The 2026 Pulitzer Prize competition in Journalism (recognizing work published in the 2025 calendar year) has opened. A full list of all 15 Journalism categories is available here.
The deadline for entry is January 26, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific time. The 2026 Pulitzer Prize winners and nominated finalists in Journalism and the Books, Drama & Music categories will be announced on Monday, May 4, 2026 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern time.
New and irregular entrants should note that several key 2026 competition changes (including the revival of the long-defunct Beat Reporting category and the amalgamation of Commentary and Editorial Writing into Opinion Writing) were announced in late November, while other modifications (including eligibility expansion to the websites of broadcast news organizations) were implemented in the 2024 competition. Our Submission Guidelines, Requirements and FAQs and Technical Requirements delineate these important updates to the competition.
In addition, all entrant accounts must now be manually approved for security compliance by our office. Most entrant accounts registered in the months following the 2025 competition were approved on December 18. Please allow up to 24 hours for approval during business hours, while accounts registered after 5:30 p.m. Friday will be approved beginning Monday morning for the duration of the cycle. If you registered but did not receive an account approval, please contact us at [email protected].
After creating a new account or accessing a preexisting account, the entry form is available at entrysite.pulitzer.org via the “Submit an Entry” button on the top bar. As the bar is not optimized for most Android and certain Mac/iOS devices, we recommend completing the entry form on a desktop or laptop if at all feasible.
As a further reminder:
- The Editorial Cartooning category is now called Illustrated Reporting and Commentary. Expanded in 2021, it recognizes "a distinguished portfolio of editorial cartoons or other illustrated work (still, animated, or both) characterized by political insight, editorial effectiveness, or public service value."
- The number of items that may be included in each entry also was changed in 2021. In the Public Service, Feature Photography, Breaking News Photography and Illustrated Reporting and Commentary categories, the maximum number of items that can be included is 15; for most other prize categories, a maximum of seven items is allowed per entry. Feature Writing allows a total of five items per entry.
- Text-based entries from U.S. broadcast media sites are now eligible. Digital news sites operated by broadcast and audio organizations are now eligible in most Journalism categories. As noted above, entries from these organizations should rely essentially on written journalism. Video-only entries remain ineligible in all categories. Additionally, audio and broadcast media organizations may not enter work in the Breaking News Photography or Feature Photography categories.
- Instagram? No. Substack? Yes. Although social media posts may be included in the required Breaking News Reporting timeline or embedded contextually in submitted news items, entries consisting solely of social media posts (whether from an independent publisher or a news organization) remain ineligible. Staff-based and self-published newsletters disseminated via Substack, Medium and similar platforms are generally eligible in a manner analogous to other news sites. However, the Administrator may reject entries from newsletter platform-based publications that do not meet our eligibility requirements (including but not limited to a United States-based imprimatur and adherence to the standards of professional journalism).
- New and irregular entrants should be cognizant of the 2024 cycle's substantial revisions to the Breaking News Photography and Feature Photography eligibility requirements. Entries in Breaking News Photography and Feature Photography must include original, unedited (i.e. as recorded by the camera) versions of the submitted images. Screenshots of camera-recorded images are not accepted. A prompt on the entry form enables entrants to submit folders with the camera-recorded images via file-sharing platforms. Please note that camera-recorded images also must be provided for photos entered as discrete entry items in non-Photography categories (most commonly in Public Service and Explanatory Reporting). Proof of publication is still required in all Photography entries and for photos entered in non-Photography categories. A new 2026 cycle prompt on the entry questionnaire also requires Breaking News Photography and Feature Photography entrants to attest that no AI tools were used in their submissions.
- Audio Reporting entries may not exceed a total of five hours of recorded material. Additional materials may be included in the supplemental file, with the caveat that they may or may not be reviewed at the judges' discretion.
- Complete transcripts for each Audio Reporting entry are required. These must be submitted in a separate uploader in the portal. You will not be able to complete an entry in the category until the transcript file is furnished. As noted above, Audio Reporting entries may not exceed a total of five hours of recorded material.
- The Board has reintroduced the Beat Reporting category, which was last awarded in 2006. Beat Reporting is intended to reward sustained reporting by up to two people (i.e. large team and staff entries are not permitted in the category) assigned to a particular beat during the calendar year. Beats may be local, statewide or national. They can be traditional areas of coverage, such as police and court reporting, or ongoing coverage of such topics as immigration, education, politics, sports, business, the arts, the military or the environment. They also may be new or unusual beats. We encourage news organizations and individuals to think expansively. It is intended to stand apart from the Breaking News Reporting and Local Reporting categories.
- A new Opinion Writing category combines the previous Editorial Writing and Commentary categories. It recognizes distinguished editorials, columns or other written commentary, augmented by any available journalistic tool, that contains well-reasoned and compelling arguments on topics of public interest, whether originally researched and reported, or informed by analysis or personal experience. The test of excellence is clarity, moral purpose, sound logic, engaging prose, and power to influence public opinion.
- Reportage in the Breaking News Reporting category is now limited to the first week after the initial event.
- The Local Reporting category now recognizes distinguished examples of coverage of "significant issues of concern to a local community, city or state, demonstrating originality and continuous community connection, using any available journalistic tool."
- A dedicated Paywall/Login Credentials field is now available on Step Four.
- Besides corrections, any significant revisions to stories submitted as URLs must be identified and summarized in the entry.
- Many entry inquiries are inherently complex and may require adjudication by the Administrator's Office in coordination with members of the Pulitzer Board. When possible, please direct them in writing to [email protected].