Last updated: 2026-05-09

GrantProbe Research

GrantProbe publishes original research on federal grant access reality. Our datasets combine our first-party grant database with grants.gov public award data and applicant attestation surveys.

Published research

2026-05-09 · published

Federal Grant Reality 2026: Approval Rate, Median Award, and Time-to-Decision Across 50 Programs (Why Most Founders Never Apply, And Why That's Wrong)

Cross-agency timeline and approval-rate audit covering 50 active federal grant programs across 10 agencies (SBA, USDA, HUD, NIH, DOE, ED, NSF, EPA, DOL, VA). Cross-references grants.gov + USAspending + GAO + SBIR.gov + Candid. Headline: median time-to-decision is 11 months across the cohort with per-agency variance from 3-6 (SBIR) to 14+ (USDA-VAPG).

Dataset: 50 programs Primary sources: grants.gov, SBIR.gov, SBA Office of Advocacy, USAspending.gov, GAO, CBO, USDA Rural Development, NIH RePORT, NSF NCSES, Candid Foundation Center

How we work

Every study ships with full methodology disclosure: dataset size, time range, exclusions, and source attribution. Surveys disclose sample size, recruitment platform, and demographic stratification. We publish raw data alongside the analysis under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license so researchers, journalists, and operators can verify our claims and build on the work.

We do not run sponsored research, paid placements, or vendor-funded studies. Every study is funded directly by GrantProbe as part of its independent editorial mission.

Press and citations

Journalists, researchers, and operators are welcome to cite our findings under CC-BY 4.0 with attribution. For interviews, exclusive embargoed access, or additional data cuts, contact [email protected].

Each study includes a press kit at its /press/ subpage with quotable findings, downloadable charts, and methodology summaries. Embargo requests honored when received at least 72 hours before scheduled publication.

All GrantProbe research is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). Attribution required: link to the study URL or to grantprobe.com/research/.