Contract Search
Search federal, state, local, and education opportunities in one place, scored against your company.
Contract Search puts federal, state, local, and education opportunities in one place. CLEATUS scores every result against your Capture Profile, so the strongest fits are easy to see. CLEATUS also breaks down active solicitations before you open them, so the analysis is ready when you are.
Open it from the sidebar at Contracts > Search.
What you can search
- Federal opportunities from SAM.gov (the System for Award Management).
- State & Local opportunities from more than 50,000 state, local, and education sources.
- DIBBS solicitations from the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) Internet Bid Board System. See Researching a Part for DIBBS.
- Grants from Grants.gov and partner programs.
- SBIR / STTR (Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer) solicitations.
- Forecasts and pre-forecasts of upcoming opportunities.
- Subcontracts: scopes of work that CLEATUS identifies inside large prime contracts.
- Vehicles: contract vehicles such as IDIQ (indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity) contracts, GWACs (governmentwide acquisition contracts), BPAs (blanket purchase agreements), and schedules.
- Awarded contracts, for market research.
How search works
Type a keyword, a solicitation number, or a short description, then press Enter. The artificial intelligence (AI) reads your query and decides how to search it. Purple chips above the results show what it searched: Similarity Search, Keywords, or Solicitation #.
CLEATUS matches exact keywords and the meaning of your words in one ranked list. A short phrase also finds related work that uses different wording.
By default, the page shows active, published solicitations for prime contracts. Forecasts and subcontracts stay hidden until you turn them on with All Forecasts or Subcontracts.
Sort the results
Use Sort by to order the results:
| Option | What it does |
|---|---|
| Relevance | Ranks results by Match Quality against your company. The default. |
| Similarity | Ranks results by how close they are to your query. |
| Closest Deadline | Shows the soonest response deadlines first. |
| Furthest Deadline | Shows the latest response deadlines first. |
| Recently Posted / Oldest Posted | Orders results by the date the agency posted them. |
| Recently Added | Shows the opportunities that CLEATUS found most recently. |
When you type a query, CLEATUS ranks by Similarity, and the other options are not available.
Quick filters
The Quick Filters row scopes your results in one click.
| Quick filter | Shows |
|---|---|
| Active | Opportunities that are still open. |
| Awarded | Awarded contracts. |
| Federal | Federal opportunities. |
| State & Local | State, local, and education opportunities. |
| DIBBS | DLA spare-parts solicitations. |
| Grant | Grant opportunities. |
| SBIR / STTR | Research and technology transfer solicitations. |
| All Forecasts | Forecasts and pre-forecasts of upcoming work. |
| Subcontracts | Subcontract scopes in addition to primes. |
| Vehicles | Contract vehicles only. This filter cannot combine with others. |
| My Alerts | One of your saved Custom Alerts, applied to the page. |
Filters
Click Edit Filters to open the filter panel. Click Hide Filters to close it.
| Group | Filters |
|---|---|
| Content Filters | Keywords, Solicitation Number, NAICS Codes, FSC/PSC Code, and Notice Type. |
| Government & Location | Agency, Department, Set Aside Programs, Locations, States, and Countries. |
| Contract Source | Federal, State & Local, DIBBS, Grant, and SBIR / STTR. |
| Contract Type | Primes, Subs, Products, and Services. |
| Competition | Usually Single-Bid, Fewer Bidders, Moderate Competition, and Crowded Field. |
| Contract Status | Active, Awarded, Forecasts, Pre-Forecasts, Contract Value, and Awarded Amount. |
| Display Options | Hide Pipeline, Hide Dismissed, and Hide First Article. |
| Dates | Due date and posted date, as a preset or a custom range. |
NAICS is the North American Industry Classification System. FSC/PSC is the Federal Supply Class or Product Service Code.
Keywords support include and exclude logic, exact matches, and AND or OR. Locations finds opportunities by a real place or a named government facility. Competition uses the bidder counts on past federal awards for the opportunity's NAICS code.
Results
Each result card shows the source, agency, location, NAICS code, notice type, set-aside, posted date, and response deadline. Badges tell you what kind of opportunity it is, for example Vehicle, Subcontract, or DIBBS. A violet SIGNAL badge marks work that is not a posted solicitation yet: a subcontract scope, a forecast, or a predicted recompete.
Match Quality
Every card shows a Match Quality score from 0 to 100. The score measures how well the opportunity fits your capabilities, past work, and preferences.
| Score | Label |
|---|---|
| 90 to 100 | Excellent |
| 70 to 89 | Strong |
| 50 to 69 | Fair |
| 0 to 49 | Low |
Click the score to see the Pros and Cons behind it.
Act on a result
- Click Add to Pipeline to start a pursuit. The button then reads View in Pipeline.
- Click Dismiss (the x icon) to rule out a contract. A message gives you a few seconds to Undo. A dismissed contract shows a DISMISSED badge and a Restore button.
- Click View Source to open the original government notice.
- Select several results. Then click Dismiss or Add to pipeline in the action bar.
- Click the table icon beside Sort by to switch between card view and table view.
- Click Share (the share icon) to copy a link to your search.
Dismissed contracts also stop showing up in your Custom Alert emails. Contracts in your pipeline cannot be dismissed.
Custom Alerts
Click Save to save your query and filters as a Custom Alert. CLEATUS then emails you when new matching contracts are published. Manage your alerts in Contracts > Custom Alerts. On that page, Create with AI builds an alert from a plain-English description. See Saving a Search and Creating Alerts.
If your plan does not include Custom Alerts, the sidebar shows a lock icon beside it.
Contract details
Click a result to open the contract. The page has these tabs:
- General Information: the overview, key facts, timeline, documents, and market data.
- Amendments: a dated history of every notice, with deadline changes called out. This tab shows only when the solicitation has history.
- Q&A: the questions that bidders asked and the answers that the agency released, with search and an Answered or Unanswered view. This tab shows only when CLEATUS finds published questions.
- Contract Breakdown: the solicitation organized into Uniform Contract Format (UCF) sections.
- Requirements: a checklist of every requirement, each with its source quote.
- Document Viewer: every document from the solicitation package.
The General Information tab also shows these items when CLEATUS has the data:
- The match analysis for your company, with strengths and considerations.
- The Incumbent on a recompete, linked to the previous award and the contractor profile.
- The Small Business Administration (SBA) size standard under the NAICS code.
- A line under the NAICS code that tells you how many bidders similar work usually draws.
- Competition: companies that won similar awarded contracts, ranked by how close the match is.
- Interested Companies: companies that expressed interest in this opportunity.
- Similar contracts to compare against.
Use Copy Public Link to share the contract with someone who does not have a CLEATUS account. See Reading a Contract Page.
Contract Breakdown
CLEATUS breaks down active solicitations automatically, in the background. You do not have to add the contract to your pipeline first. The AI reads the documents in the solicitation package. It then sorts the content into UCF sections A to M. The sections run from A - Solicitation/Contract Form to M - Evaluation Factors for Award. This works for federal, state, and local solicitations.
Every fact in the breakdown has a citation. Click a citation to open the source passage in the document viewer. When the solicitation changes, CLEATUS refreshes the breakdown.
If a contract is not broken down yet, click Generate with AI. If a contract has no documents, CLEATUS cannot build a breakdown.
Add to your pipeline
Click Add to Pipeline to make the contract a pursuit. Your team can then track it, assign it, and build the response in the Proposal Writer. See Adding a Contract to Your Pipeline.
You can also ask the CLEATUS agent about the contract that you have open. See Using GovCon Copilot.
Frequently asked questions
What is Contract Search?
Contract Search finds federal, state, local, and education opportunities in one place. It also covers DIBBS (the Defense Logistics Agency Internet Bid Board System), grants, SBIR and STTR solicitations, forecasts, subcontracts, and contract vehicles. SBIR and STTR are the Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs. Open it from the sidebar at Contracts > Search.
How do I run a basic search?
Type a keyword, a solicitation number, or a short description in the search bar. Then press Enter. The artificial intelligence (AI) reads your query and decides how to search it. Purple chips above the results show what it searched.
Why do I not see forecasts or subcontracts?
By default, Contract Search shows active, published solicitations for prime contracts. To see forecasts, click All Forecasts in the Quick Filters row. To see subcontracts, click Subcontracts.
What does Match Quality mean?
Match Quality is a score from 0 to 100 on every result. It measures how well the opportunity fits your capabilities, past work, and preferences. Scores of 90 and higher read Excellent, 70 to 89 Strong, 50 to 69 Fair, and below 50 Low. Click the score to see the pros and cons behind it.
How do I change the sort order?
Click Sort by above the results. Choose Relevance, Closest Deadline, Furthest Deadline, Recently Posted, Oldest Posted, or Recently Added. Relevance ranks by Match Quality and is the default. When you type a query, CLEATUS ranks the results by Similarity to your query.
Which filters can I use?
Click Edit Filters to open the filter panel. You can filter by these items:
- Keywords, solicitation number, NAICS (North American Industry Classification System) codes, FSC/PSC (Federal Supply Class or Product Service Code), and notice type.
- Agency, department, set-aside program, location, state, and country.
- Contract source, primes or subcontracts, and products or services.
- Competition level, contract status, contract value, and awarded amount.
- Due date and posted date.
How do I rule out a contract?
Click Dismiss (the x icon) on the result. A message gives you a few seconds to Undo. To bring a contract back later, click Restore. To hide dismissed contracts, turn on Hide Dismissed under Display Options in the filter panel.
Can I see results in a table?
Yes. Click the table icon beside Sort by. CLEATUS remembers your choice on every list.
Can I save a search and get alerts?
Yes. Click Save above the results and name the search. The search becomes a Custom Alert in Contracts > Custom Alerts. CLEATUS then emails you when new matching contracts are published. You can also click Create with AI on the Custom Alerts page and describe the contracts you want. Your plan sets how many searches you can save.
How do I write a proposal for a contract?
Open the contract and find the build card, for example Build Proposal or Build Quote. Click Start Building. If the contract is not in your pipeline yet, CLEATUS asks you to add it first.
What if I cannot find a contract?
Import it. Go to Contracts > Imported Contracts and click Import Contract. Upload the documents, or click Enter details manually. Only your company can see a contract that you import. See Importing a Contract.
How do I find small business opportunities only?
Use the Set Aside Programs filter. Examples are Small Business, WOSB (Women-Owned Small Business), 8(a), HUBZone (Historically Underutilized Business Zone), and SDVOSB (Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business). On a contract page, the Small Business Administration (SBA) size standard shows under the NAICS code. It tells you the cap for small business status on that work.
What is Contract Breakdown?
Contract Breakdown organizes a solicitation into Uniform Contract Format (UCF) sections A to M. It covers the scope of work, pricing, deliverables, clauses, instructions, and evaluation factors. CLEATUS builds it automatically for active solicitations, before you open them. Every fact has a citation. Click a citation to open the source passage in the document viewer.
If a contract is not broken down yet, open the Contract Breakdown tab and click Generate with AI. If a contract has no documents, the breakdown is not available.
Where can I see amendments?
Open the Amendments tab on the contract page. It shows the solicitation history as a dated feed, newest first. The summary card shows Amendments, Net deadline shift, and Responses due. Click Show before and after on an entry to see the old and new values. Use Compare any two versions to put two revisions side by side.
Where can I see the questions and answers for a solicitation?
Open the Q&A tab on the contract page or on the pursuit. It lists the questions that bidders asked and the answers that the agency released, from the Q&A documents and the bid portal. Search by keyword, and switch between Answered and Unanswered. The tab shows only when CLEATUS finds published questions. See Reading a Contract Page.
What is the Requirements tab?
The Requirements tab turns the solicitation documents into a checklist. Each requirement links to the source quote that it came from. Click Extract requirements when the documents are ready.
How do I see who I am competing against?
Open the General Information tab on the contract page. The Competition card lists companies that won similar awarded contracts. The Interested Companies card lists companies that expressed interest in this opportunity. On a recompete, the Incumbent shows who holds the work today.
What happens when I add a contract to my Pipeline?
CLEATUS creates a pursuit for the contract in the Triage column of your pipeline. On the pursuit, your team tracks tasks, notes, and activity, and builds the response in the Proposal Writer. The Contract Breakdown and requirements carry over from the contract page.
How fresh is the data?
CLEATUS updates its contract database several times a day.
Still stuck? Talk to our team