How to Register on DemandStar: Contractor Guide (2026)

What DemandStar is

DemandStar is a bid network where public agency buyers post solicitations, broadcast them to registered suppliers, distribute bid documents, and receive electronic responses. DemandStar says more than 1,400 government agencies post directly on it, from towns and villages to cities and counties.

Start with who runs it. DemandStar's own announcement says DemandStar is now Euna OpenBids, a new name that reflects its future as part of Euna Solutions. The announcement says suppliers keep the same platform, login, and settings and do not need to take any action, and that agency postings now also reach the Euna Supplier Network. Registration and login still run through demandstar.com, and the About link on DemandStar's site now opens Euna Solutions' company page. DemandStar's Terms of Use, last updated April 12, 2021, still name DemandStar Corporation. Expect agency bid pages to use either name. The City of Bellmead, Texas, for example, lists its portal as Euna OpenBids (formerly DemandStar).

Next, who pays. DemandStar's FAQ states that it is free for governments and free for businesses, and that some businesses pay to receive more notifications at the county, state, or national level. Its supplier pricing page lists a free Basic Plan that covers notifications for a single procurement agency, plus paid County, State, and National plans. The same page says members can search the whole bid database for free, with a service fee to download a bid package outside your subscription area. We don't list DemandStar's prices here; see DemandStar's pricing page for current figures.

Finally, who sets the rules: each agency. DemandStar's agency guide shows that the agency decides whether a bid takes electronic responses, which documents bidders must upload, and when addenda and award documents go out. DemandStar's terms state that agencies decide supplier eligibility, that registering gives a supplier no special consideration, and that DemandStar makes no warranty about the accuracy or completeness of listings, so the solicitation documents always govern. For a broader view of where public construction work is posted, see our guide to finding government construction bids.

Bidding DemandStar projects? See matched public bids from thousands of portals free for 7 days so you can compare what DemandStar carries with the wider public feed.

Step 1 - Create your DemandStar account

Start at demandstar.com/registration, the supplier sign-up page that DemandStar's site and agency bid notices point to. DemandStar's site labels the link Register as a supplier on its contact page and Register for your FREE account on its business page. A 2025 registration flyer from Euna, posted by the City of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, describes four steps: choose your free agency, choose commodity codes, add more notifications or skip them, and complete your profile. You then click Finish Registration and receive an email to set up your password. DemandStar does not publish a field-by-field list of what the form asks for, so follow the screens as they appear and verify current steps on the official portal.

Use a company email address that someone on your estimating team watches every day. DemandStar's terms state that it emails suppliers about agency bids and addenda that match the commodity codes in their subscription, and that suppliers are responsible for keeping their email account working so those notices arrive.

Already registered before the rebrand? DemandStar's announcement says suppliers keep the same platform, login, and settings, so there is nothing to re-create. Its Business Support page links a password reset page if you need to get back in. Several steps below draw on DemandStar's supplier user guides from 2020 and 2021, which are still posted on its site. Screens may have changed since, so verify current steps on the official portal.

Step 2 - Choose your free agency

Choose the agency whose bids matter most to you, because DemandStar's free Basic Plan covers notifications for a single procurement agency. On the registration form, the Oshkosh flyer says to type the agency's name in the search box, select it, and click Next. DemandStar's 2020 supplier guide calls this your free agency and says that if you skipped it, you can add it later from the Subscriptions section under your account name. That guide also suggests starting with whichever agency is most active on DemandStar.

The choice affects document costs as well as notifications. DemandStar's pricing page says every plan includes free bid package downloads within the subscription area. The City of Oregon City, Oregon, tells vendors that its bid documents download at no cost when the City is their free agency. Oregon City also warns that if you already chose a different free agency, its opportunities are not included in your free access, and that other agencies require a subscription or a per-download payment. Before you pick, check which agency the owners you bid most often ask you to select.

Step 3 - Add commodity codes

Add commodity codes so DemandStar can match new bids to the work you do. DemandStar says it uses more than 9,000 keywords, called commodity codes, to match businesses to government bids, with no limit on how many you add and the freedom to change them at any time. Its agency guide describes the codes buyers use to build a broadcast list as NIGP commodity codes. DemandStar's 2021 supplier guide notes that you need at least a free, single-agency subscription before the commodity code system works.

DemandStar's help page describes the steps: click your name in the top right, choose Commodity Codes, click Edit, search by keyword or browse the list, check the box next to each code, and click Submit Commodity Code. To remove a code, return to the same page, click Edit, and use the trash can icon.

Agencies choose the codes when they broadcast a bid, so DemandStar's 2021 guide recommends casting a broad net. Search single trade words such as construction, paving, roofing, plumbing, or electrical, and add every code that fits. If a notice turns out to be irrelevant, DemandStar's onboarding page suggests checking the codes listed on that bid's details page and editing yours to match.

Step 4 - Decide on subscriptions and add your team

Decide whether one agency is enough or whether you need wider coverage. DemandStar's pricing page lists a County Plan for all DemandStar agencies in one county, a State Plan for all agencies in a state, with pricing that varies by how many agencies that state has on the network, and a National Plan for companies that work nationwide. Paid plans are billed annually; see DemandStar's pricing page for current terms. During registration, the Oshkosh flyer says you can click Continue without Adding Subscriptions to stay with your free agency, or select any mix of county, state, or national plans.

You can upgrade later. DemandStar's upgrade article says to open Subscriptions from the menu under your name, pick a state, and subscribe to the whole state or check individual counties, using View Agencies to see which governments each county includes. Payment is by credit card, and the article says the upgrade takes effect immediately. DemandStar's Terms of Use state that paid subscriptions renew automatically for the same length unless you cancel at least 30 days before the period ends, so put the renewal date on your calendar.

Give each estimator a login. DemandStar's 2021 guide says to open Account from the menu under your name, choose the User Accounts tab, click Add User, set the Receives Notifications toggle and permissions, and save. The new user gets an email to set a password. DemandStar's 2020 guide said added users carry no extra charge; verify current terms on the official portal.

Step 5 - Search for bids and download bid packages

Use the Bids tab to search solicitations across the whole DemandStar network, not only your subscription area. DemandStar's business page says you can search and filter all bids, including those outside your subscription area, and its pricing page says searching the database is free. DemandStar's 2021 guide suggests starting with the Commodity Code Matches box, narrowing by state with the Location filter, or picking an agency in the Government Agency filter. Searches default to active bids; remove the Active status filter to see bids under evaluation or awarded, which helps when you research past pricing. DemandStar's onboarding page also notes that notifications may not start right after setup, so search for active bids in the meantime.

Open a bid to reach its Bid Details page. DemandStar's onboarding page says that page shows how to contact the agency, who else may be interested in the project, and which commodity codes the agency used. Read the dates, any pre-bid meeting details, and how responses will be received before you download.

Download the plans, specifications, and forms with the Download Bid Package button that DemandStar's 2021 guide shows on the Bid Details page. Inside your subscription area, including your free agency, DemandStar's pricing page says bid package downloads are free. Outside it, the pricing page lists a per-package service fee, which a subscription covering that area waives. The City of Sanibel, Florida, tells vendors the same thing: a fee applies when you download without a subscription that includes the City. Oregon City advises vendors to keep their account settings in line with their agency preferences to avoid unexpected charges.

Step 6 - Track planholders and addenda

Once you have the bid package, watch your inbox and the bid page for addenda until bid day. DemandStar's agency guide tells buyers that once they upload an addendum, all planholders receive an email saying an addendum has been added to the bid. The guide says the same kind of notice goes out when an agency publishes a bid tabulation, and that award documents are emailed to every planholder and eBid submitter.

Planholder status can matter to the agency as well as to you. The City of Wasilla, Alaska, states that its planholder lists are kept current on DemandStar, and that a bidder must be on its official planholders list or the bid may be deemed non-responsive. Oregon City says a free DemandStar account with the City as your free agency lets vendors become plan holders and receive its notices at no cost. DemandStar does not publish a supplier-facing explanation of exactly when a firm is added to a planholder list or what contact details other users see, so download the bid package from your own login and verify current steps on the official portal.

Do not rely on email alone. Wellington, Florida, states that it does not guarantee bidders will receive email notifications, and that each bidder is responsible for checking DemandStar or contacting its Purchasing Division to find out whether addenda were issued. Open each addendum on the bid page and acknowledge it the way the solicitation requires.

How to find and submit a bid on DemandStar

Whether a bid takes electronic responses is the agency's choice. DemandStar's agency guide shows buyers answering yes or no to eBidding when they create each bid. DemandStar's 2020 supplier guide says many governments require or allow electronic bids, while others give delivery instructions in the bid itself. The City of Bellmead, Texas, for example, encourages bids to be submitted electronically through its Euna OpenBids portal by the deadline in the bid documents. Read the solicitation first; it, not the platform, tells you how to deliver your bid.

When a bid accepts eBids, DemandStar's business page describes the process as filling out a few fields, attaching your documents, and submitting, with the option to update your response until the due date. DemandStar's supplier guides lay out the steps: open the bid, click Submit eBid Proposal on the Bid Details page, check your contact information, upload each document the agency requires, review the response, and click Submit Response. Agencies can ask for one combined document or several separate uploads. DemandStar titles its supplier walkthrough How to Submit a Free and Fast eBid Response.

You can stop partway. DemandStar's 2021 guide describes a Save & Finish Later option and a Responses page where you can return to a draft and edit it. Before the deadline, open Responses again and confirm that the bid status shows Complete and that each required document shows as uploaded. DemandStar's guides say the agency can then download your response and see the date and time you submitted. DemandStar's terms state that it is not responsible for technical problems affecting your use of the site, so submit well before the deadline.

After the due date, DemandStar's agency guide says the bid moves to Under Evaluation. Agencies can keep responses sealed until the due date, and the guide says no one outside the agency's account can see the responses or their documents. Agencies can publish a tabulation sheet and post award documents, and planholders are notified of both.

Bid bonds and signatures follow the agency's rules. DemandStar's public pages do not describe a built-in bid bond or digital signature tool, so follow the solicitation's instructions and verify current steps on the official portal.

If you bid on several portals, compare this workflow with our guides to BidNet Direct registration, Bonfire registration, OpenGov Procurement, and CivCast registration. Federal work runs through SAM.gov registration. Our portal registration guides list every portal we cover, and our list of the best construction bidding software for 2026 compares broader monitoring tools.

How ConstructionBids.ai helps

ConstructionBids.ai brings public construction bids from thousands of portals into one searchable feed with deadline alerts, which can sit alongside your DemandStar routine. Keep checking DemandStar directly for the projects its agencies post there.

Creating a DemandStar account to download bid packages, track addenda, and submit bids is still required; we don't replace it. Use DemandStar for the bid package, planholder notices, addenda, and the eBid itself. Use ConstructionBids.ai to find the work across portals and keep bid dates in front of your team. If you are weighing DemandStar's paid plans, read our DemandStar review and alternatives. ConstructionBids.ai plans are $59, $79, and $99 a month, with a 7-day trial of Command. Start your free trial to see matched bids from thousands of portals.