About
We help other government agencies build, buy, and share technology products.
18F is an office of federal employees within the General Services Administration (GSA) that collaborates with other agencies to fix technical problems, build products, and improve how government serves the public through technology. 18F is part of the Technology Transformation Services, which is within the Federal Acquisition Service.
Our mission
We envision a country whose government consistently offers digital services that instill pride and trust, meet user needs, are secure, and are delivered quickly and at reasonable cost.
We develop partnerships with agencies to help them deliver exceptional digital experiences that address their strategic initiatives. Through our work together, we also aim to strengthen government technology practices in ways that last beyond our formal partnerships. We effect change by practicing user-centered development, testing to validate hypotheses, shipping often, and deploying products in the open.
Our team
We are a team of about 120 designers, software engineers, strategists, and product managers — all federal employees. We have offices in DC, San Francisco, Chicago, and New York, as well as team members working remotely from all over the country.
Want to get to know our team a little better? These blog posts feature the voices of people from across 18F:
- We asked 100 of our coworkers why they joined 18F
- We asked over 100 of our coworkers: What was your path to 18F?
- We asked over 100 of our coworkers what they’ve loved working on?
- We asked everyone at 18F to reflect on the most meaningful project they worked on this year
We’ve also published profiles of individuals, if you want to learn more about our day-to-day work.
History and funding
In March 2014, a group of Presidential Innovation Fellows started 18F to extend their efforts to improve and modernize government technology.
In 2016, 18F became part of the Technology Transformation Services (TTS), which also includes the Presidential Innovation Fellows program, the Office of Acquisitions, the Office of Products and Programs, and the IT Modernization Centers of Excellence.
In 2017, TTS became part of GSA’s existing Federal Acquisition Service.
What does 18F mean?
Our name is short for the address of the GSA building where we’re headquartered in Washington, DC: 1800 F Street.
Funding and agreements
We are cost-recoverable, which means we don’t receive appropriated funds from Congress and must charge partner agencies for our work. There are two authorities we use to recover costs:
- Acquisition Services Fund (ASF) reimbursement authority: for work related to acquisitions
- Economy Act (PDF) reimbursement authority: for projects that cannot use ASF reimbursement authority
We use Interagency Agreements (IAAs) to set up the terms of our projects, and bill partners through Intra-Governmental Payment and Collection (IPAC) on a monthly basis.
For press
For all press inquiries, please email press@gsa.gov with the topic you’d like to talk about and your deadline.
The GSA Office of Strategic Communications handles all press questions and can connect you with the proper people at 18F and the Technology Transformation Services. See the GSA newsroom for news releases and official resources.
If you’re writing a story about 18F, feel free to use any of the images below.
Organizational logos:
Product logos:
Work with us to plan successful projects, choose better vendors, build custom software, or learn how to work in new ways.
Contact us