You all who have posted comments about, women and grants, have been very
helpful. Thank You.

HI BizResearcher, As per you statement - woman is a woman no matter her age or marital status-------it means there is on difference if she is below 18 or above 18, both will get the same advantage?

Your ability to get a grant - being a woman or not - is probably very limited. The few small grants that business owners might be able to receive are either too small to really help and very competitive. Governement cannot and do not provide grants to just any old business - they look for non-profits that serve certain missions - missions like helping the population at large. If your business only benefits you - you might just be wasting your time - time that can be better spent on finding something that will actually work for you.

i cant see the gov offering special grants on the basis of gender, raises a number of questions regarding favoritism and sexism. Think of it this way, if there was a govt sponsored grant for men only how would that go down? Private charities, community groups and the like are a different story - they can do what they like without looking bad and thats probably where you should look.

When it comes to loans and grants, a woman is a woman no matter her age or marital status. Most grants specifically for women-owned businesses tend to be for small amounts of money. If you live in the West, Zions Bank offers an annual competitive Smart Women grant for $3,000 or less. They are currently accepting applications through July 2. Depending on the product or service you offer, you may be able to register with the federal government and/or your state government as a 'disadvantaged business.' Businesses owned by women, minorities, and certain others may qualify for disadvantaged status.

I am adding one more question in above given question that ( Is there Grants out there for Women in Business ) so according to law women means ( unmarried girl, married girl, widow, divorcee) ?so is there diffrent different criteria for all of them getting loan for business?

Federal and state government agencies do not provide grants to women to help them start a business. Grants may be available from non-profits and private organizations, however, these are very rare and usually focus on helping minority women and women in economically disadvantaged communities. However, there are a limited number of loans available to specifically to help women start and expand their businesses. These loan programs are specifically for women entrepreneurs. You can also use the Loans and Grants Search Tool to get a full list of programs for which you might qualify.

Heidi,   Appreciate the info on grants for women in business.  Just what I've been looking for.  Another place to check out would be grants dot gov.

If you are looking for a great list of grants for women, WE Magazine for women recently posted a great resource: 125 Grants, Loans and Scholarships for Women ~ wemagazineforwomen.com/125-grants-loans-and-scholarships-for-women/. Happy Memorial Day,Heidi Richards Mooney, Publisher -- This post was edited to remove a commercial link. Read more about discussion best practices on Business.gov.