SBA Size Standard Eligibility Calculator
SBA size standards define which businesses qualify as 'small' for federal procurement, grant, and loan programs. The standard varies by NAICS code — some industries use employee count (up to 500-1,500 employees), others use average annual receipts ($3.5M-$47M). Getting this right matters: misrepresenting small business status is a federal false claims violation. This calculator looks up the correct size standard for your NAICS code and computes whether you qualify after applying SBA affiliation rules.
$5,000,000 of receipts vs the $9,000,000 ceiling — using 55.6% of the standard.
3-yr avg, all affiliates
your NAICS ceiling
The bar fills toward the 100% line, which is the size standard itself. At or under the line (≤ 100%) you qualify as small; over it you exceed the standard.
View the TypeScript implementation on GitHub: packages/calc/src/sba-grant-size-standard.ts · view tests
What this means
An SBA size standard is a single ceiling: stay at or under it and you count as “small” for the program in question; go over and you do not. The only genuine complexity is upstream of the comparison — which metric your NAICS code uses, what version of the table applies, and, above all, whose receipts and employees you have to add together. This tool does the comparison; the diligence is yours.
In my experience, almost nobody fails this on the arithmetic. They fail it on affiliation. The receipts figure is not your operating company’s revenue — it is the three-year average of every entity SBA deems you control or are controlled by, combined. I’ve found that founders with a common investor across portfolio companies, or a spouse who runs a related business, routinely under-count here and certify in good faith on a number that would not survive an SBA size protest.
I’ve seen what the downside looks like, which is why the headroom number matters as much as the verdict. Certifying as small when you are not is not a paperwork slip — it is False Claims Act exposure (31 USC § 3729), with treble damages and per-claim penalties. So treat a result that lands close to the line as a signal to slow down: confirm the current standard for your NAICS, rebuild the receipts average with every affiliate in it, and when it is tight, get a formal SBA size determination or counsel before you self-certify at SAM.gov. This calculator never tells you what to file — it only shows you where you stand against the number you entered.
Worked example
Suppose your primary NAICS carries a receipts size standard of $9,000,000(the figure you read off the SBA table). Your three-year-average annual receipts, with every affiliate folded in per 13 CFR § 121.103, come to $5,000,000. The check is one comparison: $5,000,000 ≤ $9,000,000, so you qualify as small. Your headroom is $9,000,000 − $5,000,000 = $4,000,000, and you are using $5,000,000 / $9,000,000 = 55.6% of the standard.
Now flip one number. If those combined receipts were $12,000,000instead, the comparison fails: $12,000,000 > $9,000,000, so you exceed the size standard— the headroom goes negative (−$3,000,000, i.e. $3M over) and you are at 133.3% of the ceiling. The employee path works identically: a 500-employee standard with a 250-employee combined headcount qualifies (50% of the ceiling), while 600 employees does not. The arithmetic is trivial; the discipline is making sure the $12M (or the 600) already includes every affiliate before you certify, because misrepresenting small-business status is a False Claims Act exposure, not a clerical error.
Frequently asked questions
The information and tools on this website are for general educational purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. Consult a licensed professional for decisions specific to your situation.