About us

18F was a digital services consulting group within the federal government. We helped other government agencies fix technology problems and save money by making smarter technology investments. We were a team of around 90 federal employees that included account managers, designers, government contracting specialists, product managers, and software engineers. 18F was part of the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA).

18F’s name is based on the address of GSA’s headquarters, which is 1800 F Street in Washington, D.C.

History

18F was founded in 2014 by a group of Presidential Innovation Fellows. In our 11-year history, 18F completed more than 450 projects for dozens of agencies at the federal, state, and local levels. On March 1, 2025, 18F was eliminated by the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

How 18F was funded

18F was cost-recoverable, which means we didn't receive appropriated funds from Congress. We charged partner agencies for our services. We used Interagency Agreements (IAAs) to set up the terms of our projects and billed partners through the Intra-Governmental Payment and Collection (IPAC) on a monthly basis.

18F best practices

18F’s work was built on the principles of user-centered development, delivering value as soon as possible, and deploying products in the open. We developed evidence-based methods to minimize risk and build successful digital products. We shared what we learned in our 18F guides to help other teams within and outside of government.