# SAM.gov API The SAM.gov API is a family of free REST APIs from GSA at api.sam.gov (Entity Management, Get Opportunities, Exclusions, Contract Awards, Extracts). A personal key with no SAM.gov role gets 10 requests a day, 1,000 with a role or a non-federal system account, and keys must be rotated every 90 days. GSA publishes each SAM.gov dataset as its own API. The ones contractors and developers use most:Checked on 2026-11-12.Official source: [open.gsa.gov API catalog](https://open.gsa.gov/api/) | Base URL | api.sam.gov | | --- | --- | | Cost | Free | | Default limit | 10 requests a day (non-federal, no role) | | With a role | 1,000 requests a day | | Key rotation | Every 90 days | | Entity page size | 10 records, first 10,000 reachable | ## Which SAM.gov APIs exist? GSA publishes each SAM.gov dataset as its own API. The ones contractors and developers use most: | API | What it returns | Notes | | --- | --- | --- | | Entity Management | Registrations: UEI, CAGE, names, addresses, NAICS, PSC, business types, POC names | 10 per page; up to 100 UEIs per call | | Get Opportunities v2 | Contract notices | Max 1,000 per page; postedFrom and postedTo required, 1-year window | | Exclusions v4 | Active exclusions | 10 per page; v1-v3 retired Sept 2024 | | Contract Awards | Contract actions (FPDS replacement) | Max 100 per page; offset x limit cap 400,000 | | Entity Extracts | Async files up to 1,000,000 records | One request plus one download | | Federal Hierarchy | Agencies and offices | 10 a day for non-federal users | ## What are the SAM.gov API limits? The same table applies across the Entity, Exclusions, Contract Awards, Extracts and Subaward APIs. Over the limit, the API returns HTTP 429. | Who | Key type | Daily limit | | --- | --- | --- | | Non-federal user, no SAM.gov role | Personal | 10 | | Non-federal user with a SAM.gov role | Personal | 1,000 | | Federal user | Personal | 1,000 | | Non-federal system account | System account | 1,000 | | Federal system account | System account | 10,000 | ## Why is the SAM.gov API hard to build on? - 10 requests a day without a role is about one search per working hour. - Entity search returns 10 records per page, and only the first 10,000 are reachable. - Keys and system account passwords must change every 90 days. - System accounts only accept calls from allowlisted IP addresses, which rules out most serverless hosts. - Opportunity descriptions are a separate URL that costs one request each. ## How do I get the same data without the limits? SAM Gov API gives every account a free key at sign-up. Free plan: 100 credits a month and 20 requests a minute, no card. Paid: Developer $49/mo (10,000 credits), Pro $149/mo (50,000 credits), Scale $499/mo (250,000 credits).Records come from the SAM.gov public extracts and USAspending, with the dataset date on every response. | Plan | Price | Credits a month | Requests a minute | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Free | $0 | 100 | 20 | | Developer | $49/mo | 10,000 | 60 | | Pro | $149/mo | 50,000 | 120 | | Scale | $499/mo | 250,000 | 180 | ## Quick example ``` curl "https://samgovapi.io/api/v1/entities/ABCDEFGH1234" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer sg_YOUR_KEY" ``` ## Get this as JSON ``` curl "https://samgovapi.io/api/v1/entities/ABCDEFGH1234" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer sg_YOUR_KEY" ``` MCP tool: `get_entity`Keys start free, with no card. [Get a free API key](https://samgovapi.io/sign-up) or read the [docs](https://samgovapi.io/docs). ## Questions Is the SAM.gov API free?Yes. GSA does not charge for it. The constraint is the daily limit: 10 requests without a role, 1,000 with one.Is samgovapi.io the official SAM.gov API?No. It is an independent API built on the public SAM.gov and USAspending data. Registering in SAM.gov is free at sam.gov.Do I need a SAM.gov account?For the official API, yes: a login.gov-backed SAM.gov account to generate a key. For this API, an email sign-up is enough. ## Related - [SAM.gov API key](https://samgovapi.io/sam-gov-api-key) - [SAM.gov API rate limits](https://samgovapi.io/sam-gov-api-rate-limits) - [Entity API](https://samgovapi.io/sam-gov-entity-api) - [Opportunities API](https://samgovapi.io/sam-gov-opportunities-api) - [SAM.gov API vs samgovapi.io](https://samgovapi.io/compare/sam-gov-api-vs-samgovapi) - [Quickstart](https://samgovapi.io/docs/quickstart)Updated 2026-11-12. Sources checked 2026-11-12.Independent. Not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by GSA, SAM.gov or any U.S. government agency. Registering in SAM.gov is free at sam.gov.

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HTML version: https://samgovapi.io/sam-gov-api . Markdown: https://samgovapi.io/sam-gov-api.md

Independent. Not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by GSA, SAM.gov or any U.S. government agency. Registering in SAM.gov is free at sam.gov.

Get a free API key: https://samgovapi.io/sign-up?ref=ai-claudebot