, applications close October 31, 2026, and applying is free and takes about a minute. Aspiring, new and established businesses can apply. Apply at galaxyofstars.org.

YippityDoo Big Idea Grant and HerRise MicroGrant: $1,000 every month

Two smaller monthly grants are worth a standing application. The YippityDoo Big Idea Grant awards $1,000 each month to a for-profit women-owned business ($15 fee; yippitydoo.com). The HerRise MicroGrant from the Yva Jourdan Foundation awards $1,000 a month to businesses at least 51% women-owned with under $1 million in revenue, with priority for women of color ($15 fee, deadline the last day of each month; confirm current terms at hersuitespot.com).

Open now: grants for any small business (women eligible)

Verizon Small Business Digital Ready: $10,000, 10 grants a month

Verizon's Digital Ready grants, administered by LISC, pay $10,000 to 10 small businesses a month, reviewed monthly through December 2026. You must be a U.S. for-profit business with an owner 18 or older and complete two Digital Ready courses or events in 2026 first. It is free. Apply at digitalready.verizonwireless.com.

NASE Growth Grants: up to $4,000, reviewed quarterly

The National Association for the Self-Employed awards Growth Grants of up to $4,000 to members, reviewed quarterly. Membership costs $120 a year, and monthly members wait 90 days before applying. It suits solo founders and micro-businesses. Apply at nase.org.

Smaller open grants

The Freed Fellowship awards $500 each month, and fellows are considered for an extra $2,500 ($19 fee; freedfellowship.com). The Skip $10,000 Grant closes October 2, 2026; Skip is a lead-generation platform, so expect marketing email (helloskip.com). IFundWomen runs a Universal Funding and Grant Application that matches your profile to sponsor-funded grant rounds; amounts and eligibility vary by round (ifundwomen.com).

Halstead Grant: $7,500 for emerging silver jewelry artists

For jewelry businesses, the Halstead Grant awards $7,500 in cash plus $1,000 in merchandise to an emerging silver jewelry artist each year. It is open to artists of any gender, the application is a set of business questions plus a portfolio, and the deadline is May 1. Apply at grant.halsteadbead.com.

Federal programs: contracting, R&D and free help

WOSB and EDWOSB federal contracting: sole-source awards up to $5.5 million

The Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) program is a contracting program, not a grant, but it can be worth far more. Certified WOSBs can receive sole-source federal contracts of up to $5.5 million, or $8.5 million for manufacturing, without competitive bidding[2][3]. Federal law sets a goal of awarding 5% of federal contracting dollars to women-owned small businesses[4], so agencies look for certified suppliers.

Economically Disadvantaged WOSB (EDWOSB): Women owners with personal net worth under $850,000 (excluding their stake in the business and their home equity), average adjusted gross income of $400,000 or less, and personal assets of $6.5 million or less qualify for EDWOSB set-asides in additional industries.

How to get certified: Certification is free through SBA at certifications.sba.gov, or through one of SBA's approved third-party certifiers (WBENC, NWBOC, USWCC and the El Paso Hispanic Chamber). Self-certification ended in 2020.

SBIR and STTR: Phase I up to $323,090, Phase II up to $2,153,927

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs fund R&D at U.S. small businesses through 11 federal agencies, with no equity taken. At most agencies Phase I pays up to $323,090 and Phase II up to $2,153,927. Both programs lapsed from October 2025 until Congress reauthorized them on April 13, 2026, through 2031. NSF, NIH, DOE and DoD all run outreach to women in STEM, and NSF's I-Corps is a common on-ramp. See our federal grants for startups guide.

Eligibility: For-profit U.S. small business with 500 or fewer employees; the principal investigator must be primarily employed by the company. No revenue required. Search topics at sbir.gov.

SBA Women's Business Centers: free advice and local grant leads

SBA funds a national network of more than 130 Women's Business Centers[5]. They do not make large grants, but they offer free consulting and grant-writing help, know about local and state programs, connect you to SBA lenders, and some host pitch competitions. Find your nearest center at SBA.gov.

USDA Rural Development

USDA's Rural Business Development Grants go to public bodies, nonprofits and tribes, which then fund training and support for rural small businesses, so ask your local economic development office or USDA state office which ones serve your area. REAP renewable-energy grants are paused in 2026 while USDA rewrites the rule, and so are new REAP loan-guarantee applications. See our USDA grants guide.

Closed now: reopening in 2027, and ended

Full comparison table

How to get WOSB certified: step-by-step

Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) certification is one of the highest-leverage steps a women-owned business can take. It unlocks federal sole-source contracts worth millions and strengthens every grant application you submit as third-party proof of ownership.

Step 1: Verify eligibility

Before starting the application, confirm your business meets all criteria: at least 51% unconditionally and directly owned by one or more women who are U.S. citizens; women must hold the highest officer position (CEO, President, Managing Member); women must control day-to-day business decisions; the business must qualify as a small business under SBA size standards for your primary NAICS code (check the SBA size standards tool at SBA.gov).

Step 2: Register in SAM.gov

All federal contractors must be registered in SAM.gov (System for Award Management). Registration is free and takes 1-2 hours. You'll need your EIN, banking information for EFT payments, and NAICS codes. SAM.gov registration must be active before you can receive WOSB certification or federal contracts. Registration renews annually.

Step 3: Apply through SBA's certification portal (free)

Go to certifications.sba.gov and create an account. Required documents include: articles of organization or incorporation, operating agreement or bylaws, proof of U.S. citizenship for all women owners (passport or birth certificate), two most recent personal tax returns for all owners with 20%+ stake, two most recent business tax returns, bank statements (3 months), and any stock certificates or membership certificates showing ownership percentages.

Step 4: Consider WBENC third-party certification

WBENC is one of SBA's approved third-party certifiers, and its certification is also recognized by large companies' supplier diversity programs[6]. It charges a fee that depends on revenue. If your target customers include large corporations, WBENC certification can open doors that SBA certification alone does not.

Step 5: Maintain certification

SBA examines certified WOSBs every three years, and you must report any change in ownership or control right away. WBENC certification renews annually. Keep your SAM.gov registration current, expired registrations block you from receiving federal contracts.

Application strategy: how to win more grants

Start with the Amber Grant this month. Seriously. If you've never applied for a grant, do it today. It takes 15 minutes and costs $15. Even if you don't win, you'll have written your first grant narrative, a skill that compounds with every application. Apply monthly as a baseline practice.

Apply to five or more programs simultaneously. Monthly microgrants draw thousands of applicants, while well-matched federal programs fund a much larger share, so you need volume. A women entrepreneur applying to 10 programs simultaneously has meaningfully better odds than one applying to a single "perfect" program. The Amber Grant, Galaxy Grants, YippityDoo, Verizon Digital Ready and NASE are all approachable in parallel.

Get WOSB certified now, not later. Even if you're not ready to pursue federal contracts, certification strengthens grant applications (third-party legitimacy) and takes 30-60 days. Start the process while pursuing short-cycle grants. By the time your Amber Grant or Tory Burch applications are reviewed, you'll have your WOSB certification in hand.

Track business finances carefully. Most grants above $10,000 require financial statements or tax returns. If your bookkeeping is messy, you'll spend more time on cleanup than on writing. Getting your finances in order also positions you for SBA loans as a parallel funding strategy. For business expense tracking tools that work for women entrepreneurs, BagEngine reviews business software with a focus on practical tools for small businesses. For the tax implications of grant income, CeoCult's self-employment tax deduction guide covers exactly what you need to know before you receive your first award.

Tell your specific story, not a generic one. Foundation grants (Cartier, Tory Burch) weight the founder's narrative heavily. "I started my business to help my community" is too vague. "I started my business after discovering that 40% of elderly women in rural Idaho couldn't access fresh produce within 10 miles" is a story. Specificity, personal detail, and a clear causal line from your background to your business to the community impact you create wins grants.

Leverage your WBC relationship. Your nearest SBA Women's Business Center advisor can review your grant applications before submission, alert you to new programs (many WBC-administered grants are not publicly listed), and connect you to women who've won the grants you're targeting. This is a free resource paid for by your taxes specifically to help you succeed.

Beyond grants: content creators and other niche programs

If your business involves content creation, media, or digital media production, there are dedicated grant programs worth knowing about. Our grants for content creators guide covers programs specifically targeting women content entrepreneurs, including YouTube Black Voices Fund alumni programs, Spotify creator grants, and TikTok creator programs. These run parallel to the programs above and are not widely known in the women's grants community.

Whichever program you win, decide before the money lands what it is for. For a service business, the spend that compounds is usually the one that brings in customers on its own: a website that shows your services and lets people book a time without calling.

Bottom line

The funding gap for women entrepreneurs is real, but so are the tools available to close it. The programs on this list range from $1,000 monthly grants to multimillion-dollar federal contracts. The strategy is the same whichever you target: apply to several at once, start with the open, easy entry points (Amber Grant, Galaxy Grants, YippityDoo) while preparing for the larger ones (Tory Burch, SBIR, and Cartier when it reopens), get WOSB certified, and treat grant-seeking as an ongoing business development activity rather than a one-time event.

For grant writing help, our proposal writing guide covers every section reviewers evaluate, with strong and weak examples. For the full landscape of small business funding beyond women-specific programs, see our best small business grants in 2026 roundup. And if you're weighing debt financing alongside grants, our grants vs. loans comparison gives you the decision framework.

1. U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Business Survey, Women-Owned Businesses, census.gov. ↩
2. Federal Acquisition Regulation 19.1506, WOSB sole-source thresholds, acquisition.gov. ↩
3. U.S. Small Business Administration, Women-Owned Small Business Federal Contract Program, sba.gov. ↩
4. 15 U.S.C. 644(g), government-wide small business contracting goals (5% for women-owned small businesses). ↩
5. U.S. Small Business Administration, Local Assistance, Women's Business Centers Directory, sba.gov. ↩
6. Women's Business Enterprise National Council, Certification, Corporate Supplier Diversity Network, wbenc.org. ↩