Free grant application template

A grant application is not a general description of a good idea. It is a request to a particular funder, under particular rules, for a project you can explain, cost and deliver. A reusable document helps you prepare the answers, but the funder's instructions still decide what must be submitted.

This free grant application template gives you a working structure, a sample budget and a filled project example, all set out below section by section. Copy the headings into Word or Google Docs, or start from the ready-made grant application desk template in Plexii. Use it to assemble evidence and draft answers before moving them into the official form. It does not establish eligibility or guarantee funding.

If you want the guidelines, budget and writing together, download Plexii free. Plexii is free forever for personal use on Mac and Windows. The template also works as a standalone document, so you can start with the tools you already use.

1. Check eligibility and instructions before writing

The first section records the funder, programme, guideline version, entity eligibility, eligible activities and costs, request range, deadline, submission method, word limits, attachments and reviewer.

Fill this in before writing a polished project description. If the programme excludes your entity type or project location, better prose will not repair the mismatch. Ask the funder through its published enquiry route if a rule is genuinely unclear; do not assume an exception.

Record the closing time and time zone, not only the day. Also check whether attachments or endorsements take time to obtain. A partner letter that requires a committee meeting can become the longest dependency in an otherwise straightforward application.

Keep a copy of the guidelines you used and check for updates before submission. A remembered rule from last year's round is not a reliable substitute for this round's instructions.

2. Establish the organisation and its authority

The Organisation and authority section asks for legal name and status, registration where required, authorised contact, relevant delivery experience, governing approval and partner roles.

Use the legal entity that would enter the funding agreement. A project name, trading name and incorporated association name may be different. Check the relevant records rather than copying the most familiar name from a brochure.

Explain experience in terms of delivery: what you have run, who was responsible and what evidence exists. Do not inflate informal support into a formal partnership. If another organisation will provide a venue, facilitator or co-contribution, confirm that commitment and any conditions.

Keep banking details out of a broadly shared writing document. Supply sensitive information only through the funder's approved process when required.

3. Write a summary that agrees with the numbers

The Project summary records title, location, dates, amount requested, total cost and a one-sentence explanation of who benefits and what changes.

The document's fictional example is six community repair workshops over three months, for up to 30 participants. It requests $4,000 towards a $4,600 cash budget, with a $600 organisation cash contribution.

A useful summary might say: “We will deliver six two-hour workshops introducing local participants to basic repair assessment, with supervised activities appropriate to the facilitators' skills and safety arrangements.” That says what will happen without promising that every item will be repaired.

When the budget changes, return to this section. An application that asks for $4,000 in the summary and $4,600 in the form forces the assessor to guess which figure is intended.

4. Separate need from your preferred solution

In Need and evidence, describe the problem, who experiences it and how you know. Then explain why your activities are an appropriate response.

For the workshop example, the template suggests a local enquiry log and venue feedback as evidence to check and date. It does not provide invented counts. In your application, state what the records actually show and acknowledge their limits.

A request from several residents can establish interest, but it may not prove that everyone in the district wants the service. A national report can give context, but it may not establish local demand. Use each source for the claim it can genuinely support.

Avoid framing the organisation's desire to run an activity as evidence of community need. “We would like new equipment” becomes a funding argument only when you explain the service gap, the people affected and why the proposed cost addresses it.

5. Answer the assessment criteria directly

The Objectives and assessment criteria section asks you to copy each criterion's exact wording, prepare an answer, link evidence, name an owner and record the word limit.

That creates a practical review test: can a reader find the answer to every criterion without inferring it from another section? Use the funder's structure rather than forcing your preferred narrative onto the form.

For the repair project, an objective might be to deliver six sessions and offer participants a safe introduction to identifying an appropriate next repair step. That is more defensible than guaranteeing a reduction in household waste that you have no method to measure.

If a criterion asks about access, answer with concrete arrangements and costs. Do not rely on a sentence saying the project is inclusive while the venue, timing or participation process remains unexplained.

6. Turn activities into a deliverable sequence

The Activities and timeline section records activity, dates, responsible role, dependency and output. Work backwards from delivery and include the preparation people tend to omit.

For six workshops, the sequence could include confirming venue access, selecting appropriately skilled facilitators, checking safety arrangements, preparing participant information, opening registration, delivering sessions and reviewing feedback.

A venue booking is a dependency. A completed session is an output. A participant's improved ability to identify a next step is a possible outcome, not an activity. Keeping these distinct makes the project easier to cost and evaluate.

Check when the funder permits spending to start. Do not assume that costs incurred before approval can be reimbursed. If the timing does not work, revise the project rather than quietly starting at your own risk and presenting the cost as eligible later.

To keep the guidelines, budget and draft on one desk, download Plexii free.

7. Reconcile the budget and contributions

The Budget and contributions section includes a filled table with cost item, calculation basis, total, grant contribution and other cash contribution.

The fictional budget is: venue, six sessions at $200, totalling $1,200; facilitation, six at $300, totalling $1,800; materials, 30 kits at $20, totalling $600; access support, $600; and evaluation, ten hours at $40, totalling $400. Total expenditure is $4,600.

The grant pays $1,200 for venue, $1,800 for facilitation, $600 for materials and $400 towards access support: $4,000 in total. The organisation contributes the remaining $200 of access support and $400 of evaluation: $600. The two funding columns therefore reconcile to expenditure.

These figures demonstrate the arithmetic, not market prices. Obtain suitable estimates or quotes and follow the funder's rules on GST, contingencies and eligible expenditure. Specify the currency in your application.

The example records volunteer coordination separately as in-kind support, outside the cash total. Do not count donated time as cash income or count the same contribution twice. Distinguish confirmed funding from applications still awaiting a decision.

8. Explain results without promising what you cannot measure

The Results and evaluation section asks for output, intended outcome, baseline, indicator, collection method, reporting date and responsible role.

For the example, count sessions held and attendance, and offer optional feedback on confidence identifying a next repair step. Collect only the personal information you need and handle it under the rules that apply to your organisation.

Do not substitute attendance for proof of every wider ambition. Thirty places offered is different from thirty people attending, and attendance is different from a verified long-term change. Explain which results you can measure within the project's time and budget.

9. Plan for risk and what happens afterwards

In Risks and sustainability, identify the risk, its likelihood and impact, mitigation and owner. The workshop example depends on venue access, suitable facilitators and safety checks. A real plan needs a response if one of those fails.

Explain what happens after funding ends. You might stop after the defined series, seek a new funding source or continue at a smaller scale. Do not promise indefinite operation without a plausible resource plan.

If only partial funding is offered, revise the scope and budget with the funder. Quietly removing access support while claiming the original outcomes would change the substance of the proposal.

10. Review the attachments and submit carefully

The final section tracks required attachments, format, version, owner and completion. Check eligibility, word limits, totals, signatures and permissions before submission, then keep the receipt and a copy of what was sent.

The grant application desk template can help organise the working material. You can explore the workspace first in the interactive demo. The visual-thinker workspace shows a grant report with sections and feedback together. For related habits, see checking AI answers, organising work by project and the by-role collection. Any AI-assisted wording still needs your evidence and review.

Common questions

Can I submit this template instead of the funder's form? Only if the funder permits it. Usually this is a preparation document, and the official form and attachment instructions determine what you submit.

Are the example budget amounts recommended prices? No. They are fictional figures demonstrating a reconciled budget. Replace them with defensible estimates or quotes and follow the funder's cost and tax rules.

What if I have no numerical evidence of local demand? Use the evidence you have honestly, such as dated enquiries or consultation feedback, and explain its limits. Do not invent counts or present a small sample as the whole community.

Should volunteer time appear in the budget? Follow the funder's rules. Where in-kind contributions are allowed, identify them separately from cash and explain the valuation basis. Do not count the same support twice.

Can I reuse answers from an earlier application? Yes, after checking that the facts, programme criteria, dates, costs and word limits still apply. Reuse verified material, not assumptions about another funding round.

Does a strong application guarantee approval? No. Eligibility, competition, available funding and the funder's assessment all matter. A clear application makes your proposal understandable; it cannot guarantee the decision.