Two teams of high schoolers will each walk away with $12,000 next spring. All it takes to enter is a 3-to-5-page idea and a 60-second video, and you have until January 14.
The grant on this list that closes first is the one with the most strings. A North Carolina county will give a local business up to $10,000, but only if you sit down with county staff before you apply, and you have to sign a personal guarantee on the money.
Grants are competitive. Treat each one like a lottery ticket you earn with careful paperwork. We opened every official page today. If a number below doesn't match when you click, trust the page. They're listed by deadline, soonest first.
1. Orange County Business Investment Grant (North Carolina)
- Amount: a Small Grant of up to $5,000, or a Large Grant of $5,000.01 to $10,000.
- Who qualifies: businesses physically located in Orange County, North Carolina. A home-based business can count if it has local approval, but a virtual address or P.O. box doesn't. For the Small Grant you need at least 6 months of sales. The Large Grant needs a full year of sales, more financial records, and a formal business plan.
- The catch: you must have a pre-application meeting with the county's economic development staff before you submit. Winners sign a personal guaranty of the grant amount, and the money can't cover rent, owner salary, or anything you already bought.
- Deadline: October 31, 2026 by 5:00 p.m. You apply through the county's Submittable page.
- Official link: Orange County Business Grant Guidelines (October 2026 cycle)
2. The 4CD Pitch Competition (Contra Costa County, California)
- Amount: last year's prizes were $1,000 for first, $500 for second, $250 for third, and $50 for the audience favorite. The page says 2026 prizes will scale up and be confirmed when finalists are named on November 6.
- Who qualifies: anyone enrolled in a course at Contra Costa College, Diablo Valley College, or Los Medanos College. One class is enough, and a non-credit community class like ceramics or a QuickBooks workshop counts. Solo founders or teams of up to five can enter. An existing business can enter if it has under $25,000 in total assets or annual revenue.
- What you send: a short description of the idea and a deck of 15 slides or fewer. No video needed.
- Deadline: November 2, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific. Ten finalists pitch live on November 20 at Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill.
- Official link: 4CD Pitch Competition
3. PIKO Youth Entrepreneurship Scholarship Fund (middle and high school clubs)
- Amount: microgrants of $250 to $2,500.
- Who qualifies: officially recognized student business clubs at accredited U.S. middle and high schools, including DECA, FBLA, BPA, and school-specific entrepreneurship clubs. Money can go to competition fees, project supplies, marketing for a club-run business, guest speakers, or startup costs.
- Deadline: November 20, 2026. Awards are announced by December 18. The page says it's accepting applications now, though one older line still mentions a waitlist. If the form isn't live when you click, join the list so you hear the moment it opens.
- Official link: PIKO Youth Entrepreneurship Scholarship Fund
4. Working Lands Business Enhancement Grant (Vermont)
- Amount: $10,000 to $50,000 per award, from $508,000 in total funds. No match is required.
- Who qualifies: Vermont-based farms that grow food or fiber, logging and sawmill businesses, woodworkers and other wood product makers, value-added food and fiber businesses that source at least 50% of raw ingredients from Vermont, and retailers that mainly sell Vermont-made food or fiber products. Projects can cover equipment, infrastructure, market development, research, or workforce training.
- The catch: the page says the eligibility details come from last year's round and small changes are expected when the new request for applications posts. Registering in the state's WebGrants system can take up to two business days, so start early. Plan to include a profit and loss statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement.
- Deadline: opens October 9, 2026 and closes December 10, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. There's an applicant webinar on October 14 at 11 a.m. Decisions come in late February or early March 2027.
- Official link: Vermont Working Lands Business Enhancement Grant
5. Diamond Challenge (high school teams, worldwide)
- Amount: a prize pool of $100,000 or more. In each of two tracks, business innovation and social innovation, first place wins $12,000, second wins $8,000, and third wins $4,500. Prize money can go toward the venture or toward college.
- Who qualifies: teams of 2 to 4 high school students aged 14 to 18 at the deadline, from any country, with one adult advisor aged 21 or older. Your concept can't have made more than $100,000 in total revenue.
- What you send: a 3-to-5-page written concept narrative (double-spaced, PDF) and a 60-second intro video.
- Deadline: January 14, 2027 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern. Teams moving on are told February 10, and the finals are April 29 to 30.
- Official link: Diamond Challenge competition page
Before you apply
A real grant never asks for a processing fee, a gift card, or your bank login to "release" the money. None of the five above lists an application fee on its official page. If someone cold-calls you about a grant you never applied for, hang up. Don't pay for a list of grants.
Pick the one or two you actually qualify for. A tight, specific application beats ten rushed ones every time.
Verified on each official page: October 8, 2026.