PSG, EDG and the New EDGE Grant: What a Singapore Website or AI Project Can Actually Get Funded in 2026

If you run a Singapore SME and you've spent an afternoon trying to figure out which government grant pays for your new website or AI chatbot, you already know the problem: every vendor's landing page screams a different number, half the acronyms overlap, and the one figure most people quote, "70% PSG", is flat-out wrong in 2026. Let me untangle it. This is the map I wish someone had handed me before the first grant conversation, written for a busy owner with a lean team, not a corporate finance department.

The short version: there are two live schemes that matter for a digital build, PSG and EDG, plus a third one, EDGE, that's been announced but isn't running yet. Each funds a different kind of project. Pick the wrong one and you either get rejected or you contort your build to fit a catalogue. Sometimes the smarter move is to take no grant at all. We'll get to that.

First, kill the "70% PSG" myth

PSG funds up to 50% of qualifying costs. Not 70%. The official EnterpriseSG page is unambiguous: "up to 50% of eligible costs for local SMEs" (enterprisesg.gov.sg, as of June 2026).

So where does 70% come from? Two places, both real, neither of them current PSG:

• PSG used to be up to 70% when it launched in 2018, and was briefly bumped to 80% during COVID. It reverted to a more sustainable up to 50% from 1 April 2023. If someone quotes you 70% PSG, they're reading an article older than this rate change.
• Budget 2026 did introduce "up to 70% for SMEs", but that enhancement applies to the Market Readiness Assistance (MRA) grant, the Global Innovation Alliance schemes, and the Business Adaptation Grant. Not PSG. The official Budget 2026 page lists no PSG percentage change at all (enterprisesg.gov.sg, as of June 2026).

Both confusions land you at the same wrong number. Plan on up to 50%, capped at S$30,000 per company per financial year for PSG, and you won't be unpleasantly surprised at the approval stage. (Reconfirm both figures at the EnterpriseSG page before you commit, rates move.)

PSG: the off-the-shelf grant

PSG is the fast, light one. It co-funds pre-approved IT solutions and equipment, fixed packages from vendors EnterpriseSG and IMDA have already vetted. You browse the official PSG Solutions Directory, pick a package, get a quote from the matching pre-approved vendor, and apply.

Eligibility basics (all must hold, per enterprisesg.gov.sg, June 2026):

• Registered and operating in Singapore.
• At least 30% local equity (Singaporean/PR held, direct or indirect).
• Group annual sales turnover ≤ S$100M, or group employment ≤ 200.
• The solution is used in Singapore.

The qualifying digital categories that matter for most owners are genuinely covered: CRM, digital marketing, e-commerce/online-store platforms, POS, cybersecurity, inventory, accounting/HR (gobusiness.gov.sg PSG directory, June 2026).

Here's the catch nobody flags loudly enough. PSG only funds what's on the pre-approved list, in the package as listed. A standalone "website development" build or a bespoke "AI chatbot" is a grey area. E-commerce builders and CRM are clearly in-scope; specific website-build and chatbot packages show up in vendor marketing and secondary 2026 listings, but I could not confirm those exact package names against the live official directory. So treat "PSG funds my website/chatbot" as conditional, true only if that specific solution is on the official pre-approved list at the time you apply. Check the directory yourself; don't take a vendor's word that their thing is "PSG-eligible."

That's the real trade with PSG: you get speed and a clean 50%, but you're choosing from a menu. If your build needs to fit your business rather than the other way round, that menu starts to chafe.

EDG: the bespoke grant

The Enterprise Development Grant is the heavier instrument. No fixed catalogue. It funds broader business transformation across three pillars, Core Capabilities (strategy, brand/marketing, service excellence), Innovation & Productivity (automation, process redesign, product development), and Market Access (overseas expansion). Qualifying costs include third-party consultancy fees, software/equipment, and internal manpower (enterprisesg.gov.sg, June 2026).

Support is up to 50% for SMEs (up to 30% for non-SMEs). There's one place a 70% figure is legitimate here: sustainability-related projects can reach up to 70% for SMEs, though secondary sources flag that uplift as running to roughly 31 March 2026, and I couldn't confirm the exact end date, so verify it if it applies to you.

How EDG differs from PSG, in one breath: PSG is off-the-shelf, fixed packages, fast application, S$30k cap, 50%. EDG is bespoke, consultancy-driven, project-cost-based (no flat cap), and a heavier application, you're justifying a transformation project, not picking a SKU. For a serious custom platform or an automation programme that reshapes how you actually operate, EDG is the better fit. For a S$8k website refresh, EDG is overkill and PSG (if a package fits) is faster.

EDGE: announced, not yet live

At Budget 2026 the government announced EDGE, which streamlines MRA, PSG and EDG into a single scheme open to all Singapore businesses, including non-SMEs (enterprisesg.gov.sg, June 2026).

Here's the honest part, because I'd rather you plan around reality than a press release:

• EDGE is not live as of June 2026. The official guidance is to keep applying under the existing EDG, MRA and PSG via the Business Grants Portal during the transition.
• A "second half of 2026" launch is cited consistently by secondary sources, but the official EnterpriseSG page gives no specific date. Treat the timing as announced-but-unconfirmed.
• EDGE's final support rates, application procedure and pre-approved lists are not yet published. Anyone quoting you an "EDGE percentage" today is guessing. Confirm details at enterprisesg.gov.sg as the launch approaches.

Practical takeaway: don't sit on a project waiting for EDGE. Apply under the scheme that's live now.

How to actually apply (Business Grants Portal)

All three live schemes go through the Business Grants Portal (businessgrants.gov.sg / grants.gobusiness.gov.sg). The flow is the same:

1. Get Corppass sorted first. Login needs Corppass, and a Corppass admin has to assign your BGP e-Service role (Viewer / Preparer / Acceptor). If you're a one-person show this is a five-minute job; in a slightly bigger team it's the step that quietly delays everyone, so do it early.
2. Get a quotation from the pre-approved vendor (PSG) or your project partner (EDG).
3. Log in to BGP → Apply for Grants → select the scheme → confirm eligibility → complete the form → upload the quotation and supporting docs → submit.
4. Apply before you pay anything. This is the hard rule that catches the most people: retrospective applications are not supported. No deposit, no signing, no payment until you have approval. Get the quote, submit, then commit (grants.gobusiness.gov.sg, June 2026).

If you take one operational thing from this article, make it step 4. I've watched owners pay a deposit to "lock in the vendor" and forfeit the grant entirely.

When a non-grant custom build is the smarter spend

Now the unpopular opinion. A grant is a discount, not a strategy. PSG in particular constrains you to pre-approved solutions, fine if a packaged CRM or store-builder genuinely fits, expensive in disguise if it doesn't.

Pay full price for a custom build when:

• The pre-approved package forces compromises you'll be living with for years. A 50% discount on the wrong platform is more costly than 100% of the right one. Re-platforming in eighteen months erases the saving.
• Your edge is the thing the grant won't fund. If your differentiation is a specific workflow, a WhatsApp + PayNow flow, or an automation tuned to how your customers actually behave, a catalogue solution flattens exactly the part that matters.
• The admin cost outweighs the grant. For a modest project, the hours spent fitting a build to the catalogue, chasing Corppass roles and assembling the application can quietly eat the saving, especially with a lean team.

EDG is more forgiving here because it funds bespoke work, but it's a heavier application, so weigh the effort against the project size honestly.

None of this is "don't take the grant." If a pre-approved solution fits your business, take the 50% and don't look back. Just decide based on what the build needs to do, not on what's claimable. That ordering, outcome first, funding second, is the whole game. (For the broader picture of sequencing a digital upgrade, the Singapore SME digital transformation guide covers what to fix before you spend on anything.)

If you want a second pair of eyes on whether your project is a clean PSG fit, an EDG case, or genuinely better off as a custom build, that's a conversation worth having before you sign a quote, scope it with us and we'll tell you straight, grant or no grant.

, Zyle