USDA Rural Business Development Grant (RBDG)
USDA Rural Development
Up to $500K per intermediary
Rural nonprofit grants for small business support
Federal competitive grant program for nonprofit organizations, public bodies, and tribal entities to support small and emerging rural businesses in the U.S. RBDG awards flow to intermediary organizations — community development corporations, rural electric cooperatives, rural nonprofits — which then deploy the funds as training, technical assistance, small business loans, or infrastructure to benefit rural small businesses. Individual small businesses do NOT apply directly; they access RBDG benefits through an intermediary. Two tracks: Opportunity Grants (up to $500K, for capacity-building and training) and Enterprise Grants (up to $500K, for business infrastructure like revolving loan funds, incubators, or equipment).
- Funding type
- Grant
- Level
- Federal
- Amount range
- $10,000 – $500,000
- Realistic amount
- Most Opportunity Grants range $20,000–$75,000 for training programs. Enterprise Grants for revolving loan fund capitaliz…
- Deadline
- Annual competitive NOFOs — FY2024 deadline was February 2024 via Grants.gov. FY2025 NOFO status uncertain as of May 2026. Monitor grants.gov (CFDA 10.351) and federalregister.gov.
- Status
- between-intakes
- States
- Nationwide
- Payment model
- reimbursement
Who qualifies
- APPLICANTS (intermediary organizations) must be: nonprofit corporations, public bodies (cities, counties, tribal entities), federally-recognized tribes, or rural electric cooperatives
- Applicant organization must be located in a rural area (outside urbanized areas of 50,000+)
- The rural small businesses or farmers the grant serves must also be in rural areas
- Target beneficiaries must be rural small businesses meeting SBA size standards for their NAICS code
- Enterprise Grants (business infrastructure): for projects creating or expanding revolving loan funds, business incubators, shared-use equipment, business parks, or similar physical/financial infrastructure
- Opportunity Grants (training and technical assistance): for training programs, workshops, counseling, market research, feasibility studies, or business planning assistance to rural small businesses
- No matching funds required by the regulation, but competitive scoring often favors projects with local match
- SAM.gov registration with active UEI is required for all applicants
Hard requirements
- Must be incorporated
- Must be a registered 501(c)(3)
- Requires federal certification:
- Rural location required
What it covers
Eligible expenses
- OPPORTUNITY GRANTS: Training programs, workshops, and seminars for rural entrepreneurs
- OPPORTUNITY GRANTS: Technical assistance, business counseling, and mentoring costs
- OPPORTUNITY GRANTS: Market studies, feasibility studies, and business plan development for rural businesses
- OPPORTUNITY GRANTS: Staff salaries for training/technical assistance delivery
- ENTERPRISE GRANTS: Capitalization of revolving loan funds for rural small businesses
- ENTERPRISE GRANTS: Construction or renovation of business incubators or rural business parks
- ENTERPRISE GRANTS: Purchase of shared-use processing equipment for rural small businesses (e.g., commercial kitchen, shared fabrication tools)
- ENTERPRISE GRANTS: Establishment of distance learning facilities for rural business training
- Both tracks: Reasonable program administration costs (typically capped at 20% of award)
Ineligible expenses
- Direct grants or loans to individual businesses (funds must flow through the intermediary's approved program structure)
- Purchase of land or real property other than for approved business incubator/park construction
- Political activities, lobbying, or legislative advocacy
- For-profit organization operating costs (the grant goes to nonprofits/public bodies)
- Costs incurred before USDA grant award notification
- Indirect costs above the rate in the applicant's federally-negotiated NICRA agreement (or 10% de minimis if no NICRA)
How to apply
-
1
Determine eligibility as an intermediary organization
RBDG goes to nonprofit organizations, public bodies, and tribal entities — NOT directly to small businesses. Confirm your organization is nonprofit or a public body, that you are located in a rural area, and that your proposed activity benefits rural small businesses. Individual small businesses seeking RBDG benefits should contact local CDCs, SBDCs, rural EDAs, or rural electric cooperatives to ask if they administer RBDG funds.
~2 hrs
-
2
Register in SAM.gov and Grants.gov
Create or renew your SAM.gov registration (allows 7–10 business days for new registrations, potentially longer). Register on Grants.gov. When the NOFO is published in the Federal Register, download the complete application package including all required forms (SF-424, SF-424A, project narrative template, budget detail). Register your Grants.gov account well in advance — do not attempt to register during the open window.
~6 hrs
-
3
Develop project narrative and budget
The project narrative (typically 10–15 pages) must describe: the rural area served, the rural small businesses to be helped, the proposed activities (training curriculum, loan fund structure, incubator design, etc.), measurable outcomes (jobs created/retained, businesses assisted, dollars leveraged), and organizational capacity. Budgets must be line-item with narrative justification. Enterprise Grants require a sustainability plan showing how the revolving fund or infrastructure will continue after RBDG funds are spent.
~40 hrs
-
4
Submit via Grants.gov before electronic deadline
Submit the complete package electronically via Grants.gov before the deadline (typically 11:59 p.m. ET). Applications are scored at USDA Rural Development state offices first, then by the national office. Reserve 2–3 hours on submission day to troubleshoot Grants.gov technical issues.
~4 hrs
-
5
Post-award: administer funds to rural small businesses
If awarded, the intermediary organization administers the grant per the approved work plan — deploying training, loans, or infrastructure to rural small businesses. Annual progress reports required. Enterprise Grant revolving loan funds are managed under USDA-approved revolving fund plans and are subject to periodic USDA auditing.
~100 hrs
Enterprise Grants for revolving loan funds score best when the applicant has already identified a pipeline of rural small business borrowers — include 2–3 specific business case studies in the narrative. USDA wants confidence the money will move quickly.
Deadline & timing
RBDG operates on annual competitive NOFOs typically published in the Federal Register January–March with submission deadlines in February–April. Applications are submitted through Grants.gov and scored nationally. Awards are announced late summer/early fall. The FY2025 NOFO had not been published as of May 2026 — may be between cycles or subject to federal budget constraints. Historically very consistent annual program.
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Last reviewed 2026. GrantCompass is an independent funding-discovery tool and is not affiliated with any government agency. Always confirm details on the official program page.