NAICS Codes: Who You Are
NAICS (North American Industry Classification System) codes are six-digit numbers that describe what kind of business you are. They answer the question "what industry are you in?" Examples: - 541512: Computer Systems Design Services - 236220: Commercial and Institutional Building Construction - 561720: Janitorial Services - 541330: Engineering Services When you register in SAM.gov, you select the NAICS codes that describe your business. This matters for two reasons: **Small business eligibility.** The SBA sets different size standards for different NAICS codes. A company with $30 million in revenue might qualify as a small business under one NAICS code but not another. Your small business status (and your ability to compete for set-aside contracts) depends on which NAICS code applies to a specific opportunity. **Discoverability.** Contracting officers search for vendors by NAICS code when doing market research. If you are not registered under the right codes, you will not show up. NAICS codes are hierarchical. The first two digits represent a sector (like 23 for Construction), the third digit narrows to a subsector, and so on down to the six-digit level. Some contracts use five-digit codes, which are broader.
PSC Codes: What You Sell
PSC (Product Service Codes) are four-character codes that describe what the government is buying. They answer the question "what product or service is this contract for?" PSC codes are alphanumeric: - Codes starting with a letter are services (like R425 for Engineering/Technical Support Services) - Codes starting with a number are products (like 7010 for Computer Equipment) Examples: - D302: IT and Telecom Systems Development - S201: Housekeeping Services - Y1JZ: Construction of Miscellaneous Buildings - H961: Electrical Equipment Repair The difference matters: NAICS codes describe your business type, PSC codes describe what is being purchased. A single contract will have both. Your janitorial company (NAICS 561720) might bid on a housekeeping services contract (PSC S201).
FSC Codes: The Legacy System
FSC (Federal Supply Codes) are the older version of product codes, still used in some contexts. They are essentially a subset of PSC codes focused on physical products. If you see an FSC code, treat it like a PSC code for products.
Why These Codes Matter for Finding Contracts
On SAM.gov, you can filter opportunities by NAICS code or PSC code. This is supposed to help you find relevant contracts. In practice, it is hit or miss. The problems: - Contracting officers sometimes assign the wrong codes - Broad codes return thousands of irrelevant results - Narrow codes might miss opportunities where a related code was used - You can only filter by one code at a time on SAM.gov If you are a contractor with multiple NAICS codes (say you do both construction and engineering services), you have to run separate searches for each code and then manually combine and deduplicate the results.
How Funding Landscape Makes Code-Based Search Better
Funding Landscape lets you search across all your NAICS codes at once. If your business holds five NAICS codes, you can filter for opportunities in all five simultaneously, then narrow results by other criteria like set-aside type, agency, location, or deadline. The search also handles the messy reality of federal data. We aggregate from SAM.gov and other sources, filter out closed opportunities, and extract structured information from listings that helps you quickly evaluate whether something is worth pursuing. Real example: A search for NAICS 236220 (Commercial Building Construction) returns active solicitations from the Army Corps of Engineers, VA construction projects, DOE facility upgrades, and state-level opportunities that match the code. Instead of running the same search on five different platforms, you see everything in one place.
Finding the Right Codes for Your Business
If you are not sure which NAICS codes apply to your business: **Start with the Census Bureau's NAICS search** at naics.com or census.gov. Enter keywords describing what you do and see which codes come up. **Look at what your competitors use.** Search for companies similar to yours in SAM.gov's entity search and see which NAICS codes they have registered. **Check historical contract data.** Sites like USASpending.gov and FPDS let you search contracts by keywords. Look at what NAICS and PSC codes were used for contracts similar to what you would bid on. **Do not over-register.** Some businesses list dozens of NAICS codes thinking more is better. It is not. Contracting officers get suspicious when a small company claims to do everything. Focus on codes where you have actual experience and capability. For PSC codes, the official PSC Selection Tool helps you find the right codes for products and services. The PSC Manual has the full list with definitions.
Using Codes with AI Search
If you connect an AI assistant to Funding Landscape (via fundinglandscape.com/mcp), you can search in plain language and the AI will handle the code translation. For example: "Find construction contracts for HUBZone businesses in Kentucky" will return results filtered by relevant NAICS codes (236xxx), set-aside type (HUBZone), and location (Kentucky) without you having to specify each filter manually. The AI also remembers your business profile. After you tell it your NAICS codes once, it automatically filters future searches to match. You describe what you are looking for; it handles the code mapping.
Try a Search
Ready to find contracts by NAICS or PSC code? Search open opportunities on Funding Landscape or connect your AI assistant at fundinglandscape.com/mcp. For pricing and plan details, visit fundinglandscape.com/pricing.