The world’s oldest design award, established in Germany in 1953. This international design competition receives more than 10,000 entries from 60 countries around the world. The nine disciplines for entries are: Product Design, Communication Design, Packaging Design, Service Design, Architecture, Interior Architecture, Concept, UX, and UI.
Japan Kukan Design Award & iF DESIGN AWARD
Award Cooperation
The Japan Kukan Design Award and Germany's iF Design Award have continued their partnership agreement this year. Through cooperation of the two awards under this partnership, we will work together to expand the global network and promote the design industry.
About
the iF
Design
Award
Award Cooperation Benefits to Japan Kukan Design Award 2025
Shortlist winners when applying for the iF Design Award 2026 are expempted from the iF Design Award 2026 registration fee (€300-400)
● iF Design Award 2026 Registration Period: From early May to Nov. 5th, 2025. To take advantage of the award cooperation benefits, the registration must be completed by the regular deadline (Sep. 26, 2025). ※All entry items in the iF Design Award must be entered in English.
● The categories that Japan Kukan Design Award 2025 Shortlist winners can apply for the benefits are either "4.0 Interior Architecture" or "7.0 Architecture".
The iF Design Award 2026 Online Preselection (digital judging) will be waived, and upon completion of the registration, you will be regarded as a finalist for the iF Design Award 2026 and will proceed directly to the Final Jury to be held in Germany in Feb. 2026 (tbc).
● The finalists of the iF Design Award 2026 will be charged a Final Jury fee (€300).
● The winner of the iF Design Award 2026 (to be announced after the Fina Jury) will be charged a Winner's Fee of €2,900 in the categories "4.0 Interior Architecture" and "7.0 Architecture".
● IMPORTANT : The above Final Jury fee and the Winner’s Fee are
mandatory for all the finalists and for all the award winners respectively, and cannot be
withdrawn or cancelled.
Please note.
Dates and Registration/Final Jury/Winner’s fees for the iF Design Award 2026 are subject to change.
Ranking point system
The iF Design Award has a ranking point system. 5 points are awarded to a finalist, 20 points to a winner, and 100 points to a Gold winner. These points will be the basis for calculating the iF Design ranking. (Details of the points will be provided by iF after the collaborative applicants have been selected.) All winners will be listed on ifdesign.com with detailed information.
Schedule
How to apply for the iF Design Award 2026
Please register for each entry online.
The following information needs to be provided.
The following information needs to be provided.
| Basics | Entry name, descipline/category, entry type, tags |
|---|---|
| Media | images, PDF, URL, etc. |
| Description | Design statement of the project and statement of the 5 criteria (max. 650 characters each) |
| Details | Detailed information about the entry, including target group, market region, project development time, retail price and dimensions, etc. |
| Credits | Information about the designer, client/manufacturer, etc. |