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Guides
Plain-language guides to EU public procurement, from finding your first tender to writing a bid that scores.
23 guides
New to public tenders? Read these in order.
How public procurement works in the EU and how to bid well.
What public procurement is, who buys, which EU rules apply and why it's worth bidding. A plain-English starting point for SMEs new to public tenders.
Where public tenders are published in Europe, how TED and national portals differ, and how to set up searches and alerts so you never miss a tender.
A field-by-field guide to tender notices: buyer, CPV, lots, estimated value, deadlines, procedure and award criteria, and what to check before you bid.
Open, restricted, competitive procedure with negotiation, competitive dialogue, innovation partnership, frameworks and DPS: how each EU procedure works.
EU procurement thresholds valid 1 Jan 2026 – 31 Dec 2027 for works, supplies, services, utilities and concessions, and how below-threshold tenders work.
What CPV codes are, how the 8-digit structure works, the main divisions, and how to choose codes that find the tenders you can actually win.
The European Single Procurement Document explained part by part, plus exclusion grounds, selection criteria and which certificates the winner must provide.
What MEAT means, how price and quality are weighted, how scoring formulas work and how to win points in EU public tenders.
A practical method for public tender bids: bid/no-bid, compliance matrix, clarification questions, technical offer, pricing and submission.
How SMEs can bid together in public tenders: consortia, subcontracting and relying on another company's capacities under EU rules.
What happens after you submit a public tender bid: evaluation, clarifications, award decision, standstill period, debriefing and remedies.
How to bid for public contracts abroad: language, equivalent certificates, e-Certis, e-signatures, national platforms, partners and VAT.
How framework agreements, call-offs, mini-competitions and dynamic purchasing systems (DPS) work in EU public procurement, and how SMEs win them.
Plain-English definitions of EU public procurement terms: CPV, ESPD, MEAT, lots, framework agreements, DPS, standstill, eForms, TED and more.
Make the most of search, alerts, the pipeline and the bid assistant.
Set up Nutcracker in 15 minutes - search tenders, save searches with alerts, create your organisation and start tracking bids with your team.
How Nutcracker's search works - meaning-based search in any language, filters for country, sector, notice type and CPV, search links and the notice page.
Get new tenders delivered - save a search, choose instant, daily or weekly e-mails or push, tune alert volume and teach alerts with feedback.
Track every tender your team works on - stages from Watching to Won, assignees, labels, tasks, go/no-go scorecards and automatic change tracking.
Prepare a bid for tenders from Spain, Italy, France and Germany - requirements with sources, a checklist, drafts, checks, export and a submission guide.
Keep certificates, registrations and insurance in one place, see what bids in each country need with Ready to bid?, and get expiry reminders.
See public contracts that end in the coming months, who holds them, the last price and when the buyer is likely to tender again - before the notice is out.
Create an organisation, invite colleagues, understand Owner, Admin and Member roles, switch organisations and share tenders in encrypted conversations.
What Free, Pro and Business include, how the 14-day trial works, how bid credits and the weekly AI allowance are counted, and who manages billing.