Proposal preparation · Checked November 9, 2026

Prepare grant proposals from template to final draft

Start from one of seven free templates or from a saved grant, write section by section with your team, and check the draft against what the funder asked for. When it's ready, download it as Word or PDF and submit it through the funder's own portal.

Start a proposal freeBrowse the templates

Free to start, no card. After you sign up, a Grant Proposal draft opens in the writing workspace.

From first outline to the file you submit

Seven free templates

Grant Proposal, Executive Summary, Statement of Need, Cover Letter, Letter of Intent, Evaluation Plan, and SMART Goals & Objectives Worksheet. Each opens as a draft with one section per part and a prompt under each, and prompts that ask for your organization's details are filled in from your profile.

Start a draft from a template

A writing workspace built on sections

Write one section at a time. Sections save a few seconds after you stop typing, each keeps a version history, and a review status of Not reviewed, In review or Complete shows where every section stands.

Applications and the writing workspace

AI writing help on paid plans

On Essentials and up, each section has Generate and Refine, plus Expand, Condense, Review, Guided and Ask AI. A model tier menu offers Fast on Essentials, Standard from Team, and Premium from Organization for longer, more careful drafts of large proposals. Team adds the proposal assistant, which starts a grant's draft from an AI outline.

What the funder asked for

On Team and up, paste the funder's instructions, add a link, or upload the PDF or Word file, and GrantCue lists the questions, word or character limits and attachments it finds, quoting the funder. You keep what you tick. On Essentials and up, "Check with AI" in the Compliance Tracker marks each requirement covered, partly covered, not found or can't tell, quoting your draft.

Track a funder's requirements on a saved grant

Reuse what you've written

Copy sections from an earlier draft into a new one for another grant, and keep reusable answers in the Content library to insert as you write. On Essentials and up, import answers from a past proposal (Word or PDF, up to 3 MB and 60 pages) and approve each one.

Community data for the statement of need

Census figures for up to 10 counties you serve, each beside its state and the US with its margin of error and source table. On Essentials and up, save the study, export it, and let the AI writer use the figures. Free shows a preview that isn't saved.

Community data in the help center

  • Approvals. Require sign-off, at one or more levels, before a grant moves to Submitted.
  • Word and PDF downloads. Open sections save first, and a download stops if a save fails.
  • Budget builder. Line items with a total, and an AI budget narrative on Essentials and up.
  • Sample proposals. Four annotated examples in the help center, from a federal research narrative to a budget justification.
  • Documents. Uploads checked against VirusTotal's malware records, or links to Google Drive and OneDrive.
  • Comments. Comments and @mentions on each grant, so review notes stay with the work.
The list of seven proposal templates, each with its number of parts, with example data
Start from a template: seven templates, each with its number of parts. With example data.
The writing workspace with a draft's sections on the left and the funder requirements panel on the right, with example data
The writing workspace: a draft's sections, with the funder's requirements beside them. With example data.
A grant's funder requirements, each on its own card with its review status, with example data
Funder requirements: what the funder asks for, each with its review status. With example data.
The Downloads menu offering the draft or an application brief as Word or PDF, with example data
Downloads: the draft or an application brief, as Word or PDF. Downloading never submits anything. With example data.

What GrantCue does not do

  • GrantCue does not send your application. You submit it in the funder's portal or by its stated method, then record the submission so My grants and your reminders stay accurate.
  • AI output is a draft. Check names, numbers and claims against the funder's instructions before you use it.
  • "Check with AI" reports what your draft covers. It does not decide eligibility or whether the application meets the funder's submission rules.
  • A requirement marked Reviewed means someone on your team checked it against the instructions you recorded. It is not approval from the funder.

Who uses it

Grant writers

Start from a template, keep reusable answers in one library, and check each draft against the funder's questions and limits before you submit.

Development directors

Require sign-off before a grant moves to Submitted, see each section's review status, and keep drafts, documents and comments on the grant's record.

Consultants with several clients

Keep each client's drafts in that client's workspace, and copy sections you have already written into a new draft for another of its grants.

Research offices and public agencies

Turn a long funding notice into a list of questions, limits and attachments on Team and up, track each one against the current instructions, and route the final draft through approval levels.

What each plan includes

The templates, the writing workspace, approvals and Word and PDF downloads are on every plan, including Free. AI writing tools start on Essentials.

PlanWhat it includes
FreeTemplates, the writing workspace, approvals and downloads, a Community data preview, and 3 AI summaries of funding notices a month. No AI writing tools.
EssentialsAI writing tools at the Fast tier, "Check with AI", answers imported from past proposals, and saved Community data studies the AI writer can use.
TeamEverything in Essentials, plus the Standard tier, the proposal assistant and reading the funder's instructions.
OrganizationThe Premium tier, for longer, more careful drafts of large proposals.
EnterpriseEverything in Organization, plus SSO/SAML single sign-on.

Free to start, no card. Every new workspace gets the Team plan for 14 days, then the Free plan. See full pricing

How to start

  1. Create your account. Sign up free with Google, Microsoft or your email, no card. A Grant Proposal draft opens when you're in.
  2. Write each section. Replace each bracketed prompt with your own text. On paid plans, ask the AI for a first pass and edit it.
  3. Link the draft to a grant. When you know the funder, link the draft to a saved grant so its deadline and the funder's requirements come with it.
  4. Check it against the requirements. Work through the Funder requirements and the Compliance Tracker until each required item is covered.
  5. Download and submit. Download the draft as Word or PDF, submit it in the funder's portal, then record the submission in GrantCue.

Questions buyers ask

Does GrantCue submit my proposal to the funder?

No. Download the draft as Word or PDF and submit it in the funder's own portal or by its stated method. Then choose "Record external submission" with the method, date and confirmation reference, so My grants and your reminders stay accurate.

Will the AI write the whole proposal?

On Essentials and up, Generate drafts a section, and Refine, Expand and Condense rework what you have. What it writes is a draft: check names, numbers and claims against the funder's instructions, and edit it before you use it. Free has no AI writing tools.

Can GrantCue read the funder's instructions for me?

On Team and up, yes. Paste the text, give a link to a public page or PDF, or upload a PDF or Word file up to 15 MB, and GrantCue lists the questions, limits and attachments it finds in the funder's own words. Only the items you keep are saved. Pages behind a sign-in can't be read. On every plan you can paste up to 20 funder questions at once and track them by hand.

Can my team review a draft before it goes out?

Yes. Each section has a review status (Not reviewed, In review or Complete), and comments with @mentions sit on the grant. An approval rule can require one or more people to sign off before the grant moves to Submitted.

Can I use my past proposals?

Yes. On every plan you can copy sections from an earlier draft into a new one. On Essentials and up, import a Word or PDF proposal (up to 3 MB and 60 pages) into the Content library: GrantCue splits it into reusable answers in your own wording, and you approve each one.

What is on the Free plan?

The seven templates, the writing workspace with autosave and version history, approvals, Word and PDF downloads, a Community data preview, and 3 AI summaries of funding notices a month. AI writing tools start on Essentials.

Read more in the help center

Start your next proposal from a template

Free to start, no card. Every new workspace gets 14 days of Team, so you can try the AI writing tools and the reading of the funder's instructions before you choose a plan.

Start a proposal freeSee pricing

Deadline and report trackingAll features