Federal Recompetes
Recompetes are the most predictable opportunities in federal contracting. Because most government work runs on multi-year contracts, every one of them eventually ends and gets re-competed — on a timeline that is usually public long before the RFP drops. If you know which contracts are expiring in your space, you can build a pipeline 12 to 18 months ahead of everyone waiting for the solicitation.
Why recompetes matter
When a contract is posted on SAM.gov as a new solicitation, the clock is already running — and the incumbent has had years to build the agency relationship. By the time the RFP is public, you are often too late to do anything but react.
Recompetes flip that. The expiration date of an existing contract is a signal you can act on months in advance: time to research the requirement, meet the contracting office, line up teaming partners, and shape your approach before the competition even knows the opportunity exists.
How to find expiring contracts
The raw data is public. Federal award records in USAspending.gov and FPDS include the recipient, award value, NAICS code, agency, and period of performance — including the base period and option years. Filter awards in your NAICS codes by end date and you have a list of upcoming recompetes.
- 1.Identify your NAICS codes. Recompetes only matter if they match what you do. Not sure which codes fit? Use the NAICS Code Finder.
- 2.Pull award history. In USAspending, search awards by NAICS and agency, then sort by period-of-performance end date to find contracts expiring in the next 12 to 18 months.
- 3.Research the incumbent. Who holds it, what they were paid, and where the gaps are. That tells you whether the recompete is winnable and how to position against them.
- 4.Engage early. Contact the contracting office, get on the list for industry days, and start shaping your approach before the RFP.
How GovSentry surfaces recompetes
Doing this by hand across thousands of award records is slow. GovSentry's cross-reference engine indexes 40,000+ historical federal awards and flags contracts nearing expiration in your NAICS codes — with the incumbent, the award value, and pricing benchmarks from comparable contracts attached. Recompete signals show up alongside active solicitations in your search results and pipeline.
And a deliberate design choice makes this work: expired and expiring opportunities are kept and marked, never deleted. The history is the point — you cannot plan for a re-award you can no longer see.
Go deeper
Two guides walk through the full recompete playbook step by step:
Frequently asked questions
What is a federal recompete?
A recompete is a contract that is coming up for re-award because the current contract is expiring. Most federal work is on multi-year contracts, so when they end, the agency re-competes the requirement. Recompetes are predictable because the expiration date is usually public well in advance.
How early can you find a recompete?
Often 12 to 18 months ahead. Award records in USAspending and FPDS include the contract end date and any option periods, so you can identify expiring contracts long before a new solicitation is posted on SAM.gov — giving you time to position before incumbents lock in the relationship.
Where does recompete data come from?
Primarily USAspending.gov and FPDS, which publish historical award data including the recipient, value, NAICS code, agency, and period of performance. GovSentry cross-references 40,000+ historical awards to flag contracts nearing expiration in your NAICS codes.
Does GovSentry delete expired opportunities?
No. Expired and expiring opportunities are kept and marked, never deleted. That history is exactly what makes recompete tracking possible — you need to see what is ending and when in order to plan for the re-award.
Build a recompete pipeline
Let GovSentry flag the expiring contracts in your NAICS codes automatically. Try the live demo, or start a free trial.