SAM.gov (Contract Opportunities) vs Deltek GovWin IQ
A side-by-side comparison of SAM.gov and GovWin IQ for U.S. contractors — features, pricing, and who each tool best suits. Honest about where each is genuinely stronger.
TL;DR
SAM.gov (Contract Opportunities): SAM.gov is the U.S. government's official portal for federal contract opportunities. It publishes Sources Sought, RFIs, RFPs, RFQs, IFBs and award notices, and is where entity registration (UEI) lives. Free for any contractor to use.
Deltek GovWin IQ: Deltek GovWin IQ is the market-leading federal, state and local procurement intelligence platform. It tracks pre-RFP opportunities, agency budgets, teaming partners and award history, aimed at capture and BD teams that need early pipeline intelligence on government spend.
SAM.gov vs GovWin IQ: side-by-side
| Feature | SAM.gov (Contract Opportunities) | Deltek GovWin IQ |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Government portal | Tender intelligence |
| Origin | USA · GSA (official federal system of record) | USA · Deltek (market leader in federal market intelligence) |
| Primary audience | Any U.S. contractor — free public service | Federal capture and business-development teams |
| Pricing model | Free (taxpayer-funded U.S. government service) | Annual enterprise subscriptions, custom-quoted; positioned as a premium market-intelligence product (commonly five figures per year) |
| Federal contracting focus | Yes — specialist | Yes — specialist |
| Free plan | Yes | No |
| Live SAM.gov feed | Yes | Yes |
| Proposal library | No | No |
| Solicitation parser | No | No |
| AI proposal drafting | No | No |
Where SAM.gov is stronger
- Free, official, authoritative source of federal contract opportunities
- Direct from the contracting officer (no aggregator delay), and the system of record for registration
Where GovWin IQ is stronger
- Industry-leading early-stage pipeline intelligence and pre-RFP opportunity tracking
- Deep agency budget data, teaming-partner mapping and award history across federal/SLED
Best for SAM.gov
Anyone who only needs to view federal notices and submit through the agency portal.
Best for GovWin IQ
Capture, BD and growth teams who need deep, early market-intelligence on federal and SLED spend.
There's also a third option
GovCon — AI proposal writing built for U.S. small businesses
If you're a U.S. company bidding on federal contracts, GovCon is purpose-built for the job — federal contracting specialism, AI drafting, integrated live SAM.gov feed, free plan, and per-seat pricing from $49/mo. No annual enterprise contract required.
FAQs
What's the difference between SAM.gov (Contract Opportunities) and Deltek GovWin IQ?
SAM.gov is government portal for any u.s. contractor — free public service. GovWin IQ is tender intelligence for federal capture and business-development teams. The full feature-by-feature breakdown is in the table on this page.
Which is better for federal contracting — SAM.gov (Contract Opportunities) or Deltek GovWin IQ?
SAM.gov has a specialist federal contracting focus; GovWin IQ is a federal contracting specialist. For U.S. companies bidding on federal contracts, contract vehicles and agency work, the more specialist option is usually the better starting point — but worth weighing against the rest of the comparison table.
Is SAM.gov (Contract Opportunities) cheaper than Deltek GovWin IQ?
SAM.gov's pricing: Free (taxpayer-funded U.S. government service). GovWin IQ's pricing: Annual enterprise subscriptions, custom-quoted; positioned as a premium market-intelligence product (commonly five figures per year). Whichever fits your team's size, contract length, and per-bid economics best is the right answer — both can work out cheaper depending on your situation.
Who should pick SAM.gov (Contract Opportunities)?
Anyone who only needs to view federal notices and submit through the agency portal.
Who should pick Deltek GovWin IQ?
Capture, BD and growth teams who need deep, early market-intelligence on federal and SLED spend.
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