You have a project, a funder in mind, and a blank page. The first thing most people look for is a grant proposal template, something that tells them what goes where and how long it should be. A standard one has seven parts: a cover letter, executive summary, need statement, project description, goals and objectives, organizational information, and a budget. This guide walks through each part, with a filled-in example you can adapt.
But a template is only half the answer. The right proposal is the one your funder asked for. A federal agency may want a long, tightly structured application. A small local foundation may want a clear email and nothing else. Knowing which one you are dealing with can save you a weekend of writing the wrong thing.
Below you will find the standard template, an example, how to learn from published samples without copying them, and how to approach a small funder that has no form at all, including the Miami County Community Foundation, where the email is the application.
What a Grant Proposal Template Covers, Section by Section
Most full proposals follow the same shape. Candid’s guide to writing a grant proposal names six core parts: an executive summary, a need statement, a project description, goals and objectives, organizational information, and a budget. Candid’s separate list of common proposal documents adds a short cover letter.
Each part answers a question the funder is already asking:
- Cover letter: Who is writing, and what are you asking for?
- Executive summary: Can I understand the whole request in one paragraph?
- Need statement: What problem does this solve, for whom, and how do you know?
- Project description: What exactly will you do, and when?
- Goals and objectives: What will be different when it is done, and how will you measure it?
- Organizational information: Why should I trust you to do it?
- Budget: What does the money pay for, line by line?
Order matters more than people expect. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in its tips for preparing grant proposals, warns that reviewers “are accustomed to finding information in specific places.” If a funder gives you an order, use it, even if it differs from this one.
A one-page nonprofit grant proposal template
A free grant proposal template is really just these headings with a prompt under each. Copy them into a blank document and fill in the brackets:
- Cover letter. [Funder name] · [Date] · One paragraph: who you are, what you are asking for, [amount], and who to contact.
- Executive summary. Three to five sentences covering the need, the project, the people it serves, and the ask. Write it last.
- Need statement. The problem in your community, with one or two facts you can source.
- Project description. What you will do, where, when, and who will run it.
- Goals and objectives. Two or three outcomes you can count or observe.
- Organizational information. Your mission, your track record, and your tax status.
- Budget. Each cost, what it buys, and any other money already committed.
That is a complete non profit grant proposal template. Everything a funder adds on top, such as attachments, forms or signatures, will be spelled out in their own guidelines.
A Grant Proposal Example You Can Adapt
If you have never seen one, the easiest way to answer “what does a grant proposal look like?” is to read a short one. Here is a grant proposal example for the two sections people find hardest, the executive summary and the need statement. The brackets stand in for your own facts. Never borrow someone else’s numbers.
Executive summary. [Organization name], a [town]-based [type of organization], requests $[amount] to run [project name], a [length]-week program that will [what it does] for [who it serves]. The project fills a gap no one in [town] is filling today: [one-line need]. With this support, we expect to [measurable outcome] by [date].
Need statement. In [town], [describe the problem in plain terms]. [One sourced fact, such as a school, county or census figure, with its source.] Families currently [what they do instead, and why it falls short]. [Organization name] is placed to help because [your track record or relationships].
Notice what the example does. It names one project, one amount and one group of people. It states the need before the solution. And the only facts it uses are ones the writer can show a source for.
That last point is where most first drafts go wrong. A need statement padded with national statistics tells a local funder very little. One well-sourced local fact does more work than five general ones.
How to Use a Grant Proposal Sample Without Copying It
Reading a real grant proposal sample is one of the fastest ways to learn the form. Several good libraries are free:
- The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders publishes sample grant applications from funded researchers, alongside the reviewers’ summary statements.
- Candid offers free samples of four common proposal documents: a letter of inquiry, a cover letter, a proposal budget and a full proposal.
Use them for structure and tone, not wording. The NIDCD page carries its own caution: the samples “may not reflect changes in format or instructions,” and applicants should “always follow your funding opportunity’s specific instructions for application format.”
A few habits help:
- Read the reviewer comments, not just the proposal. They show what the funder actually noticed.
- Note how much evidence each section carries. Strong samples keep claims short and sourced.
- Write your own sentences. A funder reading your proposal wants to hear your organization, not a stranger’s.
When the Template Is Too Much: Small Funders and Letters of Inquiry
Not every funder wants a full proposal. Candid notes that some ask for a letter of inquiry “in lieu of a full grant proposal,” where you “just need to write a few pages.” If you do send a full proposal, a short grant proposal cover letter introduces it.
Small local funders can be simpler still. Some have no application form and no set cycle. Sending them a twenty-page proposal will not make your case stronger, only slower to read.
Before you write anything, find out five things:
- Does the funder have a form, or a written set of guidelines?
- Is there a deadline or cycle, or are requests accepted year-round?
- Where must the project take place?
- Do they require 501(c)(3) status? You can check your own record in the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search.
- Who should you contact with questions?
If the answers are not published, ask. Funders expect questions, and a short call or email is how you avoid sending the wrong document. For the view from the other side of the table, see our eight tips for grantmaking.
How to Apply to the Miami County Community Foundation Without a Grant Proposal Template
The Miami County Community Foundation in Paola, Kansas, is one of those small funders. It has no grant application form, and that is on purpose. As Executive Director Tammy Booe puts it: “That is a feature, not a gap. We do not have a form.” Her reason is scale: “we’re just not big enough yet to have a grant cycle.”
Email is the application. A phone call to (913) 404-7287 is for questions only. The email should cover four things:
- What the project is, and what it will do in Miami County
- How much you are asking for
- Whether your organization is a 501(c)(3)
- Who is asking, and how to reach you
The address to send it to, and the four points in the Foundation’s own words, are in the How to apply panel on the Grants and Scholarships page.
A sample application email
Here is the whole template, reduced to what this funder asked for:
Subject: [Project name]: request for support in Miami County
Hello Tammy,
I’m writing on behalf of [organization name] to ask for support for [project name]. The project will [what it does] for [who it serves] in [town], Miami County, starting [date].
We are asking for $[amount], which will pay for [what the money buys].
[Organization name] [is / is not] a 501(c)(3) organization.
I’m [your name], [your role]. You can reach me at [email] or [phone].
Thank you for considering it.
That is four short paragraphs. If you have already drafted a full proposal for another funder, your executive summary will usually supply the first two.
What the Foundation supports
Eligibility depends on the program, not on the Foundation as a whole. Three grant programs are open:
- Avelyn SonShine Journey, for churches or youth groups. It does not award money. It gives away children’s bibles.
- Shifting Gears, for public or private schools, including schools outside Miami County. It funds direct suicide-prevention training.
- Stomp Out Suicide, for public schools in Miami and Linn County. It funds suicide-prevention work, including speakers at schools, teacher training outside the district, and counseling paid for individual students.
If your project fits none of the three, it is still worth an email. The board considers other projects case by case. The amount available that way is modest, and the project must take place in Miami County, though the people running it do not have to live there. You can read about the programs and the other named funds on the Foundation’s funds page.
There is no fixed award size, because it depends entirely on the project. Tammy’s own illustration: “Do you want five Bibles or do you want 500 Bibles?” Requests are accepted year-round, and a decision comes about one month after the application is received.
One note on wording. The Foundation is particular about how it describes what it pays out: “We don’t call them grants. We call them donations or contributions.”
FAQ: Grant Proposal Templates
How long should a grant proposal be?
As long as the funder asks for, and no longer. Candid describes a letter of inquiry as a few pages. Some small local funders, including the Miami County Community Foundation, want a short email covering four points.
Is there a free grant proposal template?
Yes. The seven headings above make a complete one, and Candid publishes free sample documents. But always check whether your funder has its own form or guidelines first, and use those instead.
Do I need to be a 501(c)(3) to apply for a grant?
It depends on the funder, so read their guidelines. Funders often ask about it. The Miami County Community Foundation asks whether your organization is a 501(c)(3) as one of its four points. You can confirm your status in the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search.
What does a grant proposal look like?
A full proposal usually runs cover letter, executive summary, need statement, project description, goals and objectives, organizational information, and budget, in that order unless the funder says otherwise. A letter of inquiry compresses the same ideas into a few pages.
Scholarships work differently from grants: the guide to local scholarships in Miami County covers how students apply, with essay examples for local scholarships and a guide to college scholarships for seniors.
Conclusion
A grant proposal template is useful because it makes you gather the same few facts every funder needs: the need, the project, the ask, the budget, your status and your contact details. Once you have those facts, the format is the easy part. A long proposal and a four-paragraph email are built from the same material, shaped to what each funder asked for.
So write the facts once, then read the guidelines before you choose the shape. If your project is in Miami County, start with the email. See how to apply to the Miami County Community Foundation.
