Federal contract awards
Search awarded federal contract records, compare award value and timing, and review one federal contract award in depth.
Click Federal Contract Awards, or open GovTribe, expand the sidebar if it is collapsed, expand Awards, and click Federal Contract Awards.
Federal Contract Awards is available on Launch, Launch Plus, Growth, Growth Plus, and Scale.
Search federal contract awards
For reusable guidance on quotes, required terms, alternatives, exclusions, grouped terms, and choosing between modes, see Choose a search mode and write queries.
- To find awards that mention a support-services phrase, search "program operations support", then add Funding Agency, Award Date, or Potential Value filters.
- To review awards that should include a document-management phrase, search "document management services", then sort by Relevance or Award Date.
- To narrow a facilities review to a known work phrase, search "facility modernization" + repair, then add Place of Performance or NAICS Category filters.
- To find audit-related awarded work, search "financial statement audit", then add Funding Agency or Awarded Vendor filters.
- To explore cybersecurity compliance work without knowing the source wording, search security assessment and cybersecurity compliance support for a federal agency, then add Funding Agency or PSC Category filters.
- To research overseas facility design work, search architect engineering services for overseas military facilities, then add Place of Performance or Award Date filters.
- To find awarded medical logistics work, search home oxygen delivery and medical equipment support for veterans, then add Funding Agency or Place of Performance filters.
- To review disaster-recovery cleanup work, search debris removal and recovery services after storm damage, then sort by Relevance or Potential Value.
Filters and macros
For why some filters can include related records, hierarchy matches, or role-specific relationships, see Filter by related records and hierarchies.
Sort options
When Federal Contract Awards opens without a search query, filters, or explicit sort, GovTribe may use recent activity and popularity signals to decide which awards appear first. Add search text, filters, or a specific sort when you want the order to match your review criteria.
| Name | Direction choices | Example question |
|---|---|---|
| Updated | Oldest First / Newest First | Which award records changed most recently in GovTribe? |
| Award Date | Oldest First / Newest First | Which small-business set-aside awards were made in the last 7 days, newest first? |
| Completion Date | Oldest First / Newest First | Which awards have current completion dates in the next 90 days, soonest first? |
| Dollars Obligated | Least First / Most First | Which delivery orders have the highest obligated dollars? |
| Potential Value | Least First / Most First | Which MAS awards have the highest potential value? |
Actions
Federal Contract Awards has actions for the current result set, individual result cards, and the award detail page after you open one award.
Page actions
These actions apply while you are working from Federal Contract Awards results.
- Save This Search saves the current award result set so you can return to the same awards later.
- View Saved Searches opens saved Federal Contract Awards searches so you can rerun a saved award review.
- Export Search Results exports the current award result set after you narrow it to the awards you want to review outside GovTribe.
- View In Reports opens reporting views for the current award result set so you can compare award counts, values, buyers, awardees, categories, or other rollups.
- Share Search shares the current award result set with another GovTribe user.
- Similar finds records that resemble one selected award result. Use it when an award's buyer, awardee, work description, category, or timing suggests a market pattern you want to explore.
- Create Pursuit opens pursuit choices for one selected award result. Use Add Pursuit to start new capture work from the award. Use Add to Existing Pursuit to connect the award to pursuit work your team already tracks.
Result-level actions
These actions apply after you open one federal contract award detail page. For the full workflow, see Create pursuits from records and Pursuits.
- Create Pursuit starts new capture work from the selected award.
- Add to Existing Pursuit connects the award to pursuit work your team already tracks. The award stays connected to the original record, so your team can return to the source context later.
- Pursuing appears when the selected award is already connected to pursuit work. Use the dropdown when the same award supports another pursuit or when you need to manage the pursuit connection.
Review a federal contract award
Federal contract award types
A Delivery Order is an order issued under an existing indefinite delivery vehicle or other parent contracting instrument. In GovTribe, delivery orders often show hierarchy context so you can review the selected order alongside the parent IDV or vehicle that made the order possible. See the delivery order example in GovTribe.
A Purchase Order is a direct award used to buy specific goods or services. In GovTribe, purchase orders usually read as a focused award record with the buyer, awardee, values, dates, source descriptions, and related activity for that purchase. See the purchase order example in GovTribe.
A BPA Call is an order placed against a Blanket Purchase Agreement. In GovTribe, BPA calls can show the selected call in context with the parent BPA or vehicle so you can trace the relationship between the buying agreement and the specific awarded work. See the BPA call example in GovTribe.
A Definitive Contract is a stand-alone federal contract awarded directly for specific work. In GovTribe, definitive contracts can show the full award review layout without a parent IDV hierarchy when the contract was not issued under a larger ordering instrument. See the definitive contract example in GovTribe.
An Other Transaction Agreement is a federal agreement type often used for research, prototypes, or other work handled outside standard procurement contract structures. In GovTribe, these records use the award detail layout, but some contracting fields may be unavailable when the source record does not include them. See the Other Transaction Agreement example in GovTribe.
Badges and hierarchy
Badges summarize source fields and connected records on the Overview tab. Many badges include a menu that lets you filter GovTribe search by that value. When a badge says Not listed, GovTribe does not have a displayable value for that field on the selected award.
Common award badges include Federal Agency / Funding Federal Agency, Contracting Federal Agency, Awardee, Ultimate Awardee, NAICS Category, PSC Category, Federal Contract Vehicle (Federal contract vehicle attribute), Set Aside Type, Extent Competed, Major Defense Program, Pricing Type, Place of Performance, Solicitation Procedures, Number Of Offers Received, Legislative Mandate, National Interest Action, Research Type, and Primary Consortia Member.
The hierarchy appears when the award has parent IDV and/or vehicle context, especially delivery orders, purchase orders, or BPA calls issued under a larger ordering instrument. Use hierarchy steps to move from the selected award to the parent IDV or vehicle. Stand-alone definitive contracts may not show a hierarchy because there is no parent structure to display.
GovTribe AI and summaries
GovTribe AI appears when AI is available for the selected record and your account can use it. The panel starts GovTribe AI with the selected award as context, so the response can stay grounded in the award, agency, vendor, value, and related records. If GovTribe AI is not available for the selected record or account, this panel may be absent.
The summary and description area shows the AI Summary tab first when GovTribe has generated one. Source descriptions follow the summary. If there is only one source description, the tab is labeled Description. If GovTribe has multiple source description records, the tabs appear as Update #1, Update #2, and so on in update order. If the selected record does not have an AI summary or source description, the component may be absent or show only the available description tabs.
Values, dates, and funding timeline
The dollars obligated and dates chart compares award values, obligated dollars, and date fields in one compact view. Use this chart to distinguish spending that has been obligated from the current contract value and the full potential value including options.
| Label | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Total Dollars Obligated | The total of all obligations for this award. |
| Current Value | The current value of the award, including exercised options. |
| Potential Value | The potential value of the award, including all options. |
| Award Date | The award date of the award. |
| Current Completion Date | The current completion date of the award, including exercised options. |
| Potential Completion Date | The potential completion date of the award, including all options. |
The Funding Timeline visualizes obligated-dollar activity across the life of the selected award when GovTribe has enough transaction activity to draw the chart. When obligated-dollar activity is unavailable, the Funding Timeline shows Not Available. That means the selected award does not have enough obligation history for the chart, not that the award necessarily has no value.
| Label | Meaning | How to read it |
|---|---|---|
AD | Award Date | The date the selected award was issued. |
CCD | Current Completion Date | The current completion date when it is different from the potential completion date. |
PCD | Potential Completion Date | The potential completion date when it is different from the current completion date. |
CPCD | Current and Potential Completion Date | A combined marker used when the current and potential completion dates are the same. |
CV | Current Value | The current award value, usually based on the base and exercised options value. |
PV | Potential Value | The potential award value, including options when available. |
CPV | Current and Potential Value | A combined value marker used when the current and potential values are the same. |
Related tabs
Contacts
Contacts shows people or office contacts GovTribe has associated with the selected award. The tab can be empty when the award has no contact references, when source material did not provide contact details, or when your account does not have access to the relevant contact context.
For contact search and contact data, see Contacts and Contact data type.
Activity
Activity shows tracked GovTribe activity for the selected award. The tab can be empty when GovTribe has not tracked activity for the award or when your access does not include the activity being requested.
Use Activity when you need recent changes or record movement before deciding whether to open transactions, create a pursuit, or compare similar awards.
Transactions
Transactions shows transaction records connected to the selected award. The tab can be empty when GovTribe has no transaction records for the award, when transaction activity is not available from the source, or when access is limited.
For transaction context, see Federal transaction data type and Federal award values and transactions.
Subawards
Subawards shows reported subcontracting activity associated with the selected prime award. The tab can be empty when no subaward records have been reported or connected for that award.
For downstream subcontracting records, see Federal contract sub-award data type.
Opportunity Stack
Opportunity Stack shows the opportunity or notice history GovTribe can connect back to the selected award. It is empty when the award does not have known originating opportunity context.
Use this tab when you need to move from an award back to the related opportunity or notice context. For opportunity research, see Federal contract opportunities and Federal contract opportunity data type.
Similar Awards
Similar Awards shows comparable awarded work GovTribe returns for the selected award. It can be empty when GovTribe does not find comparable awards for the selected record or when access is limited.
Use similar awards to move from one relevant award to comparable awarded work. For the reusable workflow, see Find similar records.
Common questions
For general fixes for too many results, no results, unrelated results, broad Semantic Search matches, or filters that narrowed the search too much, see Troubleshoot search results.
Why are Awarding Agency and Funding Agency different?
Awarding Agency on this page maps to the data model's contracting_federal_agency, while Funding Agency maps to funding_federal_agency. See Contracting and funding federal agencies for the difference between the awarding or procurement agency and the agency whose requirement or funding is tied to the award.
How are Federal Contract Awards different from IDVs and vehicles?
Federal Contract Awards are awarded contracts, orders, purchase orders, or BPA calls. Federal contract IDV awards are parent ordering instruments such as IDIQs, BPAs, GWACs, schedules, or other indefinite-delivery awards. Federal contract vehicles are broader vehicle programs, schedules, GWACs, pools, lanes, or buying channels that can organize multiple IDVs, opportunities, and awards.
How should I compare Dollars Obligated and Potential Value?
Dollars Obligated and Potential Value answer different questions. Obligated dollars show money already committed, while potential value is a ceiling or maximum value when options are included. See Federal award values and transactions.
Why can awardee, consortia member, and subcontractor fields name different organizations?
Awarded Vendor (Vendor attribute), Primary Consortia Member, and subcontractor-related fields can describe different organization roles on the same award. See Vendor, awardee, recipient, and subcontractor roles.
Which completion date should I use?
Federal Contract Awards can show both current and potential completion dates. Use Current Completion Date when you care about the currently scheduled end date, and use Potential Completion Date when option periods or other potential extensions matter.
Related articles
- Choose a search mode and write queries: Choose Keyword Search or Semantic Search and write reusable search queries.
- Create pursuits from records: Start new capture work from an award or connect it to an existing pursuit.
- Federal contract award data type: Review the GovTribe data type behind Federal Contract Award records.
- Federal award values and transactions: Compare award-level values, obligations, potential values, and transaction records.
- Federal contract record structure: Choose between federal opportunities, vehicles, IDVs, awards, transactions, and sub-awards.