Why 90,000 euros is a threshold that matters
Below 90,000 EUR excl. VAT, the buyer's advertising obligations are lighter: the consultation can be limited to adapted publicity, or even a restricted competition. Direct consequence: these contracts are less visible, hence less contested. Companies that detect them often face 2 or 3 competitors, where a formalized tender attracts 10.
The data confirms the size of the goldmine: 198,885 awards below this threshold between 2020 and 2026, i.e. 36% of contracts with a declared amount. Median at 48,713 EUR: contracts a small business can deliver alone, without consortiums or out-of-reach references. And 67.3% of these contracts go through the adapted procedure.
Which sectors concentrate these small contracts
Volume of awards under 90,000 EUR by major family (2020 to 2026), and the share this segment represents within each family:
- Construction works (CPV 45): 69,561 awards, 33% of the sector's contracts
- Architecture and engineering (CPV 71): 27,108 awards, 38% of the sector
- Business services (CPV 79): 10,666 awards, 42% of the sector
- Medical equipment (CPV 33): 8,861 awards, 40% of the sector
- Maintenance (CPV 50): 6,243 awards, 37% of the sector
- Training (CPV 80): 3,347 awards, 44% of the sector, proportionally the most accessible family
In other words: in training, business services or medical supplies, about 4 contracts in 10 are decided below 90,000 EUR. Details are available on our sector tender pages.
Who wins these contracts, and how
Three traits distinguish the companies that perform on this segment.
They detect early: below 90,000 EUR, with lighter advertising, automated multi-source monitoring makes the difference between seeing the tender and never hearing about it.
They respond fast and well: 67.3% of these contracts are short-deadline MAPA; a complete file and a targeted proposal delivered on time beat a brilliant offer delivered late.
They industrialize: at a 48,713 EUR median, you cannot spend 30 hours per response; AI-assisted production of the technical proposal and administrative documents brings the cost per bid down to a profitable level even on small contracts.
Methodology
Source: France's essential public procurement data (DECP, open data), consolidated by Maître AO. Extraction on 30 July 2026, period 2020 to 2026. Scope: 552,948 awards with an amount strictly positive and below 100 million EUR, of which 198,885 below 90,000 EUR excl. VAT. Adapted-procedure share computed on awards with a declared procedure.
Since the DECP does not exhaustively cover small contracts (declaration thresholds, variable declaration quality), the real goldmine below 90,000 EUR is likely larger than the declared volumes. Figures freely citable with attribution: source Maître AO, DECP data.