By Outrider Editorial Team · Updated August 20, 2026
Official definition
This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in performing surveying and mapping services of the surface of the earth, including the sea floor. These services may include surveying and mapping of areas above or below the surface of the earth, such as the creation of view easements or segregating rights in parcels of land by creating underground utility easements.
NAICS 541370 obligated $316 million in FY2025 across 1,041 contract actions. DoD leads at $202 million, and the civilian mix is specific enough to plan against: Commerce at $62 million is NOAA hydrographic survey and nautical charting, USDA at $23 million is Forest Service boundary and resource mapping, DHS at $12 million and Interior at $10 million cover border and public lands requirements. Those are four distinct sensor and deliverable profiles.
What belongs here
Surveying and mapping the surface of the earth including the sea floor, plus surveying and mapping above or below the surface, such as easements and subsurface utility rights.
- Engineering design built on top of survey data is 541330.
- Architectural programming and building design is 541310.
- Laboratory analysis of collected samples is 541380.
Competing in this code
261 IDVs against 1,041 actions is heavy vehicle coverage for a code this size, and much of that is Corps of Engineers and NOAA multiple-award survey and mapping contracts. Note that a large share of this work is procured under Brooks Act qualifications-based selection, meaning firms are ranked on qualifications before price is ever discussed. That changes proposal economics completely: investment goes into licensed surveyors, sensor inventory, and prior project relevance rather than into rate reduction. Hydrographic survey in particular has a short qualified bidder list, and NOAA's requirements recur annually.
Frequently Asked
NAICS 541370 questions, answered.
What is the SBA size standard for NAICS 541370?
SBA sets it at $19 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 541370 solicitation, including the set-asides.
Which agencies buy surveying and mapping under NAICS 541370?
FY2025 obligations: DoD ($202 million), Commerce ($62 million), USDA ($23 million), DHS ($12 million), Interior ($10 million). NOAA hydrographic survey inside Commerce is the most distinctive civilian requirement, and it recurs on an annual cycle.
Is NAICS 541370 work selected on price?
Often not. A large share of federal surveying and mapping is procured under Brooks Act qualifications-based selection, where firms are ranked on qualifications and only the top-ranked firm negotiates price. That shifts proposal investment toward licensed staff, sensor capability, and relevant project history, and away from rate competitiveness.
What is the most accessible niche in NAICS 541370?
Hydrographic survey. Commerce obligated $62 million in FY2025 through NOAA for charting and bathymetric work, the qualified bidder list is short because vessel and multibeam capability is expensive, and the requirements recur annually instead of on a multi-year program cycle.
Register Under NAICS 541370
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