SAM.gov is the free, official U.S. federal contracting portal. GovWin IQ is Deltek's enterprise market intelligence platform with pipeline management, forecasting, and SLED coverage. These tools serve different needs — and most serious contractors use both.
GovWin IQ (deltek.com/govwin) is Deltek's federal and SLED market intelligence platform. It provides pipeline management, long-range forecasting, SLED coverage, Canada coverage, and integrations with the Deltek Costpoint ERP. AI proposal capabilities were announced for 2026. Enterprise pricing — contact Deltek for a quote. (Information based on publicly available sources as of May 2026.)
SAM.gov is the U.S. federal government's official System for Award Management, operated by the GSA. It is the authoritative source for federal contract opportunities, entity registration, exclusions, and award data. Completely free to use — a public records portal, not a commercial SaaS product.
Side-by-side view of capabilities that matter for capture, proposals, and market coverage—SamSearch versus GovWin IQ.
| Capability | SamSearch | GovWin IQ |
|---|---|---|
| Federal Opportunity Access | Free; official authoritative source for all federal solicitations | Comprehensive federal coverage plus market intelligence layer |
| SLED Coverage | No state/local coverage | SLED coverage included (per Deltek positioning) |
| Pipeline Management | No pipeline or capture tools | Dedicated Pipeline Management module |
| Market Forecasting | No forecasting — shows posted solicitations only | Federal + SLED + Canada long-range forecasts |
| AI Capabilities | No AI tools | AI proposal capabilities announced for 2026 |
| Cost | 100% free | Enterprise pricing — contact vendor |
| Entity Registration | Official SAM.gov entity registration required for federal awards | No registration services; intelligence layer only |
Practical considerations teams raise when evaluating these two platforms side by side.
SAM.gov is required for federal contracting — it's the official source for solicitations and entity registration. GovWin IQ adds pipeline management, forecasting, SLED coverage, and market intelligence on top. Many contractors use both.
What this means for your team
SAM.gov is the starting point; GovWin IQ (or an alternative like SamSearch) is what teams add for deeper intelligence
SAM.gov is free. GovWin IQ is enterprise-priced. For contractors who need SLED coverage, pipeline management, and forecasting, the question is whether GovWin IQ or an alternative like SamSearch provides the best value.
What this means for your team
Smaller contractors may find GovWin IQ's enterprise pricing barrier high relative to alternatives
Federal awards plus 50,000+ monitored SLED portals give you more active U.S. government contracts in one workspace—then AI-native capture tooling keeps your team out of spreadsheet sprawl.
SAM.gov is free, authoritative, and required. Every federal contractor needs a SAM.gov registration regardless of other tools used.
GovWin IQ adds pipeline management, long-range forecasting, SLED coverage, and the Deltek ERP ecosystem — features SAM.gov doesn't offer.
SamSearch offers 50,000+ SLED portals, federal, grants, SBIR, AI proposals, and flexible pricing — an AI-native alternative to GovWin IQ built on the same federal data as SAM.gov.
SAM.gov and a market intelligence platform serve different purposes — the choice of intelligence platform depends on team size, budget, and coverage needs.
Competitor information is based on publicly available sources as of May 2026. Features, pricing, and company details may have changed. SamSearch makes no warranties about the accuracy of third-party information. All trademarks belong to their respective owners.
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50,000+ SLED portals · Federal + grants · AI capture & proposals