Best Research Grants Software

Struggling to find grants to support your research efforts? 

Even though at times it may seem like there’s no funding out there, there probably is—and there are a number of research grants software and search tools designed to connect you with it.

In this article, we will break down the top research grants software and analyze their main features and benefits, drawbacks, and user experiences, allowing you to make an informed choice for your institution’s fundraising needs. 

Let’s get started!

So what is research grants software anyway? 

Research grants software are specialized systems and online tools designed to help universities, individuals, and other research institutions identify funding that is relevant to their research, often guiding them through the stages of the grant lifecycle. 

Research grants software is key to helping you find and secure funding specific to your research project’s needs.

However, not all grants software are the same. Keep reading and we will walk you through what to look for. 

There are a few key features that a user should look for in research grants software:

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• Comprehensive Grants Database: Finding grants that are well-aligned with your highly specified research can be a major challenge. A comprehensive grants database allows you to search for grants using specific keywords and geographic information to narrow down your search and find the opportunities that are most appropriate for you. 

• Automation of repetitive tasks: As a research professional, you no doubt know that repetitive tasks, such as data entry, can be a significant time constraint. Research grants software that help you stay on task through automation—such as sending reminders about deadlines and changes to funding priorities—is vital to saving you time and keeping you organized. 

• Integration with existing systems: Finding research grant software that seamlessly integrates with other types of software will help you centralize key information and data, keeping it in one easy-to-find place. 

• Scalability and customization: Research grant software that allows for customization will help you manage and assign tasks, track data, and adhere to disparate reporting requirements without totally reinventing the grant process. Moreover, software that allows you to scale and expand your projects as needed will be helpful for research that evolves and changes overtime. 

• A user-friendly interface and stellar customer support: All great research grants software will feature a user-friendly interface and offer holistic customer support. With tools that are easy to find, identify, and use, coupled with a team of experts ready to help you, you will be able to take on even the most difficult grant applications and projects. 

If you can find research grants software that incorporates all of the above, you can rest assured you will be well positioned to identify and tackle any and all grants that come your way. 

So you now know what to look for in research grants software. But where do you even begin? 

Don’t worry—we are here to help! Here are a few of the best options broken down by features, drawbacks, and user experience. 

Instrumentl

Instrumentl makes it easy to find research grants, track your progress, and manage your awards all in one place. 

Instrumentl is an end-to-end grants platform that combines grant discovery, tracking, and management into one comprehensive, centralized system.

Features 

Instrumentl prioritizes efficiency, combining Smart-Matching search algorithms, streamlined workflows, and collaborative project management tools all in an easy-to-use interface. 

Some of Instrumentl’s top features include: 

• A comprehensive grants database of over 390,000 funders and 15,000+ active grant opportunities 
• Project management tools, including grant tracking, tasks, document storage, and more 
• Holistic system of customer support tailored to users’ needs 
• Educational resources including webinars, e-books, and guides

What really makes Instrumentl stand out is its Smart Matching algorithm. When you go to search for funding, Instrumentl will automatically curate a list of best-fit grants for you based on your specific funding needs, including: 

• The size of grants you’re looking for
• What you will use the funding for 
• Where you are located 
• What kind of organization you are 
• What your focus area is
• And more

This is great for research grants, helping users identify funding for highly specific needs by narrowing the scope of the search as much as necessary. 

For a more in-depth look into this Smart Matching system, check out this guide: Research Grants For Nonprofits: How to Find Them Fast.

Drawbacks 

Instrumentl is a powerful and premium tool—which is reflected in its price. There are lots of cheaper grant search tools on the market, but none that provide the same kind of ROI that Instrumentl does. 

As a comprehensive and end-to-end solution, thousands of satisfied users have found success with the platform. 

User Experience

Channa Prakash, Tuskegee University’s Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences has noticed huge gains since the University has started using Instrumentl. Instrumentl has helped his team find grants quickly and raise a great deal more money for the University:

“At Tuskegee University we do not have a great deal of resources or staff to find information on their own or subscribe to expensive databases. Instrumentl provides information in a very timely manner…I have been able to raise over $100,000 in the past couple of years using Instrumentl.”

Instrumentl’s holistic platform is a great option for any University or research institute looking to enhance their grantseeking capacity and win more grants. You can check out more success stories on our website. 

Altum.com

Altum is a cloud-based platform designed specifically for research grants. 

While Instrumentl’s scope is very broad, serving nonprofits of varying size, focus, and reach, Altum is a platform that is designed specifically for research grants. 

Features 

Altum is a cloud-based software platform that optimizes the research grants lifecycle. 

Altum offers: 

• Online application software,
• AI-based decision support resources, 
• Streamlined workflows, and 
• Collaborative tools to ensure you and your team are supported at every stage of a grant—from pre-award to post-award. 

Altum’s application software, ProposalCentral, allows for integration with ORCID (Open Researcher and Contributor ID) to stay connected with the researcher ecosystem. Through this tool you can track researchers’ accomplishments and seamlessly evaluate program impact. 

Altum is one of the largest research-specific grants software on the market, with over 872,500 users and $28.5 billion in funding secured through the platform. 

Drawbacks

While Altum and its ProposalCentral tool have grant research capabilities, some of the database’s most basic features require subscribing to their higher membership tier. The following tools are only available with ProposalCentral Plus:

• Notifications for new funding opportunities;
• Immediate access for researcher applications; and
• Automatic notifications for overdue tasks and proposal deadlines. 

Some of these features may be vital to your organization’s process so be sure to consider the return on investment when subscribing to Altum’s ProposalCentral system. 

User Experience

Altum works with a number of major Universities, colleges, and research organizations, including Trinity College Dublin. 

Trinity’s International Projects Officer, Gill Marmelstein says: 

“ProposalCentral Plus is brilliant. It gives me advance notice for when things are happening so I can plan my day better. The system alerts me whenever we have a new application. And the product is just easy to use.”

Cayuse

Cayuse is a great platform for institutions who require significant support during the pre-award phase of the grant lifecycle. 

Cayuse is designed to support organizations throughout the pre-award process for research grants.  

Features

Cayuse’s system helps organizations build out a robust pre-award process including grant discovery, proposal development and submission, budget creation, and compliance risk assessment. 

Through system integration, Cayuse helps users validate proposals and secure approval and signatures from key personnel. 

Drawbacks

Some users note that Cayuse does not provide substantial support for collaboration across its platform, with challenges using the platform synchronously. 

Furthermore, their Fund Finder tool, which helps users identify grants, offers only 22,000 opportunities—significantly less than some of the other platforms. 

User Experience

Cayuse has helped university and research organizations find great success with their system. Jennifer Mills, Senior Grants Specialist at The University of Alabama, was particularly satisfied with the number of applications they were able to submit: 

“[Cayuse’s] Proposals give us a way to get those errors right away and make the corrections before we even submit. The amount of proposals that we submit only increases every year with Proposals. That wasn’t always the case before.”

This platform is particularly effective for universities and institutions who are managing multiple federal or government grants that have substantial pre-award and post-award processes. 

SPIN 

SPIN’s database can help you locate funding to support your research. 

SPIN Database from infoED Global connects faculty, students, and staff to grants targeted to a variety of research types. 

Features

SPINS’s system tracks over 40,000 grant opportunities including: 

• Federal grants, 
• State grants, 
• Private foundation grants, 
• Commercial/corporate grants, 
• And more. 

SPIN employs text searching tools and filters to help users narrow their searches and identify opportunities that are most relevant. 

SPIN also offers full integration into the infoED system of platforms, facilitating seamless processes and collaborative workflows for organizations who already utilize infoED software. 

Drawbacks

While SPIN is a great tool for researchers, it is not as expansive as some of the other resources listed here. SPIN offers a database of approximately 40,000 opportunities across public and private grant opportunities, which is a significantly smaller pool than other software available on the market. 

User Experience

SPIN has a history of working with a variety of academic institutions. Donna Gilmore, Director of Research and Sponsored Programs at Florida Gulf Coast University was satisfied with SPIN’s ability to connect users to funding: 

“SPINPlus has been a great resource for our investigators, faculty, and students in their quest to find funding.”

SPIN is a fine tool for Universities and other educational institutions who want simple software that is designed to work with those types of organizations. However, SPIN does not have as robust a portfolio of services as some of its competitors like Instrumentl, Cayuse, or Altum.

In addition to using a dedicated grants research software system, there are a number of best practices you can take to improve your chances of finding funding:

Connect With Your University’s Research Coordinator

Are you working for a major university or other academic institute? 

Most universities have research centers (sometimes known as the Office of Research) that exist to support students and faculty in all grant-seeking endeavors. Consider making an appointment with your university's research coordinator to gain support finding grants or help accessing the office's other services (e.g. libraries, resource centers, etc). 

Use Medical Subject Headings as Keywords

When it comes to grant research, keywords are, well, key! Be strategic about which keywords you use and how you use them to narrow your search to find as many best-fit opportunities as possible. 

In research, Medical Subject Headings can be an easy way to find grants fast. Medical Subject Heading (MeSH) are Medical keywords organized and produced by the National Library of Medicine. If you or your organization are focused on medical research, refer to this website to identify strong keywords to use when looking for grants to support bio-medical and health related research. 

Subscribe to Funding Newsletters

Last but not least, make sure you are up to date on your funder subscriptions!

Most foundations have an email newsletter that you can subscribe to and receive up-to-date information about current and forthcoming RFPs. If you are subscribed to a funder’s newsletter you may be the first to know about a new opportunity or a change to deadline that may not be readily available on their website or even in a research grant software system.

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Depending on your research needs, priorities, and scope, you can determine the level of support you require in the grant research and management phases and identify which software may be right for you. 

Ready to learn more? Look no further than Instrumentl! 

With Instrumentl, you can find research-specific funding fast and effectively. Create an account today to sign up for a 14-day free trial.