Washington government bids for small agencies

Where Washington, its cities and counties post their bids, how to register, and the open ones that suit a small web, software, video or marketing agency right now.

Open right now

No Washington bids on our vetted list at the moment. New ones turn up most weeks; the free Monday email brings the best five.

Where Washington posts its bids

State bids: Washington's Electronic Business Solution (WEBS) bid calendar. State agencies must post goods and services solicitations in WEBS, and some other public agencies post there too. The bid calendar shows all current opportunities without a login.
Register as a vendor: Washington's Electronic Business Solution (WEBS). Businesses that want state contracts must register in WEBS. You get email notices of bids and awards for the commodity codes you choose.
Technology buying: WaTech (Washington Technology Solutions) - How to become a vendor. WaTech buys technology through RFPs, RFQs and RFQQs, and through master contracts. It asks potential vendors to register in WEBS to see bid postings and get bid notices.
Small business certification: Office of Minority and Women's Business Enterprises (OMWBE) Certification. OMWBE certifies minority-, women- and veteran-owned businesses under state and federal programs so they can pursue contracting opportunities with Washington State. Certification is free.
Free bid coaching: Washington APEX Accelerator: the state's APEX Accelerator helps small businesses with registrations and proposals at no cost.

Big city, county and agency buyers

Each of these runs its own bid page, and most want you registered in their system too.

Buyer	Bid page	Runs on
City of Seattle	Open bids	OpenGov Procurement
King County	Open bids	Oracle Cloud E-Procurement Supplier Portal
City of Tacoma	Open bids	Own website
Snohomish County	Open bids	ProcureWare
Sound Transit	Open bids	Biddingo

Good to know

OMWBE certification is free for both state and federal programs. OMWBE waived its certification and renewal fees indefinitely. source
State agencies must post goods and services solicitations in WEBS, but not all Washington public agencies are required to post there. source
King County accepts bids and proposals only from suppliers registered in its E-Procurement Supplier Portal. source
Seattle replaced its Online Business Directory with a Procurement Portal. Registering there puts you on the list of registered vendors that City departments can do business with. source

Before you bid

Registering takes time, so do it before you find the perfect bid: how to get registered, and how to write a capability statement (with a free template).