What is WOSB?
The WOSB Federal Contracting Program is the SBA set-aside for woman-owned small businesses, with a 5% federal government-wide contracting goal. Economically Disadvantaged WOSB (EDWOSB) is the parallel program for woman-owned small businesses whose owners also meet the economic disadvantage test. WOSB and EDWOSB firms compete for sole-source awards in industries where women are substantially underrepresented (the SBA publishes the eligible NAICS codes; the list is updated periodically).
Who qualifies
Contract types
How contractlinx helps
SAM.gov daily sync pulls every WOSB and EDWOSB set-aside into one inbox, filtered to your NAICS
Match score gives both WOSB and EDWOSB set-asides full credit when you hold either certification
Grants.gov sync includes SBIR Phase I funding with WOSB priority, surfaced as non-dilutive funding in the inbox
Gap analysis shows which competitors in your NAICS hold WOSB or EDWOSB and how much SBA-eligible work went through each set-aside last year
Common questions
EDWOSB is the economically-disadvantaged subset of WOSB. EDWOSB firms must meet the WOSB ownership and control criteria PLUS the economic disadvantage test (net worth, income, and asset caps). Some federal NAICS codes are open to all WOSB; others are restricted to EDWOSB only.
Self-certification ended in 2020. You must be certified through certify.sba.gov or by one of the SBA-approved third-party certifiers (NWBOC, USWCC, El Paso Hispanic Chamber, or WBENC). Without certification, set-aside opportunities will not score in your favor on contractlinx and you cannot win the awards.
SBA publishes the list at sba.gov; it covers industries where women are substantially underrepresented. contractlinx already filters set-asides by your NAICS and surfaces matching set-asides automatically. If your NAICS is not on the WOSB list, the match score will not show WOSB credit even when the cert is on your profile.