RFP Vs RFQ Vs IFB: What Each Government Solicitation Asks You To Do
Short answer: an RFQ (Request for Quotation) asks for a price quote, and your quote is not a binding offer. An IFB (Invitation for Bid) asks for a sealed bid that is opened publicly, and the lowest responsive bid from a responsible bidder wins. An RFP (Request for Proposal) asks for a full proposal that is scored against evaluation factors, where price is one factor among several. An RFI (Request for Information) asks for information only, and no contract comes from it.
Each one changes what you write, how much you write, and what decides the winner. Here is how to tell them apart and respond to each.
The Quick Comparison
RFI | RFQ | IFB | RFP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
What It Asks For | Information | A quotation | A sealed bid | A proposal |
Can It Lead To A Contract? | No | Yes, through a purchase order or contract | Yes | Yes |
Is Your Response A Binding Offer? | No | Usually no (a quote is not an offer) | Yes | Yes |
How The Winner Is Picked | No winner | Price, or price plus other factors stated in the RFQ | Lowest responsive bid from a responsible bidder | Best value, using the evaluation factors |
Talks With The Government? | Allowed | Allowed, flexible | No discussions after opening | Possible, if the RFP says so |
Typical Form | None required | SF 1449 or SF 18 | SF 33, SF 1447, or SF 1442 for construction | SF 33, OF 308, or SF 1449 for commercial buys |
RFI And Sources Sought: Information Only
A Request for Information is market research. Under the rewritten FAR Part 15, an RFI must say the government does not intend to award a contract from it, and responses are treated as information, not proposals. A Sources Sought notice works the same way: the agency is checking who is out there, often to decide whether to set the work aside for small businesses.
How to respond: short and specific. Show you can do this exact work, list relevant past contracts, state your business size and any SBA certifications you actually hold, and answer every question asked. A tight response can help shape the real solicitation.
RFQ: A Request For A Quote
An RFQ is the government asking what you would charge. Under the rewritten FAR Part 12 used by most agencies since 2025, commercial buys up to $9 million normally use an RFQ followed by a purchase order. The rule is clear on what a quote means: neither your quotation nor the government's purchase order forms a binding contract on its own. The purchase order is the government's offer, and a contract is formed when you accept it in writing or by performing.
Contracting officers have broad discretion in how they evaluate quotes. Some RFQs are price only. Many add technical capability and past performance.
How to respond: follow the RFQ's instructions exactly, fill in the price schedule completely, answer any technical or past performance questions it asks, and sign the form it provides (often the SF 1449). Keep it lean, but do not skip anything the RFQ requires.
IFB: Sealed Bidding, Lowest Responsive Bid Wins
An Invitation for Bid uses sealed bidding. Bids are opened publicly at the set time, and the rules say the contracting officer must award to the responsible bidder who submitted the lowest responsive bid, unless there is a compelling reason to cancel.
Two words decide everything:
Responsive: your bid complies in all material respects with the invitation. Change a term, skip a required form, or qualify your price, and the bid can be thrown out.
Responsible: you are capable of doing the work (resources, record, integrity). This is checked about the low bidder before award.
There are no extra points for a better approach. You either meet every requirement, or you do not.
How to respond: fill in every price, sign the bid form, include every required document (bid bond, insurance certificate, licenses), acknowledge every amendment, and do not add conditions or exceptions. State and city governments use IFBs heavily, sometimes under names like Invitation to Bid or Request for Bids.
RFP: A Proposal Scored Against Factors
A Request for Proposal is a negotiated acquisition. The government evaluates proposals against the factors stated in the solicitation (usually Section M) and selects the best value. That can be the lowest priced technically acceptable offer, or a higher priced offer whose advantages merit the extra cost, depending on the method the RFP states.
RFPs are where writing matters most: technical approach, management plan, key personnel, past performance, and price, each organized the way the instructions (usually Section L) require. Our guide to Section L and Section M explains how to read the two together.
How to respond: build a compliance matrix, write to the evaluation factors, back every claim with specifics, and treat the forms and price as pass or fail items.
What About A Combined Synopsis/Solicitation?
On SAM.gov you will often see a notice type called "Combined Synopsis/Solicitation." It is common for commercial buys. The notice text itself is the solicitation, and a separate written solicitation will not be issued. It will say whether it is an RFQ, RFP, or IFB, and list the provisions and clauses that apply. Read the full notice and its attachments as carefully as you would a 100-page RFP.
How To Tell Which One You Have
Read the title and the form. The SF 1449 has boxes marked RFQ, IFB, and RFP. The SF 33 marks sealed bid or negotiated.
Read the evaluation language. "Lowest responsive, responsible bidder" means sealed bidding. "Best value," "tradeoff," or a list of factors means a proposal.
Read the notice type on SAM.gov. Sources Sought and RFI notices are not solicitations.
A Simple Rule For Each
RFI: prove fit, briefly.
RFQ: follow the instructions and price every line.
IFB: be complete and unconditional. Lowest responsive price wins.
RFP: answer every factor, prove every claim, and make your strengths easy to find.
How GradeTheBid Helps
GradeTheBid reads the solicitation and tells you how the winner will be picked before it grades anything. For RFPs and scored RFQs, it rates your draft from Outstanding to Unacceptable. For low-bid IFBs, where quality is not scored, it runs a pass or fail Responsiveness Check that flags missing prices, signatures, bonds, and forms.
Get Your Free Proposal Grade
Whatever the solicitation type, find out what is missing before the deadline.
No credit card. No win promises. Just a clear list of what to fix before you submit. GradeTheBid never submits anything to the government. You download your files and submit them yourself.
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Keep Reading
LPTA Vs Best Value Tradeoff: How The Government Picks A Winner
How To Bid On Government Contracts: A First-Time Bidder Checklist
Sources
FAR Overhaul Part 12 (12.201-1, Simplified Procedures And RFQs; 12.202, Combined Synopsis/Solicitation), Acquisition.gov
FAR Overhaul Part 14, Sealed Bidding (14.305, 14.306-1), Acquisition.gov
FAR Overhaul Part 15 (15.101, Requests For Information; 15.103, Source Selection Approaches), Acquisition.gov
A note on rule numbers: in 2025 the federal government began rewriting the Federal Acquisition Regulation (the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul). Most agencies now use overhaul deviation text, and the formal rule was still in progress in October 2026, so a section number in your solicitation may differ from the one cited here. When they differ, follow your solicitation. GradeTheBid is not a law firm, and this article is general education, not legal advice.
