At a Glance

Program Name: Amex Shop Small Grants Program.

Funding Type: Competitive small business grant program supported by American Express and administered by Main Street America.

Funding Amount: More than 500 grants of 20,000 USD each, totaling over 10 million USD in funding.

Application Deadline: Applications open from Saturday, November 29, 2025, to Friday, January 16, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. CT.

Program Focus: Support for small businesses to grow, innovate, and strengthen their local communities.

Location: United States – focused on small businesses operating in local communities across the country.

About the Program

The Amex Shop Small Grants Program is a national small business grant initiative created through a partnership between American Express and Main Street America to champion small businesses that help local economies thrive. It builds on American Express’s Shop Small and Small Business Saturday efforts, expanding the impact through direct grants that enable small businesses to implement ready-to-execute growth and community-impact projects.

Program Benefits

• Funding Support: Direct grants of 20,000 USD to more than 500 small businesses, providing meaningful capital for growth, innovation, and community-focused projects.
• Capacity Building: During the six?month grant period, recipients can access self-guided e-learning courses and networking opportunities with other grantees.
• Visibility & Storytelling: Grantees have opportunities to share the story of their business and project journey with diverse audiences, helping raise their profile and showcase local impact.

Eligibility & Key Expectations

• Eligible Entities: Small businesses that align with the program’s mission of strengthening local communities; full eligibility details are provided in the program Terms and FAQs documents.
• Project Readiness: Applicants are expected to submit a “ready-to-execute” project plan with a detailed, itemized budget that can be completed within a six?month grant period.
• Reporting: Grant recipients must complete their projects within April–September 2026 and submit a final grant report by October 15, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. CT.

Application Timeline

• Applications Close: Friday, January 16, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. CT.
• Grant Recipients Notified: March 2026.
• Grant Period: April 2026 – September 2026 (6 months).
• Grant Reports Due: Thursday, October 15, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. CT

Apply Here

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Option 5 – Done-for-You Grant Writing or Accelerator/early-stage funding support: Let our expert team handle the full process for you—from writing to submission. We’ve helped others win over $50 million in funding. Starts at NGN150,000 or CA$299/year, and it comes with a Success Guarantee—if you don’t get shortlisted, we’ll keep applying for you until you do.

Option 6 - Monthly Done-with-You Funding Support: A guided, low-commitment monthly plan for founders who want to test the waters before going all-in. You get basic ongoing support so you’re never stuck or alone, but without the big upfront fees of our annual or DFY tiers.

If this sounds potentially interesting to you, these are some of the things to do:

• Join our free WhatsApp community with funding updates
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