By Outrider Editorial Team · Updated August 20, 2026
Official definition
This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in software publishing. Establishments in this industry carry out operations necessary for producing and distributing computer software, such as designing, providing documentation, assisting in installation, and providing support services to software purchasers. These establishments may design, develop, and publish, or publish only. These establishments may publish and distribute software through subscriptions and/or downloads.
FY2025 obligations
$1.5B
Contract actions
5,095
IDVs
226
Top buying agencies
- Department of Defense$1.1B
- Department of Transportation$73.0M
- Department of the Treasury$65.8M
- Department of Homeland Security$49.9M
- Department of Veterans Affairs$45.4M
FY2025 federal contract obligations, USAspending.gov
NAICS 513210 obligated $1.5 billion in FY2025 across 5,095 contract actions. DoD is $1.08 billion, DOT $73 million, Treasury $66 million, DHS $50 million, VA $45 million. That total is only part of the picture, because 511210, the pre-2022 software publisher code, still received $6 billion in FY2025. Four times more federal software publishing money flowed to the retired code than to the current one.
What belongs here
Software publishing: designing, documenting, installing, and supporting computer software for distribution, whether the establishment develops and publishes or only publishes.
- Writing custom software to an agency's specification is 541511.
- Hosting, data processing, and infrastructure services are 518210.
- The legacy publisher code, still heavily used, is 511210.
Competing in this code
226 IDVs against 5,095 actions means most software purchasing runs through resellers and schedule catalogs. The reconciliation problem is operational, not academic: a publisher registered only under 513210 will not surface for a contracting officer working from a vehicle or market research built on 511210, and that is where most of the money is. Verify which code each of your reseller agreements and schedule listings carries. Getting this wrong looks exactly like having no federal presence at all.
Frequently Asked
NAICS 513210 questions, answered.
What is the SBA size standard for NAICS 513210?
SBA sets it at $47 million in average annual receipts, averaged over your last five completed fiscal years. Come in at or under that and you are small on every NAICS 513210 solicitation, including the set-asides.
Which agencies buy software under NAICS 513210?
FY2025 obligations: DoD ($1.1 billion), DOT ($73 million), Treasury ($66 million), DHS ($50 million), VA ($45 million). These figures cover only the current code; the retired 511210 carried roughly four times as much federal software publishing spend in the same year.
Why does more federal software spending appear under 511210 than 513210?
Because NAICS 2022 renumbered software publishers from 511210 to 513210, and federal contract writing systems keep the legacy code on existing vehicles, options, and modifications. FY2025 obligations were roughly $6 billion under 511210 against $1.5 billion under 513210. Any market sizing that uses only the current code understates the market by about four times.
How should a software publisher handle the code change in SAM?
Register 513210 as the current code, keep 511210 active wherever your registration and vehicle listings still allow it, and check which code each reseller agreement and schedule contract carries. Contracting officers doing market research from an older vehicle document search the legacy code, and you will not appear if you only list the new one.
Register Under NAICS 513210
Classify your business correctly to maximize visibility to federal buyers and access small business set-asides.
Start Your SAM.gov Registration →