GrantUp funding directory
UK grant finder: business and innovation grants
Find funding for UK start-ups, SMEs and growing businesses developing new products, processes and technologies. Compare Innovate UK, UKRI, Horizon Europe, regional and sector programmes, plus innovation loans. This is innovation funding, not support for general running costs; eligibility varies by call.
Built for founders, R&D leads and research partners. Each listing shows the funder, typical award size, who it suits best and any deadline, so you can compare funding amounts, applicant fit and timing side by side. Filter by sector, stage, region, award size and status, then check the official guidance for eligible costs, match funding and partner requirements.
22 listings from GrantUp's funding records and curated programme summaries, linked to official funders. Coverage is selective; closed rounds remain for reference. Open rounds appear first, but a missing deadline does not confirm availability. Check the funder's current guidance before applying.
Not sure where you fit? Use the eligibility checker, read the Innovate UK funding guide or see how to write a winning application.
Find your grant
Showing 1–12 of 22 programmes
- Closes in 129 days
Eurostars-3 (Eureka)
Eurostars
Funding for international collaborative R&D projects led by R&D-performing SMEs, run through multiple calls a year.
Max award£360,000Deadline5 Mar 2027Any sectorIndustrial R&DInternationalView grant details - Closes in 135 days
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European Innovation Council
EIC Accelerator
Funding and investment for high-risk, high-potential deep-tech SMEs and start-ups scaling breakthrough innovations.
Max awardUp to €2.5m grant plus equity investmentDeadline11 Mar 2027Any sectorLate stage & scale-upInternationalView grant details - Closes in 171 days
Horizon Europe
Horizon Europe Cluster 4: trustworthy AI
Thematic calls funding research into trustworthy, secure and human-centric artificial intelligence systems.
Max awardTypically €1m-€5m per projectDeadline16 Apr 2027AI & softwareIndustrial R&DInternationalView grant details - Closes in 352 days
European Innovation Council
EIC Pathfinder
Early-stage funding for collaborative research into breakthrough technologies of the future, including open and Challenge calls.
Max awardTypically up to €4mDeadline14 Oct 2027Any sectorFeasibilityInternationalView grant details - Open (rolling)
Advanced Research + Invention Agency
ARIA opportunity spaces
Rolling and programme-based funding for high-risk, high-reward research with the potential for transformative impact.
Max awardVaries significantly by programmeDeadlineRollingAny sectorFeasibilityUK-wideView grant details - Open (rolling)
Aerospace Technology Institute
ATI Programme (including SME strand)
Co-funded R&D grants supporting companies developing aerospace technology with a UK supply chain benefit.
Max awardGrant intervention typically 50-70% of eligible costsDeadlineRollingAerospaceIndustrial R&DUK-wideView grant details - Open (rolling)
Innovate UK
Biomedical Catalyst
Dedicated funding for UK SMEs developing innovative healthcare technologies, therapeutics and diagnostics.
Max award£4,000,000DeadlineRollingLife sciences & healthFeasibilityUK-wideView grant details - Open (rolling)
Innovate UK
Collaborative R&D (CR&D) competitions
Mission-led competitions under the Innovate UK plans (e.g. Clean Energy Superpower Mission) funding partnerships between businesses and research organisations.
Max award£2,000,000DeadlineRollingAny sectorIndustrial R&DUK-wideView grant details - Open (rolling)
European Innovation Council
EIC Transition
Bridges the gap between early research results and market-readiness, validating technology and building a business case.
Max awardUp to €2.5mDeadlineRollingAny sectorIndustrial R&DInternationalView grant details - Open (rolling)
European Institute of Innovation & Technology
EIT Health
Innovation Uptake and accelerator funding connecting health innovators with clinical and industry partners across Europe.
Max awardVaries by callDeadlineRollingLife sciences & healthIndustrial R&DInternationalView grant details - Open (rolling)
European Space Agency
ESA Business Applications & Space Solutions
Funding for satellite-enabled services, from feasibility studies through to demonstration projects, including earth observation and water management.
Max awardTypically €50k-€500k feasibility/demonstrationDeadlineRollingSpace & satelliteFeasibilityInternationalView grant details - Open (rolling)
Innovate UK / UKRI
Future Leaders Fellowships
Long-term fellowship funding for early-career researchers and innovators moving between academia and business.
Max award£2,500,000DeadlineRollingAny sectorFeasibilityUK-wideView grant details
Want to apply for more than one grant?
Our retainer clients get a dedicated grant pipeline: we track deadlines, match competitions to your roadmap, and manage multiple applications at once so nothing is missed.
Unsure where to start?
Tell us what you are building and we will point you to the competitions where you are genuinely competitive, before you spend time on an application.
How UK business grant funding works
Innovate UK
The largest source of competitive innovation grants for UK businesses, run through the Innovation Funding Service. Most competitions fund a share of R&D costs, so companies co-invest the rest.
Horizon Europe and the EIC
UK companies can bid for Horizon Europe collaborative projects and the EIC Accelerator, which suit ambitious, high-risk innovations with international reach.
UKRI, ESA and sector funders
Research councils, the European Space Agency, defence and health funders run targeted programmes for specific technologies and missions, often with fewer applicants.
Regional and local funds
Devolved governments and local growth programmes offer smaller grants for capital, productivity and early-stage innovation, sometimes alongside national competitions.
Innovate UK grants for businesses
Innovate UK grants fund feasibility studies, industrial research and experimental development, for single companies or collaborative consortia. Each competition publishes its own scope, award range and funding rate, with listed rounds shown alongside the specialist programmes in this directory. Our Innovate UK grant writers can tell you which round fits your project.
Almost every competition expects match funding, a clear technical advance and a credible route to market. Use the filters above to shortlist programmes, then check your eligibility before you commit time to an application.
Building a funding strategy from this directory
Balance national and regional funds
Flagship Innovate UK and Horizon Europe competitions attract the most applicants. Pairing one national bid with a regional or sector fund, where the field is smaller, spreads risk and can bring in earlier wins while larger decisions are pending.
Sequence by deadline and effort
A strong application typically takes 100 or more hours of specialist work. Shortlist two or three competitions whose deadlines are at least six weeks apart, so each bid gets proper technical and financial preparation rather than a rushed submission.
Match the funder to your stage
Early feasibility work suits smaller, faster competitions; later-stage development and demonstration suit larger awards with match funding. Filtering by stage and award size above keeps your shortlist realistic for where your technology actually is.
Companies that treat grants as a rolling portfolio, rather than a single bet, win more consistently. If you are planning several applications over the year, our Unlimited retainer covers a pipeline of bids for one monthly fee, and our case studies show how funded clients structured theirs.
Planning more than one bid this year?
The Unlimited programme is a monthly retainer covering a rolling portfolio of applications from this directory, with no separate writing fee per bid. Suited to UK businesses with an active R&D roadmap and match funding in place.
Deadline tracker
What is open right now, and how long you have left
Funder dates move, and the best applications are the ones started early. These are the UK and EU windows we are actively writing toward, with how much is on the table and a live clock to the cut-off.
Updated automatically from our live grant directory
| Programme | Funding available | Deadline | Time left | What to know |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EurostarsEurostars-3 (Eureka)Official page | UK contribution typically up to £360k per projectPer successful application | 5 Mar 2027Expected date, based on the published cycle | Closes in 129 daysEvery day counts, speak to us today. | Funding for international collaborative R&D projects led by R&D-performing SMEs, run through multiple calls a year. |
| EIC AcceleratorEuropean Innovation CouncilOfficial page | Up to €2.5m grant plus equity investmentPer successful application | 11 Mar 2027Expected date, based on the published cycle | Closes in 135 daysEvery day counts, speak to us today. | Funding and investment for high-risk, high-potential deep-tech SMEs and start-ups scaling breakthrough innovations. |
| Horizon Europe Cluster 4: trustworthy AIHorizon EuropeOfficial page | Typically €1m-€5m per projectPer successful application | 16 Apr 2027Expected date, based on the published cycle | Closes in 171 daysEvery day counts, speak to us today. | Thematic calls funding research into trustworthy, secure and human-centric artificial intelligence systems. |
| EIC PathfinderEuropean Innovation CouncilOfficial page | Typically up to €4mPer successful application | 14 Oct 2027Expected date, based on the published cycle | Closes in 352 daysEvery day counts, speak to us today. | Early-stage funding for collaborative research into breakthrough technologies of the future, including open and Challenge calls. |
Always confirm dates on the funder page before you plan around them. Competitions are amended and cycles shift.
Not sure which of these fits you?
Picking the wrong programme costs months. Our specialist team maps your technology, stage and timeline against live competitions and tells you honestly where you are competitive, and where you are not.
Guides to go with the directory
Pair your grant with R&D tax credits
R&D tax relief can recover part of the match funding a grant asks you to cover. Our R&D tax credit specialists plan both together. Use the R&D tax relief calculator to see what your spend could return, or read accountant vs R&D tax specialist.
Find the right grant, first time
Talk to us about your grant funding plans and we'll help you make it happen through effective, results-driven grant writing.