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    How to Find Government Tenders

    By James Whitfield, Procurement Analyst at JorpexUpdated: 2026-02-23

    Finding government tenders is the first step to winning public contracts. Governments publish procurement opportunities on official portals, but these are scattered across dozens of platforms with different search interfaces, languages, and classification systems. This guide covers where to look, how to search, and how to automate the process.

    Key takeaway

    Government tenders are published on official procurement portals: TED for EU contracts above €143K (700,000+ notices/year), SAM.gov for US federal opportunities ($700B+/year), Contracts Finder for UK contracts, and 50+ national portals worldwide. To find tenders, search these portals using industry classification codes (CPV codes in Europe, NAICS codes in the US), geographic filters, and keywords. The main challenge is that tenders are scattered across dozens of portals with different interfaces, languages, and classification systems. Automated monitoring tools like Jorpex scan all portals simultaneously and deliver matched opportunities to Slack or email, replacing 5–10 hours/week of manual portal-checking.

    Major government procurement portals by region
    RegionPortalAnnual NoticesThreshold
    EU (all members)TED700,000+€143K services / €5.5M works
    United StatesSAM.gov100,000+$250K (simplified)
    United KingdomContracts Finder40,000+No minimum
    United KingdomFind a Tender15,000+£139K+ (above threshold)
    FranceBOAMP90,000+Varies by authority
    GermanyDTVP / Vergabe60,000+Varies by authority
    NetherlandsTenderNed25,000+Varies by authority
    CanadaCanadaBuys30,000+CAD $25K+

    Where are government tenders published?

    Government tenders are published on official procurement portals. In the EU, contracts above directive thresholds appear on TED (Tenders Electronic Daily). In the US, federal opportunities are listed on SAM.gov. The UK uses Contracts Finder (below threshold) and Find a Tender (above threshold). Most countries have their own national portals: BOAMP (France), DTVP (Germany), TenderNed (Netherlands), MERX (Canada), AusTender (Australia), and many more. Sub-threshold contracts—often the majority by volume—appear only on national portals.

    How to search for tenders manually

    Each portal has its own search interface. TED supports CPV codes and NUTS regions. SAM.gov uses NAICS codes and keyword search. National portals vary in sophistication. To search manually, visit each relevant portal, enter your keywords and filters, and review the results. Repeat daily across every portal you want to monitor. This process typically takes 5–10 hours per week for comprehensive coverage.

    Common mistakes when searching for tenders

    Searching too few portals is the most common mistake—you miss sub-threshold opportunities on national portals if you only check TED or SAM.gov. Using overly narrow keywords excludes relevant tenders described with different terminology. Searching inconsistently (skipping days, forgetting portals) creates gaps. Not tracking deadlines leads to missed submission windows. Two additional mistakes are commonly overlooked. First, ignoring framework agreements: frameworks are multi-year procurement vehicles (up to 4 years in the EU under Directive 2014/24/EU) that establish pre-approved supplier panels. Winning a framework position gives you access to call-off contracts without full re-competition—but many teams skip framework notices because they don’t lead to an immediate contract. Second, not monitoring award notices: even when you don’t bid, tracking who wins contracts in your sector reveals pricing benchmarks, incumbent suppliers, and buyer preferences. TED publishes contract award notices for every above-threshold EU procurement, and SAM.gov publishes award information for US federal contracts—both are free intelligence that many teams ignore.

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    Automating tender discovery

    Automated tender monitoring solves every problem with manual search. Services like Jorpex continuously monitor 50+ procurement portals and apply your keyword, region, and value filters. Matching tenders are delivered to Slack or email in real time. You get comprehensive coverage across all portals, consistent monitoring with no gaps, and zero manual search time.

    Getting started with Jorpex

    Sign up, describe what your company does using keywords, select your target regions and contract-value range, connect Slack, and you’re done. Jorpex handles the rest—monitoring 50+ sources 24/7 and delivering matching tenders to your team. No procurement expertise or classification code knowledge required.

    Frequently asked questions

    Where can I find public tenders?

    Public tenders are published on official procurement portals: TED for EU, SAM.gov for US federal, and national portals for each country. Jorpex monitors 50+ of these sources automatically.

    How do I search for government contracts?

    Search government procurement portals using keywords, industry codes (CPV/NAICS), and region filters. Or use automated monitoring like Jorpex to have matching tenders delivered to Slack.

    Is there a single website for all government tenders?

    No. Tenders are published across dozens of portals worldwide. Aggregation services like Jorpex combine 50+ sources into a single filtered feed.

    How often are new government tenders published?

    New tenders are published daily across all major portals. TED alone publishes over 2,000 notices per day. Automated monitoring ensures you see new opportunities as they appear.

    What are the biggest government procurement portals worldwide?

    The largest portals by volume include TED (EU, 700,000+ notices/year), SAM.gov (US federal, 100,000+ opportunities), GeBIZ (Singapore), CompraNet (Mexico), Korea ON-line E-Procurement System (KONEPS, South Korea), and the Government e-Marketplace (GeM, India). Jorpex monitors 50+ portals spanning Europe, North America, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America.

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    Related resources

    Glossary

    What Is a Tender?

    A tender is a formal, structured invitation issued by a buying organisation — most commonly a government agency or public body — asking suppliers to submit competitive offers for the supply of goods, delivery of services, or execution of works. Tendering is the backbone of public procurement worldwide, ensuring that taxpayer money is spent transparently, competitively, and at the best available value. Understanding what a tender is, how the process works, and where tenders are published is the essential first step for any company looking to win public sector contracts.

    Glossary

    TED — Tenders Electronic Daily

    Tenders Electronic Daily (TED) is the official online platform of the European Union for publishing public procurement notices above the [[glossary/eu-procurement-thresholds-2026|EU procurement thresholds]]. Operated by the {{https://simap.ted.europa.eu|Publications Office of the European Union (SIMAP)}}, TED serves as the digital supplement to the Official Journal of the European Union (OJ S) and is the single most important source of cross-border tender opportunities in Europe. Every year, more than 700,000 contract notices representing over €670 billion in public spending appear on {{https://ted.europa.eu|TED}}, covering everything from IT services and infrastructure projects to medical supplies and consulting engagements. For suppliers pursuing European public sector work, understanding how TED operates, what it publishes, and how to search it efficiently is the foundation of any serious bid strategy.

    Glossary

    SAM.gov — System for Award Management

    {{https://sam.gov|SAM.gov}} (System for Award Management) is the US federal government’s single official platform for entity registration, contract opportunity discovery, federal award tracking, and exclusion management. Any company or organisation that wants to sell goods or services to a federal agency must register in SAM.gov before it can receive a contract award. The system also serves as the public-facing portal where contracting officers publish solicitations, pre-solicitations, and special notices—making it the most important [[glossary/e-procurement|e-procurement]] hub for [[use-cases/government-contractors|government contractors]] in the United States. SAM.gov consolidates what were once separate legacy systems—FedBizOpps (FBO), the Central Contractor Registration (CCR), EPLS, and ORCA—into a single modernised interface maintained by the General Services Administration (GSA). Understanding how SAM.gov works is essential for any firm pursuing US federal [[glossary/what-is-a-tender|tenders]], whether you are a large defence prime or a [[use-cases/small-business|small business]] entering the market for the first time.

    Sources

    National Procurement Portals: The Complete Guide to Government Tender Sources Worldwide

    Every country that spends public money operates at least one national procurement portal where government buyers publish [[glossary/what-is-a-tender|tender]] opportunities. These portals are distinct from supranational databases like [[sources/ted|TED]] or [[sources/sam-gov|SAM.gov]] — they publish the below-threshold, domestic contracts that represent the majority of government spending worldwide. According to the {{https://www.oecd.org/en/topics/public-procurement.html|OECD}}, public procurement accounts for 12–20% of GDP across developed economies, yet supranational portals capture only 30–40% of that spend by value. The remaining 60–70% lives exclusively on national portals. Jorpex monitors 50+ of these portals and delivers AI-matched opportunities to Slack, email, or Microsoft Teams — giving your team access to the full breadth of global public procurement from a single notification feed.

    Further reading