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Submissions

2026 IIDA Global Excellence Awards

  • Coming Soon
Stone-walled mountain lounge with roaring fireplace, leather and upholstered chairs around an ottoman and a wide window framing snowy peaks.

Honoring excellence in originality and creativity in international interior design and interior architecture projects across 19 categories.

Eligibility

Any interior designer, interior architect, or architect may submit design project(s). Projects must be completed in or after August 2024, and must be located outside of the United States. The submitting designer/design firm may be based anywhere, including the United States.

Guidelines

Important Dates

The Global Excellence Awards take place annually. 2026 commemorates the 17th annual design competition.
Submission Open September 1, 2026
Submission Closed October 13, 2026

Pricing

All fees must be submitted electronically. Apply for IIDA membership to take advantage of our member pricing!

Early-Bird pricing: September 1 - 8
Regular pricing: September 9 - October 5
Last Chance pricing: October 6 - October 13

  • $350

    Early-Bird Pricing | Members

  • $450

    Early-Bird Pricing | Non-Members

  • $450

    Regular Pricing | Members

  • $550

    Regular Pricing | Non-Members

  • $550

    Last Chance Pricing | Members

  • $650

    Last Chance Pricing | Non-Members

Guidelines

Submission Requirements

All submissions must be completed electronically. No hard copy submissions will be accepted. To enter a project into this competition, you will need to prepare and submit the following:

Written Component

  • Your firm's contact information including name, address, phone number, and email
  • Your design project's information including name and location
  • Project description, a brief project summary (50-word maximum)
  • Challenge statement, a description of your design challenge (250-word maximum)
  • Solution statement, a description of specific solutions to project challenges (250-word maximum)

Images

Please submit color images of your completed project, in JPG or JPEG format with a maximum file size of 2MB. You may submit captions to your images, not to exceed 50 words. Take note of the following additional guidelines:

  • Submit 7-10 color images total

    • only one (1) exterior image is permitted
    • Use numbers to name your image files, in order of uploads (01, 02, 03, etc).
  • Submit a minimum of one (1) floorplan
    • A maximum of three (3) floorplans are allowed
    • Please use the following format for floor plans: "floorplan1, floorplan2, floorplan3"
  • No composite images allowed - only one photograph per image upload
  • Do not reference or include your design/architectural firm name/logo in the images
  • Images may be edited to improve contrast ratio, color balance, and composition through cropping only.
  • Images may not be edited to add, remove, or alter any aspect or element of the project including its context. Images should represent the project as it exists in the built environment.
  • Conceptual renderings will not be accepted

Categories

Projects must be submitted in one of the categories below. Categories may be renamed, consolidated, or eliminated (and projects reclassified) at the discretion of IIDA and/or the jurors.

  • Aviation and Transportation (centers, hubs, stations, and transportation-related facilities)

  • Corporate Space Large (1,000 square meters and above
  • Corporate Space Small (under 1,000 square meters)
  • Education (elementary/secondary educational facilities, colleges/universities)
  • Entertainment (casinos, performing arts centers, theaters)
  • Healthcare (hospitals, outpatient clinics, medical facilities)
  • Hotels - must include one (1) guest room image
  • Institutional (cultural, government/municipal spaces, libraries, religious spaces)
  • Public Spaces & Commercial Lobbies
  • Multi-family (residential complexes, student housing, and mixed-use developments)
  • Retail (stores, boutiques)
  • Residences Large (125 square meters and above)
  • Residences Small (under 125 square meters)
  • Restaurants, Lounges & Bars
  • Sales Centers & Show Flats
  • Showrooms & Exhibition Spaces
  • Spas and Wellness
  • Sports (arenas, gymnasiums, fitness centers and facilities)
  • Sustainability/Adaptive Reuse (environmentally responsible interiors) 

Judging

A jury of design professionals will select the winning design projects. Submissions are judged on excellence in aesthetics, design, creativity, and function as well as the suitability of the design solution to the project challenge and the successful integration of the elements of design. The jury reserves the right not to select a winner from the entries submitted. A maximum of two (2) winners in each category will be selected. It is at the jurors' discretion not to select a winner in each category. A Best of Competition winner will be selected from the category winners.

Prize

Winners will be celebrated with an awards ceremony in Paris, France,  on Saturday February 27, 2027!  Winners will be honored and awarded during the scheduled ceremony, featured on IIDA.org and across IIDA’s social media platforms, receive official digital assets, including competition winner logos for self-promotion, and coverage in an official press release distributed to leading industry outlets and media partners.

For questions or more information, contact IIDA Design Competitions Manager at competitions@iida.org

Past Winners