By Raees Rasool
A federal capability statement is one page that proves you qualify. Here is exactly what belongs on it, what to cut, and why the codes decide it. A capability statement is a market research input, not a brochure. Here is what belongs on the one page, what to cut, and why your codes decide whether a contracting officer ever finds you. A federal capability statement is one page that answers one question. Can this firm do this work, under this code, at this size. The reader is not shopping for a vendor. The reader is building a market research record and looking for a name to call. So the page carries your codes, your size status, two or three relevant contracts and a person's phone number. Everything else costs you the space those items need. The Federal Capability Statement Six blocks carry the whole document. A header with the company name and a named contact. A short core competencies block. Relevant past performance. Differentiators. Company data with codes and certifications. The contract vehicles you already hold. ! Two columns showing what to keep on a federal capability statement, UEI and CAGE, NAICS and PSC, size status, three relevant contracts and a named contact, against what to cut, mission statement, company history, DUNS number, client logos and rate tables (https://mhhifytmrlyksfrjacvi.supabase.co/storage/v1/object/public/blog-images/2026/10/federal-capability-statement-figure.png) Codes and contacts earn their space because the reader is counting firms that can do the work. NIH's industry-format capability statement template (https://oamp.od.nih.gov/sites/default/files/SBODocs/Contracting Capability Statement IndustryFormat.pdf) tells firms to aim for one page, one side, and to "Go to two sides only if absolutely necessary." It also says to distribute a PDF rather than Word or PowerPoint, to keep the file under 1 MB, and to keep margins small so the page works hard. Follow all four rules. A six-megabyte Word file with a cover page reads as a brochure, and a brochure goes in the bin. Who Actually Reads It Two people, usually. A contracting officer or contract specialist doing market research, and a small business specialist running a count. FAR 10.001(a)(3)(i) (https://www.acquisition.gov/far/part-10) tells agencies to use market research to "Determine if sources capable of satisfying the agency's requirements exist." FAR 10.002(b)(2) lists the techniques, and two of them put your page in the file. One is "Contacting knowledgeable individuals in Government and industry regarding market capabilities to meet requirements." The other is "Obtaining source lists of similar items from other contracting activities or agencies, trade associations or other sources." FAR 10.002(e) then tells the agency head to document the results "in a manner appropriate to the size and complexity
A capability statement is a market research input, not a brochure. Here is what belongs on the one page, what to cut, and why your codes decide whether a contracting officer ever finds you.
A federal capability statement is one page that answers one question. Can this firm do this work, under this code, at this size. The reader is not shopping for a vendor. The reader is building a market research record and looking for a name to call. So the page carries your codes, your size status, two or three relevant contracts and a person's phone number. Everything else costs you the space those items need. The Federal Capability Statement Six blocks carry the whole document. A header with the company name and a named contact. A short core competencies block. Relevant past performance. Differentiators. Company data with codes and certifications. The contract vehicles you already hold. ! Two columns showing what to keep on a federal capability statement, UEI and CAGE, NAICS and PSC, size status, three relevant contracts and a named contact, against what to cut, mission statement, company history, DUNS number, client logos and rate tables (https://mhhifytmrlyksfrjacvi.supabase.co/storage/v1/object/public/blog-images/2026/10/federal-capability-statement-figure.png) Codes and contacts earn their space because the reader is counting firms that can do the work. NIH's industry-format capability statement template (https://oamp.od.nih.gov/sites/default/files/SBODocs/Contracting Capability Statement IndustryFormat.pdf) tells firms to aim for one page, one side, and to "Go to two sides only if absolutely necessary." It also says to distribute a PDF rather than Word or PowerPoint, to keep the file under 1 MB, and to keep margins small so the page works hard. Follow all four rules. A six-megabyte Word file with a cover page reads as a brochure, and a brochure goes in the bin. Who Actually Reads It Two people, usually. A contracting officer or contract specialist doing market research, and a small business specialist running a count. FAR 10.001(a)(3)(i) (https://www.acquisition.gov/far/part-10) tells agencies to use market research to "Determine if sources capable of satisfying the agency's requirements exist." FAR 10.002(b)(2) lists the techniques, and two of them put your page in the file. One is "Contacting knowledgeable individuals in Government and industry regarding market capabilities to meet requirements." The other is "Obtaining source lists of similar items from other contracting activities or agencies, trade associations or other sources." FAR 10.002(e) then tells the agency head to document the results "in a manner appropriate to the size and complexity