Where to find drywall & framing bids in Minnesota: plan rooms and bid sources
Short answer: there is no single place to find drywall and framing bids in Minnesota. State work runs through the Office of State Procurement, which links to construction virtual plan rooms, MnDOT lets highway work through Bid Express, Minneapolis posts bids in eSupplier, and Saint Paul posts them at stpaulbids.com. Private work mostly comes by invitation from general contractors. This page lists the sources we could confirm, with how each one describes its own access.
Neighboring states: Iowa · Minnesota · North Dakota · South Dakota · Wisconsin
How public and private bids work in Minnesota
Public projects are advertised by the owner: a state agency, a city or county, a university or a school district. The bid notice, plans, specifications and addenda are normally posted on the owner's own site, bidding platform or plan room, and every project shows its bid date. Read each notice for bonding and prequalification terms.
Private projects are usually bid by invitation. A general contractor or owner decides who receives the documents, and the plans typically sit in a regional plan room, a bid service, or the GC's own portal. As a drywall, framing, insulation or CMU sub you usually price your scope to the GCs who are bidding, so being on the right planholder list matters.
Minnesota bid sources by type and region
Regions are listed where the source states one. Use the access column as a starting point, not a guarantee.
| Region / type | Source | What it carries | Access, as the site states it |
|---|---|---|---|
| State of Minnesota | Minnesota Office of State Procurement | Solicitations and contract opportunities. The page links to a Construction Virtual Plan Room and a Construction Projects Virtual Plan Room, and says one is hosted on an external site. | Vendor portal links are provided; the page does not explain registration and mentions no fees. |
| State highways (MnDOT) | MnDOT bid letting | Highway construction and maintenance bids for MnDOT and local agencies. An Ads/Schedule page lists advertised projects, and plans and proposals are available as PDFs through the E-Plan Room once a project is advertised. Highway and bridge work, so rarely drywall or framing scopes. | Page states all bids must be submitted electronically via Bid Express, and new bidders need a SWIFT vendor number, a Bid Express account and a digital ID. |
| Minneapolis | City of Minneapolis: Calls for Bids & RFPs | Calls for bids and RFPs posted in the city's eSupplier system, with a preview of upcoming ones updated every two weeks. | Registration steps are on a separate eSupplier instructions page we did not read. The page does not address construction bids specifically and offers alert sign-up. |
| Saint Paul | City of Saint Paul: bidding | Says bids and related documents are posted at stpaulbids.com. | Page states bids are accepted only electronically and a 5% bid bond is required for bids of $175,000 or more. Bidder registration: not described. |
| Statewide association | AGC of Minnesota | Construction trade association organized in 1919. The page lists a Plan Room under Resources and a DBE RFPs section where members may post RFPs. | The page does not describe what the Plan Room contains or who can use it. |
Not every Minnesota owner is in this table. The University of Minnesota purchasing site blocked our automated check, the City of Rochester purchasing page was not found, and we did not confirm a Minnesota builders exchange or plan room of our own, so those are left out rather than guessed at. Check them directly if you bid for those owners. MnDOT lettings are highway and bridge work and rarely include drywall or framing scopes.
Tips for subs
- Register as a planholder through the official channel. That is how you receive addenda, and some owners publish planholder lists that GCs use to find subs. Where a portal offers alerts by category or code, turn them on.
- Go to the pre-bid meeting when there is one. Whether a meeting exists, and whether attendance is mandatory, is stated project by project in the notice. Read how scope is split between trades while you are there.
- Track addenda until bid day. Wall types, ceiling heights and scope can change, so reprice from the final set and re-check the day before the bid is due.
- Get the official set. Bid notices say which source holds the controlling documents. Plans from another source may be incomplete.
- Check plan quality before you commit. Open the PDF and try to select a line or text. If you can, it is a vector file that can be measured exactly. If the page behaves like one picture, it is a scan and will take longer by hand. Also confirm the wall type legend is on the set; see what happens when it is missing.
- Check bonding and licensing before you price. Public notices often call for bid security and proof of licensing. Read the notice for the exact form.
Once you have the plans
ReadMyBlueprint is takeoff software, not a bid board. It reads vector plan sets for drywall, metal framing, wood framing, insulation and CMU. In our Freeport Square test (21 pages), 68.9% of walls were auto-matched and 99.8% after one "Confirm all." That was one plan set, so treat it as a single data point, and see the tour for how the review step works.
FAQ
Where do I find public construction bids in Minnesota?
There is no single place. State work is listed through the Minnesota Office of State Procurement, which links to construction virtual plan rooms. MnDOT lets highway work through Bid Express, Minneapolis posts bids in its eSupplier system, and Saint Paul posts bids at stpaulbids.com. The table above lists each source and how it describes its access.
How do I bid on Saint Paul city work?
The city's bidding page says bids and related documents are posted at stpaulbids.com and that bids are accepted only electronically. It also says a 5% bid bond is required for bids of $175,000 or more. Read the individual notice for the exact requirements.
Is there one statewide plan room or builders exchange for Minnesota?
Our check did not find one. The Office of State Procurement page links to construction virtual plan rooms for state projects, and AGC of Minnesota lists a Plan Room under Resources without describing it. We could not confirm other Minnesota plan rooms.
Can a subcontractor bid on Minnesota public projects?
Public owners advertise the prime contract, so subs normally price their scope to the general contractors who are bidding it. Read each bid notice for the owner's own rules, including any prequalification, certification or bonding terms.
What is a planholder and why register as one?
A planholder is a firm that has officially requested the bid documents for a project. Registering usually puts you on the list that receives addenda, and some owners publish planholder lists that general contractors use to find subs. Download plans through the official channel, not from a forwarded link.
How are private bids different from public bids?
Public projects are advertised openly and the documents are usually posted on the owner's site or platform. Private work is usually bid by invitation from a general contractor or owner, and documents come through a regional plan room, a bid service, or the GC directly. Access differs by source.
Does a scanned plan set matter when pricing a bid?
Yes. A vector PDF exported from CAD can be measured exactly, while a scanned plan is only a picture and has to be traced by hand or estimated. Check whether your plans are vector or scanned before you commit to a bid deadline.
Does ReadMyBlueprint list or sell bids?
No. ReadMyBlueprint is takeoff software, not a bid board. Once you have a plan set from any source above, you can upload it and review the takeoff yourself before the bid goes out.
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