SERVING WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT & EDUCATION AGENCIES
THE EPROCUREMENT PLATFORM WASHINGTON AGENCIES CHOOSE TO MODERNIZE PROCUREMENT
Built for the way Washington agencies buy, from one-person purchasing offices to full procurement departments, quote-based and formally advertised solicitations, locally funded or grant-supported projects. PlanetBids adapts to the requirements your agency operates under and keeps a complete, timestamped record of every invitation, bid, and award. Contact us to learn about cooperative purchasing options available to Washington agencies.
Washington agencies Cooperative purchasing options like the Interlocal Purchasing System (TIPS) are available to allow your agency to purchase PlanetBids without a new competitive solicitation. Ask our team about options for your agency type.
TRUSTED BY AGENCIES ACROSS THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST
From the Puget Sound and the Pacific Coast to the Cascade Range and the Northern Rockies, government agencies across the Northwest count on PlanetBids to run compliant, transparent, modern procurement.
CUSTOMER SPOTLIGHT
HOW THE PORT OF PORTLAND BOOSTED EFFICIENCY & TRANSPARENCY
- Eliminated manual-heavy processes – like email exchanges with suppliers and hard-copy contract award letters
- Reduced server support with a cloud-hosted SaaS system that required little to no IT intervention
- Procurements became easier for both the Port staff and the supplier community, with an intuitive system that allowed staff to acclimate quickly
- Vendors register for free and get automatic notifications for new opportunities, while giving the Port digital access to vendor records and certifications
- Evaluations were moved entirely online, allowing the Port to interactively conduct fair, confidential, and impartial evaluation processes.
"We set up a main number with PlanetBids that we could refer to any supplier needing assistance. Their customer service was outstanding and significantly helped with the transition. I can't think of a single time when a vendor was not assisted successfully and quickly."
Michael Smelser
Procurement Strategist, Port of Portland
WASHINGTON PROCUREMENT COMPLIANCE
BUILT FOR HOW WASHINGTON AGENCIES ARE REQUIRED TO BUY
Washington's small works roster system is a ladder, not a single fixed threshold. PlanetBids doesn't decide which dollar band a project falls into, set the roster ceiling, or determine what bid type applies, as those are the agency's own statutory determinations. But no matter what the requirement, PlanetBids produces a complete, timestamped, exportable record of roster invitations, bids, and awards for every procurement.
Small Works Roster Documentation
PlanetBids documents roster invitations, bid receipt, and award for projects run through the small works roster process, giving your agency a record of the process followed at whatever ceiling was in effect.
Competitive Roster Bid Compliance
PlanetBids centralizes the competitive bidding record required for projects in the roster's competitive bid band, keeping documentation consistent as the dollar range shifts under HB 2420's phase-in.
Interlocal Agreement Documentation
Keep your jurisdiction's piggyback and interlocal cooperation records organized and exportable, supporting the filing or online posting requirement that applies when your agency uses another jurisdiction's contract.
Certification Category Reporting
Tag and report vendor participation by OMWBE certification category (MBE, WBE, MWBE, CBE, SEDBE, PWSBE, and others), supporting your agency's own outreach and reporting goals.
Federal DBE/ACDBE Outreach Documentation
Support good faith effort documentation for federally-funded projects subject to USDOT DBE/ACDBE requirements, including during the reevaluation period following the October 2025 federal rule change.
Federal Procurement Threshold Documentation
Keep a documented record of informal and formal procurement records used on federally-funded purchases, supporting the "more restrictive of federal, state, or local rules" standard non-federal entities must follow.
COOPERATIVE PURCHASING
Cooperative Purchasing Options
Washington agencies may be able to purchase PlanetBids through an existing cooperative contract like the Interlocal Purchasing System (TIPS), eliminating the need for a new competitive solicitation. Ask your PlanetBids rep about available cooperative vehicles for your agency type.
PROCUREMENT EXPERTISE
NPI-CERTIFIED
PlanetBids is certified as an Achievement in Excellence in Procurement® (AEP) eProcurement Certified platform by the National Procurement Institute, meeting critical standards for Electronic Sourcing (AEP Criteria 7b) and Electronic Evaluations and Automatic Scorecarding (7c).
EVENT PRESENCE
INDUSTRY EVENT SPONSOR
PlanetBids is a proud member of NIGP and a regular attendee and sponsor of the annual NIGP Annual Forum, as well as attending annual American Public Works Association and Government Finance Officers Association event.
THE PLATFORM
EVERYTHING YOUR PROCUREMENT TEAM NEEDS, NOTHING YOU DON'T.
PlanetBids is a modular, end-to-end procurement lifecycle platform. Start with what you need and add modules as your agency grows.
Requests & Solicitations
Create, publish, and manage IFBs, RFPs, RFQs, and RFIs from guided templates. Get live countdowns, drag-and-drop documents, and real-time status tracking.
Vendor Management
Create a centralized vendor registry with real-time Empire State Development MWBE and SDVOB certification verification. Automated outreach by commodity code generates good-faith effort documentation for State Comptroller pre-audit packages and Empire State Development utilization reports.
Compliance & Audit Trails
Every action is timestamped and logged, with automatic bid tabulation, sealed bid verification, and complete documentation trails that hold up to protests – $50B+ processed, zero valid protests.
Contract Management
Centralize awarded contracts with automated expiration alerts, amendment tracking, and insurance certificate management so you ever miss a renewal or compliance deadline.
Project Evaluation
Multi-round scoring with unlimited evaluators, consensus or individual scoring modes, and exportable matrices supports complex RFP evaluations for capital projects and bond programs.
AI with Guardrails
AI tools are built specifically for public procurement, with the compliance controls government agencies require. Get faster drafting and smarter vendor matching, within the boundaries your policies demand.
Requests & Solicitations
Create, publish, and manage IFBs, RFPs, RFQs, and RFIs from guided templates. Get live countdowns, drag-and-drop documents, and real-time status tracking.
Vendor Management
Create a centralized vendor registry with real-time Empire State Development MWBE and SDVOB certification verification. Automated outreach by commodity code generates good-faith effort documentation for State Comptroller pre-audit packages and Empire State Development utilization reports.
Compliance & Audit Trails
Every action is timestamped and logged, with automatic bid tabulation, sealed bid verification, and complete documentation trails that hold up to protests – $50B+ processed, zero valid protests.
Contract Management
Centralize awarded contracts with automated expiration alerts, amendment tracking, and insurance certificate management so you ever miss a renewal or compliance deadline.
Project Evaluation
Multi-round scoring with unlimited evaluators, consensus or individual scoring modes, and exportable matrices supports complex RFP evaluations for capital projects and bond programs.
AI with Guardrails
AI tools are built specifically for public procurement, with the compliance controls government agencies require. Get faster drafting and smarter vendor matching, within the boundaries your policies demand.
THE VENDOR ADVANTAGE
MORE QUALIFIED BIDDERS, ZERO VENDOR PHONE CALLS TO YOUR TEAM.
A deep, pre-qualified vendor network and a dedicated support team handles vendors for you, so your purchasing office can focus on procurement, not vendor phone calls.
VENDOR
NETWORK
40K+ qualified vendors ready to bid on your solicitations
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Vendors are matched to your bids by commodity code, no manual outreach lists required
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Agencies typically jump from 3-4 responses to 10-12 submittals per bid after switching to PlanetBids
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Empire State Development MWBE and SDVOB classifications are built in to meet Washington's 30% MWBE utilization goals for state-funded projects
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Vendors can register and bid for free, removing the friction that keeps small businesses out
EXCLUSIVE
DEDICATED
VENDOR SUPPORT
We help your vendors so you don't have to
When a vendor has a question about your solicitation, how to upload documents, or how to register, they call us, not your purchasing office. Our dedicated vendor support team handles it directly so your team stays focused on procurement. For you, this means no more:
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Vendor registration help calls
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Document upload questions
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Bid submission troubleshooting
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Addenda & notification questions
Results: Fewer incomplete bids, more competitive responses, and hours back in your team's week, every single procurement cycle.
VENDOR NETWORK
40K+ qualified vendors ready to bid on your solicitations
-
Vendors are matched to your bids by commodity code, no manual outreach lists required
-
Agencies typically jump from 3-4 responses to 10-12 submittals per bid after switching to PlanetBids
-
Empire State Development MWBE and SDVOB classifications are built in to meet Washington's 30% MWBE utilization goals for state-funded projects
-
Vendors can register and bid for free, removing the friction that keeps small businesses out
DEDICATED VENDOR SUPPORT
We help your vendors so you don't have to
When a vendor has a question about your solicitation, how to upload documents, or how to register, they call us, not your purchasing office. Our dedicated vendor support team handles it directly so your team stays focused on procurement. For you, this means no more:
-
Vendor registration help calls
-
Document upload questions
-
Bid submission troubleshooting
-
Addenda & notification questions
Results: Fewer incomplete bids, more competitive responses, and hours back in your team's week, every single procurement cycle.
WHO WE ARE
Built by procurement professionals, for procurement professionals
PlanetBids was founded specifically for the public procurement industry, and we understand the needs of procurement professionals. That origin matters, as every feature, every workflow, and every support interaction are designed to reflect how actual purchasing teams manage work under budget pressure, public scrutiny, and legal compliance requirements.
Designed for public procurement since 2000
We're not an ERP company that added a procurement module. We're not a startup that pivoted into GovTech. We're not a big conglomerate chasing a new market. We are a 25-year-old company whose entire business is built around making procurement professionals more effective.
100% US-based support staff with procurement backgrounds
Our in-house support team includes people with real public procurement backgrounds. When you call with a question about sealed bid procedures or vendor protest prevention, you're talking to someone who has managed that process themselves and understands your issues.
A solid foundation of PlanetBids agencies
550+ agencies. 1,000+ users. 99% retention. Zero valid bid protests across $50B+ in contracts processed. Our company has stayed focused on one thing for 25 years, and we have the track record to prove it.
WHAT WASHINGTON PROCUREMENT TEAMS ASK US MOST
Can our Washington agency purchase PlanetBids without going through a new bid process?
Potentially yes. Depending on your agency type and purchasing thresholds, cooperative purchasing options may be available that allow Washington agencies to execute a contract without issuing a new competitive solicitation. Contact our team to discuss the procurement paths available for your specific agency. PlanetBids is available on the Interlocal Purchasing System (TIPS) as a cooperative contract .
If a direct procurement path is preferred, our team can provide pre-approved legal resolution language addressing common counsel concerns.
Does PlanetBids integrate with ERP systems?
Yes, PlanetBids provides API integration with most ERP systems. The integration passes awarded contract data, vendor information, and purchase requisitions between systems, eliminating duplicate entry while maintaining your ERP as the financial system of record.
PlanetBids handles the vendor-facing competitive bidding process, vendor management, bid solicitation, evaluation, and award, then pushes clean contract and vendor data into your ERP for encumbrance and payment processing. Most clients keep their ERP for accounting while using PlanetBids for the public procurement workflow.
We run our own small works roster. Can PlanetBids work with that, or do we have to change how we do things?
PlanetBids is set up to work with your agency's own process, not to replace it. Whether you maintain your own roster or use the MRSC statewide roster, your team keeps working the way it already does, and the invitations, bids, and awards are recorded as they happen.
Our requirements keep changing, from the HB 2420 roster increases to federal DBE updates. Does PlanetBids need to be rebuilt each time there's a regulatory change?
No. PlanetBids is built to adapt as your agency's requirements change and to record and timestamp your processes for audit reporting. The system helps you create and post solicitations, communicate with vendors, track and manage certifications and insurance, and perform transparent evaluations. It does not determine your regulations or processes for you, so it does not need to be reprogrammed when those requirements change.
We're a one-person purchasing office. Is PlanetBids too complicated for us?
Not at all. In fact, PlanetBids is scalable to fit any agency size and budget, including small or one-person offices. PlanetBids automates much of the manual processes that take up valuable time in the procurement process, streamlining the posting, vendor notification, and record-keeping that would otherwise be done by hand.
If we purchase PlanetBids through a DES contract or piggyback on another agency's contract, can PlanetBids keep that paperwork with everything else?
Absolutely. Interlocal agreements, usage agreements, and cooperative purchase records can be kept alongside your other solicitation files, so your whole procurement record lives in one place.
How quickly can we go live, and what does implementation cost?
Most agencies are up and running in just a few weeks, including all implementation, training, customization, integration, and vendor migration. In special cases, agencies facing tight deadlines for federal work can be live in as little as a few days. No additional IT resources are required for implementation or platform support. PlanetBids does issue a one-time setup fee that covers all implementation and training. We do not charge per-bid, transaction, or vendor fees.
How much does PlanetBids cost?
PlanetBids is an annual SaaS subscription pricing model with no per-bid, vendor, or transaction fees. Pricing is tiered based on desired features and functionality, the number of full users, and the number of solicitations posted per year. Pricing varies based on agency size, bid requirements, and budget. We recommend speaking with our sales team for a customized quote.
READY TO MODERNIZE PROCUREMENT FOR YOUR WASHINGTON AGENCY?
Book a 30-minute demo with a member of our dedicated public sector sales team. We'll show you the platform, walk through the TIPS contract process, and answer questions specific to your agency type.
Available on TIPS cooperative with no new RFP required
Works with your own process and adapts as compliance requirements change
US-based in-house support with extensive procurement expertise
Pricing is tiered, with options for any agency size and budget
99% client retention means our clients love us