EU Grants for Startups in 2026: Country-by-Country Guide

Europe has more startup funding than most founders realise. Between EU-level instruments and national co-funding programmes, a single technology startup in 2026 can access anywhere from €30,000 at pre-seed to over €12.5 million through blended EIC finance. This guide maps every major programme by country so you can find the right fit for your stage and location.

EU-Level Programmes: The Master Comparison

These programmes are run directly by EU institutions and are open to startups across all member states and most associated countries. They sit at the top of the funding stack and typically require the highest level of innovation ambition.

EIC Accelerator 2026: Key Updates

The EIC Accelerator has introduced several structural changes for 2026 that improve the odds for well-prepared startups:

• Six cut-off dates per year instead of three, giving startups more entry points throughout the year.
• Simplified Step 1 with a shorter template and direct assessment criteria. Maximum 20 pages for the full proposal.
• Blended finance minimum raised to €1 million, making it slightly less accessible for very early companies but more decisive for those who qualify.
• Five challenge topics in 2026 with dedicated €50 million budgets each: advanced materials, low-emission food systems, generative AI, space technology, and future mobility.
• EIC Accelerator Open with a €384 million budget accepts proposals in any technology field outside the challenges.

Eurostars 2026: Calls 10 and 11

Eurostars, run by the EUREKA Network and co-funded by Horizon Europe, targets R&D-intensive SMEs. It is the entry point for international collaboration for startups that are not yet ready for the EIC Accelerator.

• Call 10: Open 16 January 2026, deadline 19 March 2026 at 14:00 CET.
• Call 11: Open 9 July 2026, deadline 10 September 2026 at 14:00 CET.
• At least two independent entities from two different Eurostars countries are required, with at least one being an EU or Horizon Europe associated country.
• Successful Eurostars companies can bypass the EIC Accelerator Step 1 and submit directly to Step 2.

Startup Eligibility: General Requirements

Most EU startup grants share a common eligibility baseline. Check these before investing time in any application:

Country-by-Country Guide

National programmes complement EU grants and often have higher success rates, shorter turnaround times, and lower administrative burden. Many can be stacked with EU funding subject to state aid limits. Below are the key programmes in seven major EU startup ecosystems.

Stage-to-Programme Matching: Quick Eligibility Checker

Match your startup's current stage to the most suitable programmes before investing time in applications.

Application Strategy for 2026

Before You Apply

What Evaluators Look For

EIC evaluation uses three weighted criteria. Understanding the weighting helps allocate writing effort:

• Excellence (30%) - Breakthrough nature of the innovation, scientific or technological soundness, TRL progression plan.
• Impact (40%) - Market size, competitive advantage, commercialisation plan, European and societal impact. This is the highest-weighted criterion.
• Implementation (30%) - Team capability, project management, milestones, budget justification.

Common Rejection Reasons

1. Incremental rather than breakthrough - EU grants target high-risk innovations, not optimisation of existing products.
2. Market size understated - A credible bottom-up addressable market calculation with named customer segments is expected.
3. Team gaps not acknowledged - Evaluators penalise teams that do not identify missing capabilities and a plan to address them.
4. Wrong TRL claim - Overstating readiness is detected immediately and damages credibility across the whole application.
5. Budget not justified - Each cost item must link directly to a specific work package and deliverable.

EU Startup Funding: Key Statistics for 2026

Frequently Asked Questions

Find the Right Grant for Your Startup

Navigating EU grants across seven countries and a dozen EU-level instruments takes significant research time. Most founders spend 40 or more hours identifying the right programmes before writing a single word of a proposal.

GrantsFinder uses AI to match your startup against live EU funding calls in under two minutes. Describe your project, your stage, and your location, and the system surfaces the most relevant open calls ranked by fit score, with direct links to official programme pages.

You can also explore our complete guide to EU funding for SMEs and the in-depth EIC Accelerator vs Pathfinder vs Eurostars comparison to go deeper on any specific programme before applying.