Empower Grant Eligibility: Requirements + Odds 2026
There is no single "Empower Grant for women." At least three unrelated organizations run a program using some version of that name — different runners, different dollar amounts, different rules — and a fourth unrelated "Empower Grant" isn't even for businesses. This page identifies each one and checks your specific situation against all of them at once.
Updated July 17, 2026 — every runner, amount, and eligibility rule below verified directly against each program's own site or Submittable listing, plus GrantCompass's 665-program catalog.
Searchers usually mean one of three programs. The EmpowHer Grant from the 501(c)(3) Boundless Futures Foundation pays up to $50,000 to female founders 22+ running an early-stage (≤5 years old), revenue-earning, social-impact business — its portal is currently between rounds after the last cycle opened May 1, 2026. The Empower U Grant (empowerugrant.com) is newer, discloses no dollar amount, and selects five winners during a short spring window (2026's ran March 3–5, now closed). Women's Empire's EmpowerHer Fund pays a flat $1,000 quarterly, but only to entrepreneurs based in New York City. Run the checker below against your own numbers.
Empower Grant Eligibility Checker
Answer six questions and see, gate by gate, which of the three "Empower"-named grants for women you likely qualify for — verified against each program's own published criteria as of July 17, 2026.
This checks published eligibility rules only. Each organization makes its own final decision — this tool is educational, not a guarantee of an award.
None of the three "Empower" grants fit? GrantCompass matches your business to every grant, tax credit, and loan you're eligible for across 665 programs — not just the ones with "Empower" in the name. Free eligibility check, 2 minutes.
See your grants — free →Which "Empower" Grant Are You Actually Looking For?
"Empower Grant for women" is a generic search phrase, and at least three unrelated organizations answer to it — plus a fourth, entirely unrelated "Empower Grant" that funds nonprofits, not businesses. Confirm the exact program before you invest time in an application; the table below is sourced directly from each organization's own site.
| Program | Who runs it | Award | Cadence (as of July 17, 2026) | Who qualifies |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EmpowHer Grant | Boundless Futures Foundation — 501(c)(3), EIN 87-2375092, Traverse City, MI | Up to $50,000 | Round-based; last round opened May 1, 2026; portal shows no open call right now | Female founder 22+, US business, revenue-earning, ≤5 yrs old, social-impact core |
| Empower U Grant | "Empower U" (empowerugrant.com) — no legal entity or nonprofit status disclosed | Not disclosed | Annual 2-day window; 2026's ran March 3–5 (closed); next window unannounced | Woman entrepreneur, launching or scaling — no other published criteria |
| EmpowerHer Fund | Women's Empire — NYC nonprofit | $1,000 | Rolling, awarded quarterly — the only one of the three open right now | Woman-led, based in one of NYC's five boroughs |
The Three Programs, One at a Time
EmpowHer Grant — Boundless Futures Foundation
The EmpowHer Grant is the most substantial and most verifiable of the three. Boundless Futures Foundation is a real 501(c)(3), tax-exempt since April 2022, founded by Soon and McKeel Hagerty and based in Traverse City, Michigan; its FY2024 IRS filing reports $1.64M in revenue and $807,471 in charitable disbursements. EmpowHer pays up to $50,000 per recipient as reimbursement against submitted business-expense receipts, not a lump-sum deposit, plus optional access to an Advisory Circle of mentors and a separate $2,500 Learning Grant within a year of the award. Eligibility requires a female founder aged 22 or older with a US-registered, revenue-earning for-profit business no more than about five years old, where a social or environmental impact is fundamental to the business model — not a side donation. Named grantees include Sunniemade, Peel Soft Serve, Mommy Scrubs, and Mar Mar Noodle Company. Applications run through Submittable in multiple rounds per year; as of this update, no round is currently open.
Empower U Grant — empowerugrant.com
Empower U Grant is a newer program with materially less public transparency than the other two. Its site publishes no legal entity name, EIN, nonprofit status, terms of service, or privacy policy, and states no dollar amount for the award — the package is described only as "executive-level business mentorship," "structured business acceleration support," and "direct capital investment" of an unstated size. It is not a proven scam: it charges no application fee, and its 2025 cohort named five real recipients (Paulette Ahmad, Yasmin Abdi, Francine Jackson, Juontel White, and Courtney Culmer). The 2026 application window ran a short two days, March 3–5, with winners announced April 3 and a mentorship period running May 2026 through April 2027; no location, age, or revenue criteria are published beyond "women entrepreneurs" who are "launching a start-up" or "scaling an existing business." Given the thin disclosure, verify current terms directly on empowerugrant.com before applying, and treat the undisclosed award amount as an open question rather than an assumed dollar figure.
EmpowerHer Fund — Women's Empire
The EmpowerHer Fund is run by Women's Empire, a documented New York City nonprofit, and is the smallest and most geographically narrow of the three: a flat $1,000 award, distributed quarterly, funded through the organization's Community Grant program. Eligibility is limited to women-led organizations, community groups, or entrepreneurs operating in one of NYC's five boroughs, whose project specifically benefits women and girls or contributes to community development. Outside New York City, this program simply does not apply — it is not a nationwide option, and no exception is published for out-of-state applicants.
Women-Eligible Grants That Skip the Name Confusion
If none of the three "Empower" programs fit your business today — wrong age, wrong city, or a business older than five years — GrantCompass's catalog has dozens of other nationwide, women-eligible programs with clearer, publicly documented rules. Ten representative options, pulled from the same 665-program catalog used across this site, are below. For the full ranked list, see the best small business grants for women and every women-owned business grant we track.
| Program | Amount | Cadence | Notable eligibility note |
|---|
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is eligible for the Empower grant for women?
It depends which program you mean. For the Boundless Futures Foundation's EmpowHer Grant, you must be a female founder 22 or older running a US-registered, revenue-earning for-profit business no more than about five years old, where social or environmental impact is fundamental to the business model. For the newer Empower U Grant (empowerugrant.com), the only published criteria are that you are a woman entrepreneur launching or scaling a business — no age, revenue, or location rule is disclosed. For Women's Empire's EmpowerHer Fund, you must be a woman-led entrepreneur, organization, or community group based in one of New York City's five boroughs. Use the checker above to test your specific situation against all three at once.
Is the Empower Grant real or a scam?
The Boundless Futures Foundation's EmpowHer Grant is a verified 501(c)(3) nonprofit (EIN 87-2375092, tax-exempt since April 2022, based in Traverse City, Michigan) with public IRS filings and named past grantees — it is real. Women's Empire's EmpowerHer Fund is run by a documented NYC nonprofit. The newer Empower U Grant (empowerugrant.com) is not a proven scam — it names real 2025 winners and charges no application fee — but as of July 17, 2026 its site discloses no legal entity name, EIN, nonprofit status, or terms of service, and publishes no dollar amount for the award. That thin transparency is a legitimate reason to verify independently before treating any offer as final.
How much does the Empower Grant pay?
It varies by program, and one of the three does not publish a figure at all. The EmpowHer Grant (Boundless Futures Foundation) pays up to $50,000 per recipient, disbursed as reimbursement against submitted business-expense receipts. Women's Empire's EmpowerHer Fund pays $1,000 per award, quarterly, to NYC-based recipients. The Empower U Grant (empowerugrant.com) does not publish a dollar amount — its package is described only as mentorship, business acceleration support, and "direct capital investment" of an unstated size.
What is the difference between the Empower Grant and the EmpowHer Grant?
"EmpowHer Grant" is the specific, correctly spelled name of the Boundless Futures Foundation's $50,000 program for women founders running social-impact businesses. "Empower Grant" is the generic phrase people search, and it is genuinely ambiguous — it could mean the EmpowHer Grant, the separate Empower U Grant (empowerugrant.com), Women's Empire's EmpowerHer Fund in New York City, or even an unrelated program like the Higher Hope Foundation's Empower Grant, which funds nonprofits serving crime victims and has nothing to do with women-owned businesses. Always confirm the exact name and runner before applying.
Can I apply to more than one Empower-named grant?
Yes. The EmpowHer Grant, the Empower U Grant, and Women's Empire's EmpowerHer Fund are run by three unrelated organizations with no shared application or exclusivity rule published by any of them. If your business meets more than one program's published criteria, there is no reason not to apply to each — check the eligibility gates for each one using the checker above before you invest time in an application.
Sources
- Boundless Futures Foundation — Our Impact (official, EmpowHer Grant amount & eligibility)
- ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer — Boundless Futures Foundation (EIN, 501(c)(3) status, financials)
- Boundless Futures Foundation — Submittable application portal (live cycle status)
- Empower U Grant — official site (dates, published criteria, 2025 winners)
- Women's Empire — official site (EmpowerHer Fund / Community Grant)
- NerdWallet — 43 Small-Business Grants for Women (2026)
- Instrumentl — EmpowHer Grants listing
- Higher Hope Foundation — Empower Grant (unrelated program, disambiguation only)
- GrantCompass catalog of 665 verified US small business programs (internal, filtered and cited per-program above)