| State economic development agency | Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) |
| State SBIR/STTR phase-zero match | Launch Minnesota Innovation Grants (includes SBIR/STTR-aligned awards) |
| Formal small-business set-aside program | Federal-only |
| Signature grant programs cataloged | 2 programs |
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) is the state's lead economic-development agency. Major programs include the Minnesota Job Creation Fund, the Minnesota Investment Fund (MIF), the Job Skills Partnership (JSP) training grants, the Small Business Loan Guarantee Program, and the Launch Minnesota Innovation Grants (a more recent technology commercialization program).
Primary site: Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED)
Performance-based grant for companies making capital investment and creating qualifying full-time jobs in Minnesota. Awards conditional on meeting job-creation and capital-investment milestones.
State financing tool awarded to local governments on behalf of business projects. Used for equipment, working capital, real estate, or infrastructure supporting expansion/relocation.
The state primarily relies on federal small-business certifications (SBA 8(a), HUBZone, WOSB/EDWOSB, SDVOSB/VOSB) for set-aside eligibility. State agency procurement may apply these certifications where federal funds pass through, but no state-administered formal small-business set-aside program operates beyond the standard MBE/WBE/DBE registries.
Launch Minnesota provides Innovation Grants supporting research, product development, and SBIR/STTR proposal preparation for Minnesota tech-driven startups. Functions as a phase-zero grant alongside federal SBIR/STTR pipeline.
Match amount: Up to $35,000 per company (cycle-dependent)
Program page: Launch Minnesota Innovation Grants (includes SBIR/STTR-aligned awards)
Minnesota state-administered grant programs typically use program-specific application portals on individual agency sites rather than a single statewide grants portal. Federal pass-through funds (HUD CDBG, EDA, USDA Rural Development) route through Grants.gov for the federal half, then through the state sub-recipient process. Always confirm the application URL on the agency page for the specific program before drafting.
Federal grants reach businesses in Minnesota through several pass-through channels: HUD CDBG-State dollars administered by Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) that sub-grant to localities for economic development; EDA public-works and economic-adjustment grants flowing through regional EDA offices; USDA Rural Development Business and Industry loan guarantees and Rural Business Development Grants for rural-county operations; and SBA programs (7(a), 504, Microloan, CDFI) accessed via local lenders. Business eligibility for each channel depends on entity size, location (rural vs urban), and use-of-funds.
CDBG state administrator: Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) (CDBG-state administrator)
EDA regional contact: US EDA regional office
State programs cover one half of the picture. Federal grants flow through 26 federal agencies via Grants.gov; the eligibility floor often overlaps with state programs. Use the GrantProbe Grant Finder to filter federal grants by entity type, sector, and award size, and read our federal grants for startups primer for the framework behind every match.
Minnesota's economic development agency administers several grant and incentive programs for businesses, but most flagship programs require either an existing operation, a defined hiring commitment, or capital investment milestones. Pure pre-revenue startups should usually pair federal SBIR/STTR (where R&D-eligible) with state innovation match programs (if available) and CDFI lending. See the signature programs section above for the named Minnesota programs and their eligibility thresholds.
Yes. Minnesota operates Launch Minnesota Innovation Grants (includes SBIR/STTR-aligned awards), which provides Up to $35,000 per company (cycle-dependent) to small businesses receiving federal SBIR/STTR awards. See the SBIR/STTR match section above for eligibility, application timing, and program contact.
The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program flows from HUD to Minnesota's state agency (Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) (CDBG-state administrator)), which sub-grants to localities. Businesses do not apply directly to the state for CDBG dollars; they apply to participating cities or counties for economic development sub-awards (job creation, blight remediation, low-to-moderate-income workforce). Contact your local economic development office for current sub-awards.
Minnesota uses Grants.gov + program-specific portals. See the application portal section above for the portal URL and pattern. Most state-administered programs require pre-registration with a state vendor identification number before an application can be submitted.