The Best Business Grants in Illinois

City of Chicago

The Commercial Corridor Storefront Activation (CCSA) program is helping to revitalize 12 South and West Side business corridors through targeted improvements to underutilized and vacant commercial spaces.

Led by the Department of Planning and Development (DPD), the $30.5 million program is offering grants that fund up to 75% of eligible project costs for qualifying small businesses and property owners.

In addition to funding for storefront improvements, each corridor has a partner agency and technical service providers to assist with business-related tasks such as marketing, accounting and business planning, as well as project-specific tasks that include design and permitting.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$100,000

City of Chicago

The Chicago Community Development Grant provides funding to support business and neighborhood vitality across the City of Chicago through three tiers of grants based on project size. Administered by the City of Chicago's Department of Planning and Development, the program supports business-related real estate investments that create and maintain jobs and improve quality of life for local residents. Eligible applicants include business owners, property owners, non-profit organizations, community developers, and entrepreneurs, with funding available for office, retail, cultural, industrial, institutional, light manufacturing, and mixed-use projects anywhere in the City of Chicago. Across all three tiers, grants are issued on a reimbursement basis and may, at DPD's discretion, be offered as a forgivable loan or traditional loan rather than a grant. Eligible uses generally include construction hard costs, pre-development soft costs (such as design and site preparation), and property acquisition costs.

The Small Community Development Grant:
Provides grants of up to $250,000 to support commercial, mixed-use, and light manufacturing projects, funding up to 75% of total eligible project costs. Small grants are funded through the Housing and Economic Development (HED) Bond and prioritize projects with strong local impacts that leverage local talent, capacity, and institutions. Mixed-use residential projects are eligible, though residential costs cannot exceed 25% of the total grant amount and must be part of a broader building improvement. Disbursements are made at defined construction milestones.

The Medium Community Development Grant:
Provides grants from $300,001 to $5,000,000 to support moderate-scale commercial, cultural, industrial, institutional, social service, and mixed-use projects. Medium grants fund up to 50% of total project costs and are awarded through competitive, semi-annual funding rounds. The CDG-M includes a Local Residency Bonus for applicants whose primary residence and proposed project are both located within the Neighborhood Opportunity Fund's Qualified Investment Area.

The Large Community Development Grant:
Provides grants in excess of $5,000,000 to support significant commercial, cultural, industrial, institutional, social service, and mixed-use development projects. Large grants are intended to cover approximately 25% of total project costs and are issued as a lump-sum reimbursement upon project completion. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, with an initial DPD review within two to four weeks and final approval required from Chicago City Council.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$5,000,000

City of Chicago

The City of Chicago provides financial assistance for job training through the Workforce Solutions program. The program subsidizes training for incumbent workers and new hires for qualified Chicago businesses.

Reimbursement grants up to $250,000 may fund up to 100% of eligible expenses for businesses seeking to train current employees and/or new hires. Grants do not have to be repaid.

Workforce Solutions grants cover qualified trainings, including on-the-job (OJT) training, leadership development, technology skills, workplace safety and more. The primary funding source for the program is derived from qualifying Tax Increment Financing (TIF) districts and/or proceeds from the City's Housing and Economic Development (HED) Bond.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$250,000

ComEd

The ComEd Small-Medium Business Customer Relief Fund provides eligible small and medium-sized business customers in Illinois with one-time matching grants of up to $500 to help reduce past-due electric bill balances. Administered by ComEd, an Exelon company, the program is designed to support business customers facing financial hardship and help them remain connected to electric service while improving their long-term financial stability. The grant operates as a matching credit: customers first make a payment toward their past-due balance, and ComEd then matches the approved payment amount up to $500, applied directly to the customer's ComEd account.

Applicants may request up to 50 percent of their past-due balance, capped at $500, with any application exceeding that amount rejected. If the past-due balance exceeds $500, the customer remains responsible for the remaining amount. To qualify, applicants must be an independently owned and operated business with its principal office in Illinois, have 50 or fewer full-time employees, hold a commercial meter account with active service at the time of application, have a past-due bill balance, and have no unpaid tampering fees or pending bankruptcy. Home-based businesses and nonprofit organizations are not eligible (nonprofits typically qualify for separate relief funds offered by ComEd in alternating years). In addition to the bill credit, approved participants also gain access to a free facility assessment that identifies opportunities to lower energy costs through upgrades to lighting, HVAC, refrigeration, and other systems, along with available incentives to help cover the cost of those improvements.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$500

The Institute for Justice

The South Side Pitch is an annual Shark Tank-style pitch competition that awards over $40,000 in total cash prizes to small business owners on the South Side of Chicago. Hosted by the Institute for Justice (IJ) Clinic on Entrepreneurship at the University of Chicago Law School (a nonprofit clinic that provides free legal assistance, resources, and advocacy for underserved Chicago-area entrepreneurs), the competition is now in its 12th year and has awarded more than $291,000 to over 1,300 South Side businesses since launching.

Each year, over 100 applicants compete for one of five finalist spots, and all five finalists are guaranteed a cash prize at the end of the live event. The prize structure includes a $15,000 first place award, $10,000 for second place, $6,000 for third place, $3,000 for fourth place, and $1,500 for fifth place. Additional cash awards include the Audience Favorite Award ($1,500 for the finalist who receives the highest audience score), the South Side Sensation Award ($3,000 for the finalist who demonstrates exemplary social impact and showmanship), and the Rustandy Center Social Impact Award ($2,500 for a finalist selected by staff from the Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business).

Applicants apply during an open window each summer, with semifinalists selected from the applicant pool and asked to submit a video pitch. The public votes on the semifinalist videos to determine the People's Choice, who receives a guaranteed spot to compete in the final live event alongside the other finalists selected by IJ. Finalists receive pitch coaching from the IJ Clinic and pitching experts before delivering their pitches live to a citywide audience and a panel of judges at the Polsky Exchange North on the University of Chicago campus.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$15,000

IL DCEO

The intent of this program is to assist companies with large-scale capital investment projects that commit to significant job creation for Illinois residents as they relocate or expand operations within Illinois. Business Attraction Prime Sites grants can encompass a wide range of economic development projects and may include infrastructure and capital equipment purchases that will result in job creation in the state of Illinois.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$25,000,000

Cook County DES

The Cook County Department of Environment and Sustainability’s (DES) free Businesses Reducing Impact on the Environment (BRITE) program helps businesses reduce their environmental impact while creating a healthier environment for their employees, customers and community by offering on-site assessments to reduce pollution.

Once an assessment has been completed, eligible businesses will have the opportunity to apply for grant funding. This funding will go towards solutions that save money, reduce impact on the environment and modernize operations.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$500,000

Chicago Department of Planning and Development

The Small Business Improvement Fund (SBIF) provides reimbursement grant funding for permanent building improvements and repairs across the city.

Offered by the Department of Planning and Development (DPD) to tenants and owners of industrial and commercial properties, SBIF grants are funded by Tax Increment Financing (TIF) revenues in designated TIF districts citywide.

Program participants can receive grants to cover between 30 percent and 90 percent of the cost of remodeling work, with a maximum grant of $150,000 for commercial properties and $250,000 for industrial properties. The grant, which is administered by SomerCor on the City’s behalf, does not have to be repaid.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$150,000

Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce

A skilled workforce is essential to accelerating our economic recovery. The Chicagoland Chamber is committed to helping the region’s companies equip their employees with the skills needed to grow, thrive, and succeed. Since 2019, more than 93 companies have participated in this program, resulting in 3,325 employees expanding their skill sets.

Whether you work with one of our training providers, have an existing trainer you like to work with, or conduct internal training using company staff, you may be eligible to receive a 50% reimbursement through this program.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$10,000

Cook County Burueau of Economic Development

The Manufacturing Reinvented grant is a fully-funded opportunity tailored for Cook County manufacturers to enhance their production and sales, develop leadership, and train their workforce. It offers reimbursement for projects that focus on operational improvements, leadership and strategy development, sales and marketing growth, and workforce training.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$25,000

City of Evanston

The program is intended to assist in the growth of jobs in Evanston Illinois, through entrepreneurship, helping residents and local business owners to create jobs by starting and retaining sustainable small businesses.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$5,000

Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce

The IHCC Small Business Microgrant provides Illinois small businesses affected by federal immigration enforcement activities with grants of $5,000 to help cover essential business expenses such as rent, employee wages, and inventory. Administered by the IHCC Foundation, the 501(c)(3) arm of the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and supported by the Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust, the program is part of the IHCC's broader Resilient Communities Initiative, which is focused on helping small businesses in immigrant-heavy communities across Chicago and the suburbs weather reduced foot traffic, staff shortages, and other operational disruptions.

A total of 52 grants of $5,000 each are being distributed across three phases of funding, with each phase focused on specific communities throughout Chicagoland to equitably disperse funds across affected areas. Recent and upcoming phases have prioritized businesses located in Pilsen, Brighton Park, McKinley Park, Archer Heights, Back of the Yards, Little Village, Chicago Lawn, West Lawn, Berwyn, and Cicero.

To qualify, businesses must have been in operation for at least two years, be registered with the State of Illinois (either as an LLC in good standing or as a sole proprietor registered with the city or municipality), have 10 or fewer employees, and submit a copy of their business license. Only one business or location per owner is eligible. As part of the application, businesses must submit a written explanation (100 to 250 words) describing how the actions of immigration authorities have affected their business, including any documented loss of income and specific timelines (reduced foot traffic, drop in sales, reduced hours, event cancellations, or similar impacts). The strongest applications are those that clearly describe how the business was directly affected via loss of revenue.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$5,000

IL DCEO

The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity is issuing this Notice of Funding Opportunity (“NOFO”) to implement a capital grant program to support reproductive health care facilities in Illinois that are experiencing increased demand for their services.

Following the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v Wade in 2022, Illinois clinics have seen an influx of out-of-state patients, resulting in limited capacity and stress to reproductive health care service providers. To address the need to maintain and expand access to care, the Illinois Reproductive Health Facilities Capital Grant Program will help abortion providers in Illinois address their needs for capital investment. Grant funds may be used to invest in facility construction or durable equipment.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$500,000

IL DCEO

This program will provide a state match to companies that have received a Phase I award through a federal SBIR or STTR grant program. The maximum award under this program may not exceed $50,000. Seventy-five percent (75%) of the total grant shall be remitted to the business upon receipt of the SBIR/STTR Phase I award and application for funds. The remaining twenty-five percent (25%) of the total grant shall be remitted to the business upon submission by the business of the Phase II application to the federal funding agency and acceptance of the Phase I report by the federal funding agency. This program is utilizing state funds appropriated by the Illinois General Assembly to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.

$ GRANT AMOUNT

$50,000