Benchmark category
Software Development
- Category slug
- software-development
- Taxonomy version
- 2026.08.1
- Snapshot
- 660094ef030978fa
- Computed
- Oct 22, 2026
Awards recorded through Oct 22, 2026
Snapshot computed Oct 22, 2026
Withheld: 2,782 awards in the last twelve months against 371 the year before is a gap in source coverage, not a market change
Box: 25th to 75th percentile. Line: median. Whiskers: 10th to 90th percentile. The lowest and highest tenth of awards lie beyond the whiskers and are not drawn.
What the distribution shows
Half of the 4,403 comparable software development awards were worth less than $1,093,649, and half were worth more.
The middle half ran from $189,522 to $3,746,775. The 75th percentile is 19.8 times the 25th, a wide spread, so the scope of a particular requirement matters more than the category label.
The mean is $2,931,066, 2.7 times the median. A minority of large awards pulls the average up, which is why the median is the headline figure.
1,626 contractors won these awards from 58 awarding agencies.
Each figure is the total current value of an award, including modifications to date. It is not an hourly rate, a unit price, or an annual cost.
Over time
The median award value for each federal fiscal year, from the published price index.
| Period | Value | Awards | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2014 | 100.0 | 10 | incomplete coverage, thin sample |
| FY2015 | 53.7 | 24 | incomplete coverage, thin sample |
| FY2016 | 31.9 | 35 | incomplete coverage |
| FY2017 | 89.7 | 40 | incomplete coverage |
| FY2018 | 85.2 | 42 | incomplete coverage |
| FY2019 | 92.9 | 64 | incomplete coverage |
| FY2020 | 97.2 | 96 | incomplete coverage |
| FY2021 | 186.7 | 156 | incomplete coverage |
| FY2022 | 196.7 | 174 | incomplete coverage |
| FY2023 | 177.0 | 245 | incomplete coverage |
| FY2024 | 157.8 | 353 | incomplete coverage |
| FY2025 | 114.7 | 365 | incomplete coverage |
| FY2026 | 50.7 | 2784 | |
| FY2027 | 31.2 | 11 | partial year, thin sample |
Full series, vintages, and revisions for the BidBenchmark Software Development Price Index
Measures
Three distinct measures, deliberately not collapsed into one price.
| Measure | p25 | Median | p75 | Awards | Definition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current award value | $189,522 | $1,093,649 | $3,746,775 | 4,403 | Distribution of current award value across comparable awards |
| Potential value with options | $371,554 | $1,000,000 | $4,936,856 | 6,012 | Distribution of potential award value including option periods |
| Obligated to date | $185,182 | $1,026,612 | $3,496,977 | 4,463 | Distribution of total obligations to date |
By place of performance
Only slices that independently clear the sample threshold are published.
| State | p25 | Median | p75 | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virginia | $394,961 | $1,744,925 | $5,273,757 | 1,129 |
| Maryland | $392,063 | $1,645,367 | $4,374,438 | 834 |
| District of Columbia | $375,416 | $1,639,954 | $4,183,119 | 824 |
| California | $78,025 | $571,440 | $2,765,200 | 163 |
| Texas | $201,075 | $2,011,234 | $7,022,979 | 143 |
| Massachusetts | $19,622 | $44,850 | $141,814 | 140 |
| Georgia | $230,957 | $1,090,437 | $4,328,401 | 95 |
| Alabama | $180,353 | $1,810,790 | $10,142,726 | 85 |
| Colorado | $226,258 | $1,498,451 | $4,083,191 | 82 |
| Florida | $196,150 | $500,000 | $2,295,355 | 81 |
| Ohio | $155,760 | $1,034,254 | $6,755,928 | 61 |
| North Carolina | $93,360 | $231,864 | $914,651 | 59 |
| New York | $68,677 | $181,500 | $560,103 | 55 |
| Pennsylvania | $84,063 | $594,970 | $1,897,849 | 47 |
| Illinois | $146,154 | $499,741 | $2,569,672 | 43 |
| New Jersey | $242,815 | $2,005,739 | $4,755,587 | 43 |
| Oklahoma | $172,276 | $823,990 | $2,851,461 | 39 |
| Washington | $71,543 | $317,676 | $618,682 | 37 |
| Michigan | $10,724 | $106,736 | $378,828 | 31 |
| New Mexico | $85,515 | $495,312 | $5,162,758 | 30 |
| Arizona | $52,507 | $99,870 | $360,000 | 29 |
| Alaska | $223,167 | $1,554,955 | $7,692,709 | 20 |
| Missouri | $29,412 | $226,906 | $3,263,703 | 20 |
| Tennessee | $114,018 | $500,417 | $4,220,020 | 20 |
| West Virginia | $98,618 | $452,046 | $2,969,498 | 20 |
By awarding agency
Agencies with enough awards in this category to publish their own figure.
| Agency | p25 | Median | p75 | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Defense | $365,857 | $2,424,505 | $8,565,735 | 854 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $249,777 | $1,203,841 | $3,506,101 | 736 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $48,960 | $154,420 | $455,631 | 313 |
| Department of Homeland Security | $249,600 | $1,634,547 | $4,593,130 | 289 |
| Department of the Treasury | $528,236 | $1,645,793 | $3,533,026 | 263 |
| Department of the Interior | $78,280 | $303,037 | $1,433,184 | 247 |
| Department of Commerce | $396,254 | $1,964,301 | $5,151,116 | 245 |
| General Services Administration | $1,002,483 | $3,101,472 | $9,370,571 | 219 |
| Department of Transportation | $349,975 | $1,693,496 | $4,731,834 | 208 |
| Department of Justice | $214,311 | $952,861 | $3,629,307 | 174 |
| National Aeronautics and Space Administration | $18,783 | $38,369 | $98,668 | 138 |
| Department of Agriculture | $105,604 | $539,995 | $1,871,663 | 127 |
| Department of State | $199,029 | $1,196,765 | $3,105,038 | 86 |
| Department of Energy | $181,403 | $612,558 | $3,285,052 | 59 |
| Department of Labor | $1,935,262 | $3,579,975 | $6,177,432 | 49 |
| Department of Education | $453,106 | $1,817,422 | $3,429,945 | 48 |
| Environmental Protection Agency | $378,580 | $1,081,517 | $2,691,401 | 45 |
| Securities and Exchange Commission | $2,458,068 | $5,463,392 | $16,263,517 | 32 |
| Nuclear Regulatory Commission | $344,212 | $893,610 | $2,201,747 | 28 |
| National Science Foundation | $1,591,677 | $2,197,037 | $6,546,784 | 25 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $1,232,948 | $3,109,909 | $4,433,734 | 24 |
| National Archives and Records Administration | $288,053 | $512,636 | $1,409,168 | 20 |
| Smithsonian Institution | $79,663 | $656,323 | $1,264,856 | 16 |
| Office of Personnel Management | $411,792 | $747,990 | $1,258,075 | 15 |
| Consumer Product Safety Commission | $240,313 | $553,703 | $746,360 | 14 |
Typical awards in the sample
Counted awards closest to the median, under the same rules and outlier fence as the published figure.
| Award | Contractor | Agency | Place | First action | Current value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 693KA925F00064 NEW CONTRACT FOR METEOROLOGICAL, TECHNICAL, AND ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT TO MEET ICAO MET OBJECTIVES | AVMET APPLICATIONS, INC. | Department of Transportation | VA | Feb 24, 2025 | $1,093,649 |
| 95332A22F00015 THE PURPOSE OF THIS MODIFICATION IS DE-OBLIGATE FUNDING. ALL OTHER TERMS AND CONDITIONS REMAIN UNCHANGED. | ICF INCORPORATED, L.L.C. | Corporation for National and Community Service | VA | Mar 23, 2026 | $1,093,372 |
| 70CMSD26FR0000154 THE PURPOSE OF THIS CONTRACT IS TO SUPPORT HOMELAND SECURITY INVESTIGATIONS THROUGH THE ADVANCED TRANSNATIONAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AND SANCTIONS PLATFORM TO COORDINATE, STREAMLINE PROCESSES, ENFORCE SANCTIONS AND COMBAT TRANSNATIONAL THREATS. | KURRENT LOGIC LLC | Department of Homeland Security | DC | Sep 24, 2026 | $1,094,051 |
| N0018922F1327 SEWIP (NIODB) SUPPORT SERVICES | STRATASCOR, LLC | Department of Defense | VA | Mar 4, 2026 | $1,093,147 |
| FA251826FA005 ENTERPRISE INFORMATION SERVICES (EIS) SUPPORT: SHAREPOINT, EIS TRAINING FOR HQ CFC, ETMS2 LICENSE MANAGEMENT/SUPPORT FOR USSF UNITS. EIS: SHAREPOINT, MS POWER PLATFORM, ETMS2, MS TEAMS. | ZIGABYTE CORPORATION | Department of Defense | CO | Mar 19, 2026 | $1,095,412 |
| 2099AC26F00046 ORDER #12 AGAINST 2032H523A00005 FOR ENTERPRISE DATA GOVERNANCE, ENGINEERING, AND APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT SERVICES. | DELVIOM LLC | Department of the Treasury | DC | Sep 11, 2026 | $1,095,426 |
| 75N97025P00060 ALMA/PRIMO VE LIBRARY SERVICES PLATFORM AND DISCOVERY SYSTEM | EX LIBRIS USA INC | Department of Health and Human Services | IL | Jun 6, 2025 | $1,096,800 |
| 70LGLY23FGLB00105 THE PURPOSE OF THIS MODIFICATION IS TO DE-OBLIGATE EXCESS FUNDS AND CLOSE THIS ORDER | ACS CONSULTANCY SERVICES INC. | Department of Homeland Security | GA | Mar 11, 2026 | $1,090,437 |
| 36C10M26F50077 THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS (VA) OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL (OIG) OFFICE OF INVESTIGATIONS (OI) REQUIRES A COMMERCIAL OFF-THE-SHELF (COTS) SOLUTION TO PROVIDE OICMS SERVICES AND SERVICES RELATED TO ITS INSTALLATION. | SNO CORP. | Department of Veterans Affairs | VA | Sep 29, 2026 | $1,097,211 |
| 15F06726F0000838 NDCAC - TECH RESOURCE GROUP - HELP DESK OPERATORS | SUVI GLOBAL SERVICES LLC | Department of Justice | VA | Aug 14, 2026 | $1,089,686 |
Left out of this benchmark
Awards classified into this category that the published figure does not count, with the rule that removed each. The largest examples of each reason are shown.
| Award | Agency | First action | Current value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indefinite delivery vehicle: a ceiling, not an award value436 awards, 5 shown | |||
| HQ014712D0003 THE COMMAND AND CONTROL, BATTLE MANAGEMENT AND COMMUNICATIONS (C2BMC) PROGRAM IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE END-TO-END MISSION COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK CONNECTIVITY BETWEEN THE BALLISTIC MISSILE DEFENSE SYSTEM ELEMENTS, COMBATANT COMMANDERS, SERVICES AND AGENCIES. THE C2BMC SYSTEM LINKS TOGETHER THE EXTERNAL SENSORS AND WEAPONS OF INDEPENDENT ELEMENTS INTO A LAYERED MISSILE DEFENSE SYSTEM. THE CONTRACTOR IN THE PERFORMANCE OF THIS CONTRACT WILL DEVELOP, MODEL, FABRICATE, INTEGRATE, TEST, VERIFY, EVALUATE, VALIDATE, DOCUMENT, DELIVER, FIELD, TRAIN, OPERATE, SUSTAIN, AND SUPPORT UPDATES AND NEW CAPABILITIES TO THE C2BMC ELEMENT. | Department of Defense | Dec 23, 2011 | $0 |
| HSHQPA05A00042 REQUIREMENT IS FOR SERVICE DISABLED VETERAN OWNED BUSINESS CONCERN SET ASIDE. | Department of Homeland Security | Jul 12, 2005 | $0 |
| 11316026A0008EOP IT AND CYBER SERVICES | Executive Office of the President | Sep 22, 2026 | — |
| 12314421A0012 THE GENERAL SCOPE OF THE SOFTWARE CI/CD BPA INCLUDES SOFTWARE DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT, INCLUDING ALL TASKS AND SUPPLIES NECESSARY TO PERFORM CONCEPT DEFINITION AND PLANNING, DEVELOPMENT, MODIFICATION/ENHANCEMENTS, IMPLEMENTATION, SUPPORT AS WELL AS TH | Department of Agriculture | Sep 30, 2021 | — |
| 12314426A0027 USDA CPOC CYBERSECURITY SUPPORT SERVICES THROUGH ISSUANCE OF A MULTIPLE AWARD BPA FOR USDA. | Department of Agriculture | Sep 21, 2026 | — |
| No positive award value on record1,985 awards, 5 shown | |||
| 0001 ADMIN MOD FOR CLOSEOUT. IT AND TELECOM- SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT | Department of Defense | Mar 24, 2026 | $0 |
| 0002 SERVICE CONTRACTS | Department of Defense | Mar 20, 2026 | $0 |
| 0004 200406!000386!9700!HHM402!VIRGINIA CONTRACTING ACTIVITY !HHM40204A0011 !A!N! !Y!0004 ! !20040303!20050303!045867843!876861790!217304393!N!BAE SYSTEMS ENTERPRISE SYSTEMS!10400 EATON PLACE !FAIRFAX !VA!22030!26496!600!51!FAIRFAX !FAIRFAX (CITY) !VIRGINIA !+000000494893!N!N!000000000000!D399!OTHER ADP & TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES !S1 !SERVICES !000 !* !541511!E! !7! ! ! ! ! !99990909!C!E!Y!N!Z!A!N!J!2!002! ! !Z!W!Z! ! !N!C!N! ! ! !A!A!A!A!000!A!A!N! ! ! ! ! ! !0001! ! | Department of Defense | Mar 3, 2004 | $0 |
| 0004 200412!045282!1700!RA13A !FLEET & INDUSTRIAL SUPPLY CENTER!N0014004DH001 !A!N! !N!0004 ! !20040224!20041231!125204391!125204391!001381284!N!GENERAL DYNAMICS ADVANCED INFO!7025 HARBOUR VIEW STE 101 !SUFFOLK !VA!23435!76432!800!51!SUFFOLK !SUFFOLK (CITY) !VIRGINIA !+000000300000!N!N!000000000000!D302!ADP SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT SERVICES !S1 !SERVICES !CAA !MDA SUPPORT !541330!E! !3!B!S! ! ! !99990909!B!F!N!A! !A!N!U!2!001!B! !Z!N!Z! ! !N!C!N! ! ! !A!A!A!A!000!A!C!N! ! ! ! ! !N47783!0001! ! | Department of Defense | Feb 24, 2004 | $0 |
| 0006 200407!000503!9700!HHM402!VIRGINIA CONTRACTING ACTIVITY !HHM40204A0011 !A!N! !Y!0006 ! !20040303!20050303!045867843!876861790!217304393!N!BAE SYSTEMS ENTERPRISE SYSTEMS!10400 EATON PLACE !FAIRFAX !VA!22030!26496!600!51!FAIRFAX !FAIRFAX (CITY) !VIRGINIA !+000001123376!N!N!000000000000!D399!OTHER ADP & TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES !S1 !SERVICES !000 !* !541511!E! !7! ! ! ! ! !99990909!C!E!N!N!Z!A!N!J!2!003! ! !Z!N!Z! ! !N!C!N! ! ! !A!A!A!A!000!A!A!N! ! ! ! ! ! !0001! ! | Department of Defense | Mar 3, 2004 | $0 |
| Above the outlier fence of $21,223,047423 awards, 5 shown | |||
| DOCDG133E09CN0094 THE PURPOSE OF THIS MODIFICATION IS TO DEOBLIGATE UNEXPENDED FUNDS FROM CLIN 0212. | Department of Commerce | Apr 10, 2026 | $1,828,143,138 |
| W9128Z26FA001 CDAO MSS TASK ORDER OFF OF CONTRACT W519TC25D0039 | Department of Defense | Nov 21, 2025 | $877,194,477 |
| HR001121F0006 MULTI-NETWORK SUPPORT SERVICES (MNSS) | Department of Defense | Mar 31, 2026 | $816,412,874 |
| 47QFMA21F0003 ENTERPRISE MISSION INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SERVICES (EMITS) | General Services Administration | Oct 29, 2020 | $676,625,825 |
| HQ085224F0005 LABOR: OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE | Department of Defense | Mar 18, 2026 | $627,971,275 |
Questions about this benchmark
- What do federal software development contracts usually come to?
- The median current award value is $1,093,649, across 4,403 comparable awards in the snapshot computed Oct 22, 2026. Half of the awards in the sample were worth less.
- How much do software development award values vary?
- The middle half of awards ran from $189,522 to $3,746,775. One in ten was below $45,129, and one in ten above $8,959,017.
- How has the software development median changed over the past year?
- No change is published. Oct 22, 2025 to Oct 21, 2026 holds 2,782 awards against 371 for Oct 22, 2024 to Oct 21, 2025; a gap that wide reflects how completely the source records are loaded, not a change in the market.
- Who buys the most software development services in the federal government?
- Among agencies with enough awards to publish their own figure, Department of Defense has the most: 854 awards with a median of $2,424,505.
- Which states see the most software development awards?
- By place of performance, the states with the most published awards are Virginia (1,129), Maryland (834), and District of Columbia (824).
- Which awards are left out of this benchmark?
- As the records stand now, the benchmark leaves out 436 indefinite delivery vehicles, 1,985 awards with no positive value, and 423 awards above the outlier fence.
- Is this a price per hour or per unit?
- No. Federal award records report the total value of each award, not hours, square feet, or units delivered. Two awards with the same value can buy very different quantities of work.
Related records
Derived from awards these records share, ordered by how many.
Industry codes in this category
- 541511 — Custom Computer Programming Services7,006
- 541512 — Computer Systems Design Services130
- 541519 — Other Computer Related Services79
- 541330 — Engineering Services5
- 541513 — Computer Facilities Management Services5
- 334111 — Electronic Computer Manufacturing4
- 541990 — All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services3
- 334220 — Radio and Television Broadcasting and Wireless Communications Equipment Manufacturing1
Product and service codes
- DA01 — IT AND TELECOM - BUSINESS APPLICATION/APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT SUPPORT SERVICES (LABOR)1,834
- D399 — IT AND TELECOM- OTHER IT AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS1,026
- DA10 — IT AND TELECOM - BUSINESS APPLICATION/APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT SOFTWARE AS A SERVICE500
- R499 — SUPPORT- PROFESSIONAL: OTHER498
- D302 — IT AND TELECOM- SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT259
- R408 — SUPPORT- PROFESSIONAL: PROGRAM MANAGEMENT/SUPPORT234
- DF01 — IT AND TELECOM - IT MANAGEMENT SUPPORT SERVICES (LABOR)216
- R425 — SUPPORT- PROFESSIONAL: ENGINEERING/TECHNICAL169
Buying agencies
Places of performance
- Virginia1,275
- Maryland920
- District of Columbia905
- California179
- Massachusetts168
- Texas149
- Georgia101
- Florida96
Further reading
- BidBenchmark Software Development Price Indexhow the median moves over time
- Guides to reading award data
- How benchmarks are computed
Related categories
Sources and method
Figures on this page are computed from public federal award records. Numbers are never estimated or generated; where a figure is withheld, the reason is stated rather than filled in.
Distribution of current award value across comparable awards. Indefinite delivery vehicles are excluded because their ceiling values are not comparable to individual awards. Values beyond 3 times the interquartile range outside the first and third quartiles are excluded, as are values of zero or less. A cohort is published only when at least 10 comparable awards remain after exclusions. Awards whose category classification is below the confidence threshold are excluded from these statistics.
- 1Computed from USAspending.gov, last refreshed Oct 21, 2026. Award records are United States Government works.
- 2Distribution of current award value across 4,403 awards classified into this category, as of Oct 22, 2026. Snapshot 660094ef0309, code aacf4584192a85d5.
- Source data refreshed
- 18 days ago
- Metric definition
- current_award_value@2026.08.1
- Definition hash
- 47e351283780691d
- Page evaluation
- seo@2026.10.1
Note 1 applies to every figure on this page. These are award values, not unit prices: federal award records report obligations and award values, not dollars per square foot or per hour.