United States / Funding / By state / Massachusetts
Funding for startups in Massachusetts
Massachusetts runs 14 programmes of its own, and 9 of them take applications right now. The 63 federal programmes further down are open to Massachusetts companies too. We read each one on its official site and note the date we checked.
Run by Massachusetts and local bodies
Business Builds: Life Sciences
Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC) · Massachusetts
Massachusetts Life Sciences Center grants $500,000 to $2 million, 50/50 matched, to life sciences companies expanding manufacturing in the state.
Catalyst Program
MassVentures, jointly administered with Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) · Massachusetts
MassVentures and MassCEC give up to $75,000 to Massachusetts early-stage clean energy companies and researchers building first prototypes.
Elevate Small Business
LEAF (Local Enterprise Assistance Fund) · Massachusetts
LEAF, a Massachusetts nonprofit lender, offers small business loans and advice to underserved entrepreneurs and cooperatives statewide.
Emerging Technology Fund
MassDevelopment · Massachusetts
MassDevelopment lends up to $4 million to Massachusetts technology companies for equipment, real estate, or working capital as they expand.
Growth Capital Microloan Program
MassDevelopment · Massachusetts
MassDevelopment lends $5,000 to $100,000 to Massachusetts small businesses operating at least a year, including childcare businesses.
InnovateMass
Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) · Massachusetts
MassCEC funds up to $350,000 for Massachusetts clean energy companies piloting new technology with a demonstration project partner.
MassVentures Deep Tech Venture Fund
MassVentures · Massachusetts
MassVentures makes equity investments in Massachusetts seed-stage deep tech startups, often academic spinouts, alongside private co-investors.
SBIR Bridge Loan (Emerging Technology Fund)
MassDevelopment · Massachusetts
MassDevelopment advances up to $250,000, 90% of milestone payments, to Massachusetts SBIR grant recipients waiting on federal funds.
Small Business Enhancement Program
City of Cambridge Community Development Department · Massachusetts
Cambridge reimburses eligible retail, food, home-based, and creative businesses up to $8,000 for equipment and materials purchases.
Innovation Challenge
Berthiaume Center for Entrepreneurship, Isenberg School of Management, UMass Amherst · Massachusetts
UMass Amherst's Berthiaume Center awards up to $65,000 in equity-free prize money to current students and recent graduates each spring.
MIT Sandbox
MIT Sandbox (Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship) · Massachusetts
MIT gives its students up to $25,000 in non-dilutive funding per team across three application cycles a year.
President's Innovation Challenge
Harvard Innovation Labs · Massachusetts
Harvard Innovation Labs awards up to $75,000 in non-dilutive grants to Harvard student and alumni ventures each year.
MassVentures START Program
MassVentures (quasi-public, Commonwealth of Massachusetts) · Massachusetts
Non-dilutive commercialization grant for Massachusetts companies with a federal SBIR Phase II award; next application window opens Feb 1, 2027.
Small Business Grant Program
City of Worcester Business and Community Development · Massachusetts
Worcester offers forgivable loans of $25,000 to $75,000 to new or expanding storefront small businesses in targeted commercial corridors.
Want to filter these by amount or stage? Open them in the full directory.
Federal programmes open to Massachusetts businesses
Grants 23
- AFWERX SBIR/STTR & Army xTechup to $15M
- Amber Grant for Womenup to $50k
- ARPA-E
- ARPA-H
- Comcast RISEup to $5k
- DHS SBIRup to $1M
- DoD SBIR/STTRup to $2.15M
- DOE SBIR/STTRup to $2.15M
- ED/IES SBIRup to $1M
- EDA Build to Scale (B2S)up to $5M
- EPA SBIRup to $400k
- Federal and State Technology (FAST) Partnership Program
- FedEx Small Business Grant Contestup to $50k
- NASA SBIR/STTRup to $1.27M
- NIH SBIR/STTRup to $4.19M
- NOAA SBIRup to $690k
- NSF SBIR/STTR — America's Seed Fund powered by NSFup to $1.25M
- Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) — Renewable Energy Systems & Energy Efficiencyup to $25M
- SBA Growth Accelerator Fund Competition (GAFC)up to $200k
- SBIR/STTR (America's Seed Fund)up to $2.15M
- US DOT SBIRup to $200k
- USDA NIFA SBIR
- Value-Added Producer Grant (VAPG)up to $200k
Loans & guarantees 15
- CAPLines (SBA 7(a) Lines of Credit)up to $5M
- CDFI Fund — Certified Community Development Financial Institution Network
- DOE Loan Programs Office (Office of Energy Dominance Financing)
- Export Working Capital Program (EWCP)up to $5M
- International Trade Loan Program (ITL)up to $5M
- Military Reservist Economic Injury Disaster Loan (MREIDL)up to $2M
- SBA 504 Loan Program (CDC/504)up to $5.5M
- SBA 7(a) Loan Programup to $5M
- SBA Community Advantage Loansup to $1M
- SBA Disaster Loans (Physical Damage & Economic Injury)up to $2M
- SBA Microloan Programup to $50k
- SBA-504 and 7(a) Combined Loan Cap ($10M)up to $10M
- EXIM Working Capital Guarantee Programup to $10M
- SBA Surety Bond Guarantee Programup to $14M
- State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI)
Tax benefits 8
- Federal R&D Tax Credit (Section 41)
- New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC)
- QSBS Section 1202 Exclusionup to $15M
- Qualified Opportunity Zones (QOZ)
- R&D Payroll Tax Offset (Qualified Small Business Payroll Tax Credit)up to $500k
- Section 174A Domestic R&D Expensing Restoration
- State R&D Tax Credits (multi-state landscape)
- Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC)up to $2.4k
Equity 7
- 500 Global Flagship Acceleratorup to $150k
- Antler US Residency
- gener8tor Investment Acceleratorup to $100k
- HAXup to $250k
- Neo Accelerator
- Techstars Standard Investment Termsup to $220k
- Y Combinator Standard Dealup to $500k
Support & credits 10
- AWS Activateup to $200k
- Google for Startups Cloud Programup to $350k
- Microsoft for Startupsup to $150k
- MassChallenge Accelerator Programs (Traction & Challenge)
- MBDA Business Center Network
- NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP)
- NVIDIA Inception
- Plug and Play Accelerator Programs
- SBA 8(a) Business Development Program
- Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Federal Contract Program
The other Massachusetts deadline funders will ask about
Most programmes above ask for financials and a company in good standing. In Massachusetts that means the Annual Report — Due on or before the anniversary of the date the original certificate of organization was filed.
This page exists because Massachusetts has at least 2 verified programmes of its own. See every state, or tell us about a Massachusetts programme we are missing via the contact page.
Funders read the books before the pitch
Every programme on this page asks for financials in a particular shape. We keep Massachusetts books in that shape year-round, so applying is an export rather than a rebuild.