FBO.gov Is Now SAM.gov — Here’s What Changed

If you’re looking for FBO.gov, it no longer exists. Federal Business Opportunities (FedBizOpps) — the portal where federal agencies posted contract opportunities for over 15 years — was merged into SAM.gov in November 2019.

All federal contract opportunities that used to be on FBO.gov are now published on SAM.gov. Nothing was lost in the transition — the data moved, the URL didn’t.

Why FBO.gov Was Shut Down

GSA consolidated multiple federal procurement systems into a single platform at SAM.gov. Before the merger, contractors had to juggle separate websites for entity registration (SAM), contract opportunities (FBO.gov), past performance (PPIRS), wage determinations (WDOL), and more. The goal was to put everything under one roof.

The consolidation was the right idea. The execution, however, left a lot of contractors frustrated.

The Search Got Worse

FBO.gov wasn’t perfect, but its search was straightforward — keyword search, filters by agency and NAICS code, and email notifications that mostly worked. When the data moved to SAM.gov, many contractors found the new search experience to be a step backward.

The Professional Services Council — representing over 400 federal contractors — formally complained to GSA about SAM.gov’s usability issues. Common frustrations include no boolean search operators, filters that reset unexpectedly, and unreliable saved search alerts.

As one PSC member put it: “You have forced small businesses to acquire commercial software that costs tens of thousands of dollars for comparable search capabilities.”

Where to Search Federal Contracts Now

SAM.gov remains the authoritative source — every federal contract opportunity is published there. If you need the official record, that’s where it lives.

But you don’t have to use SAM.gov’s interface to search it. Several tools pull from SAM.gov’s official public data and provide a better search experience:

• GovTrove (free / $30/mo) — boolean search, set-aside filtering in plain English, NAICS code filtering, deadline tracking, and a mobile-friendly interface. No account required to start searching.
• GovTribe ($1,350+/year) — full BD platform with competitive intelligence, pipeline management, and vendor profiles. (Comparison)
• GovWin IQ ($15,000+/year) — enterprise-grade market intelligence with analyst-curated data and recompete forecasting.

If you’re a small business that just needs to find and filter active opportunities — the thing FBO.gov used to do — GovTrove is the closest modern equivalent at no cost. You can start by browsing active contracts by set-aside, NAICS code, and agency.