How Many Bids Per Week Do Subcontractors Submit?

Ask any subcontractor how many bids they submit in a typical week, and you’ll get answers ranging from “a handful” to “we lose count.” But until now, there hasn’t been consistent, industry-wide data on what bidding volume actually looks like.

Riffle’s 2025 Subcontractor Survey sheds light on just how much work subcontractors are juggling, and the numbers show a widening gap between high-volume trades, small teams stretched thin, and mid-sized firms drowning in inbox-driven bidding cycles.

Here’s what we learned about the true pace of bidding today.

Most Subcontractors Submit Between 5–15 Bids Per Week

Across all trades and company sizes, the most common range was 5 to 15 bids per week. For many, this represents:

• A steady flow of GC relationships
• Active participation in competitive markets
• A mix of small, medium, and larger projects
  

But this “average” masks huge differences based on trade, company size, and staffing.

Mid-Sized Subs Submit the Highest Volumes — Often 15–25 Bids Weekly

Mid-sized subcontractors (10–49 employees) reported the highest bidding volumes in the survey.

Why mid-sized firms see the biggest load:

• Enough capacity to pursue multiple projects
• Strong GC networks sending frequent ITBs
• A formal estimation process, but not formalized workflows
• Pressure to keep backlog full while scaling responsibly
  

Survey Insight: Mid-sized firms were the most likely to admit they “lose track of active bids” weekly due to volume.

This group experiences the worst inbox chaos, making them one of the most urgent adopters of bidding workflow tools.

Small Subs Submit Fewer Bids but Feel More Stress

Small subcontractors (1–9 employees) typically submit 3–7 bids per week, but this lighter volume doesn’t reduce stress.

Small shops shared challenges like:

• Owners wearing too many hats
• Estimating done after-hours
• Limited admin or office support
• High stakes on each individual bid
  

For small teams, even one missed ITB can hurt revenue for the month. The volume is lower, but the emotional and operational pressure is higher.

High-Volume Trades See the Most Extreme Weekly Bidding Cycles

Certain trades reported significantly higher bid counts — sometimes exceeding 25–40 bids per week.

These included:

• Drywall
• Painting
• Flooring
• Electrical (service divisions especially)
• Roofing (depending on region)
  

These trades are characterized by:

• Shorter bid cycles
• Fast-moving GCs
• Competitive pricing
• High-volume opportunities
  

This group is often overwhelmed by ITBs and change orders, and relies heavily on email to manage everything, creating fertile ground for mistakes, delays, or missed opportunities.

Complex, Low-Volume Trades Still Face Disruption

Specialty trades (mechanical, steel, custom fabrication) often submit fewer bids per week, but each one requires:

• More detailed scope review
• Longer lead times
• Higher-stakes estimating
• More back-and-forth with GCs
  

Even with lower bid volume, these firms still struggle with:

• Version control
• Missing documents
• Deadline volatility
• Managing multiple GC relationships simultaneously
  

The challenge isn’t the number of bids — it’s the chaos around tracking what’s due when.

What This Means for Subcontractors

Bidding volume is increasing, not because subcontractors want more work, but because they need to protect backlog in an unpredictable market.

Across the survey, one thing was clear: No team — large or small — feels they have a true handle on their bids.

The problems cut across the board:

• Too many ITBs
• No centralized tracking
• Stressful deadlines
• More follow-up required from GCs
• More admin work, less estimating time
  

The result is lost bids, lost hours, and lost revenue.

This is exactly the workflow gap Riffle is built to close.

Want to see how Riffle helps subs track every bid, in one place?

Join the waitlist at rifflecm.com.

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