Grants for Websites, Software & IT in Ireland (2026)
An honest guide to the Local Enterprise Office and Enterprise Ireland supports that can help pay for digital projects: what each one pays, who qualifies, and what they won't touch. Checked against the official pages, with links, so you can confirm before you plan around anything.
Sometimes, but not for a custom-built one. The main scheme is the LEO Grow Digital Voucher: 50% of eligible costs, from €500 up to €5,000, for off-the-shelf software that's new to your business (including subscription website, online shop and booking platforms) plus up to half the project in setup and training. You must complete a Digital for Business project with your LEO first and apply before spending anything. The old Trading Online Voucher has closed.
Which support fits your project?
| Support | Run by | What it pays | Websites & software? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grow Digital Voucher | LEO | 50%, €500–€5,000 | Subscription platforms + setup. Not bespoke. |
| Digital for Business | LEO | Consultancy (ask your LEO) | Advice and a digital plan |
| Priming & Business Expansion Grants | LEO | Up to 50% | Can include within a wider growth project |
| Feasibility Study Grant | LEO | 60% up to €15,000 in the West | Prototypes and technical development |
| Microfinance Ireland | MFI via LEO | Loans €2,000–€50,000 | Yes, it's a loan |
| Digital Discovery | Enterprise Ireland | 80% up to €5,000 | Expert assessment only, firms with 10+ staff |
| Cyber Security Review Grant | Enterprise Ireland | 80% of a €3,000 review | Security review, mainly EI clients |
| LEADER | Local Action Groups | Up to 75% (private) | Rural projects, check locally |
Amounts are as published on the official pages in October 2026. Schemes change, so always confirm with the body that runs them.
Grow Digital Voucher
This is the one most small businesses mean when they ask about "the website grant". It replaced the Trading Online Voucher in September 2024 and works quite differently.
It pays for
One year's subscription to off-the-shelf software that's new to your business: online shops, website platforms sold as a subscription, booking and payments, CRM, stock control, cloud accounting, e-invoicing, cyber security, analytics including AI tools. Plus setup, integration and staff training, up to half the project cost.
It won't pay for
Bespoke website development or custom software. More licences for software you already use. Systems bought purely for compliance. Anything ordered or started before you applied.
- Who: companies, sole traders and partnerships with 1–50 paid employees, trading at least six months, tax compliant, and not already an Enterprise Ireland or IDA client.
- First step: you must have completed a Digital for Business project with a LEO in the last two years.
- Limit: up to two vouchers, but €5,000 in total.
- The rule that catches people: apply before you order, sign or start anything.
Digital for Business
A short project with a digital consultant arranged through your LEO. They look at the systems you already use, find the gaps and recommend what to do next. The finished report is your ticket to the Grow Digital Voucher. Ask your LEO how long the consultancy runs and whether there's any cost to you; local offices describe it slightly differently. The same eligibility applies: 1–50 staff and at least six months trading.
Priming and Business Expansion Grants
The bigger LEO grants, for businesses with growth and job potential. The Priming Grant is for start-ups in their first 18 months; the Business Expansion Grant is for businesses past that point. Both pay up to 50% of the investment and can cover capital items, salaries, consultancy, innovation and marketing costs, so the technology inside a wider growth plan can be included.
They're generally aimed at businesses with 10 or fewer employees in manufacturing or internationally traded services, with a clear market. A local shop or trade usually won't qualify. Talk to your LEO business adviser before you build a plan around one.
Feasibility Study Grant
For testing whether a new product or service will work before you commit: market research, consultancy, technical development and prototypes. In the Border, Midland and Western region, which includes Roscommon, it pays 60% up to €15,000 (50% elsewhere). Like the Priming Grant, it's for manufacturing and internationally traded services businesses with 10 or fewer staff. A software product you plan to sell nationally or abroad is the kind of thing it suits.
Microfinance Ireland
Business loans from €2,000 to €50,000 for businesses with fewer than 10 employees and turnover under €2 million who have struggled to get bank finance. The APR is 6.5%, or 5.5% if you apply through your LEO. Unlike the vouchers, a loan can pay for anything the business needs, custom websites and software included.
Digital Discovery, AI Discovery and cyber security
Digital Discovery pays up to 80% (max €5,000) for an independent digital expert to spend three to seven days assessing your business and writing a plan. It's for Irish-owned manufacturing or internationally traded services companies with 10 or more employees. It covers the assessment only: buying, installing or configuring software, web consultancy and training are excluded.
AI Discovery is Enterprise Ireland's newer support for working out where AI fits, from discovery to prototype to a working solution, with a 12-to-18-month roadmap. Contact Enterprise Ireland for the current amounts and eligibility.
Cyber Security Review Grant: 80% of a clearly defined €3,000 security review by a certified cyber security expert, aimed at Enterprise Ireland clients. The larger NCSC Cyber Security Improvement Grant has finished and won't reopen.
Innovation Vouchers (€10,000) are worth knowing about but can only be spent with registered knowledge providers like universities and technological universities, and they specifically exclude standard website and app development.
LEADER and the Western Development Commission
LEADER (2023–2027) funds rural businesses and community groups through Local Action Groups, at up to 75% for private investment. Its themes include enterprise development and digital connectivity. Whether a website or IT system qualifies depends on the project, so talk to Roscommon LEADER Partnership (or the partnership in your county) before you start. I can supply the competitive quotes they ask for.
The Western Development Commission offers loans from €50,000 to €300,000 for businesses headquartered in the Western region, Roscommon included. Again, a loan rather than a grant.
Schemes that have closed
- Trading Online Voucher: closed, replaced by the Grow Digital Voucher in September 2024. Plenty of websites still advertise it.
- Fáilte Ireland Digital that Delivers: the programme has finished.
- NCSC Cyber Security Improvement Grant: finished, with no further rounds.
- Power Up and Increased Cost of Business grants: 2024 schemes, now closed.
Budget 2027 in October gave Local Enterprise Offices extra funding and talked about helping small firms adopt AI and improve cyber security, but didn't announce a new digital grant scheme. If one appears, this page will be updated.
What people ask
Sources, checked October 2026: LEO: Grow Digital Voucher · LEO: Digital for Business · LEO: Priming Grant · LEO: Business Expansion Grant · LEO: Feasibility Grant · Microfinance Ireland · EI: Digital Discovery · EI: AI Discovery · EI: Cyber Security Review Grant · NCSC: SME grants · EI: Innovation Voucher · Western Development Commission · Fáilte Ireland · DETE: Budget 2027
Not sure if your project qualifies?
Tell me what you want to do. I'll tell you straight which scheme, if any, fits, and give you the quote your LEO needs, before anything is ordered.