ADC Annual Awards 2027

The ADC Annual Awards are the world's longest continuously running awards programme for craft in advertising and design. Run by The One Club for Creativity in New York, the 106th edition is open to professionals and freelancers worldwide in disciplines from brand and communication design to illustration, photography, typography, packaging, interactive work and gaming. Winners receive the ADC Cube in Gold, Silver or Bronze, or a Merit, and the results are celebrated at a ceremony in New York on 19 May 2027. The entry deadline is 5 March 2027.

ADC stands for the Art Directors Club, founded in New York in 1920. Its annual awards were among the first to recognise design and art direction, and many of the most influential designers of the past century have won a Cube.

Who Can Enter the ADC Annual Awards?

Industry professionals anywhere in the world, including agencies, studios, in-house teams, brands and freelancers. School work and speculative work are not accepted; students have their own competition, ADC Young Ones. Personal projects are accepted only in designated categories.

It is particularly relevant to:

• Graphic and brand designers
• Illustrators and photographers working on commissions
• Type designers and typographers
• Art directors in advertising and design studios
• Freelancers, who have their own fee level and a Freelancer of the Year award

What Can You Enter?

Work in a wide range of disciplines, including:

• Brand/Communication Design
• Book and Publication Design
• Illustration
• Photography
• Typography
• Packaging and Product
• Interactive and Experiential Design
• Advertising and Gaming
• Design for Good

There is also a free AI Filmmaking category, with cash prizes, based on the brief "Imperfection". Work in other languages needs English translations.

Entry Fees

Fees depend on the size of the entrant and rise from the early tier to the standard and final tiers. In the early tier:

• Freelancers: $125 for a single entry or series in most disciplines
• Personal projects: $75 single, $125 series, where the category allows them
• Small studios and agencies: $150–$300 single, $200–$450 series
• Larger companies: $250–$500 single, $300–$650 series
• AI Filmmaking: free
• Entrants based in Ukraine: 50% off

What Do Winners Receive?

• Gold, Silver and Bronze Cubes, and Merits
• Special honours: Best of Discipline, Best of Show, Best of Non-Profit, the Designism Cube, the Fusion Cube and Freelancer of the Year
• Trophies and certificates, and a place in the ADC archive
• One year of free Individual Membership of The One Club
• AI Filmmaking: $6,000 first prize, plus smaller cash prizes

Submission Requirements

Register on the ADC Awards website, upload your entries with descriptions in English, and pay the fee for the current tier. Entering early saves money, as fees go up at each tier.

Why Enter?

A Cube is one of the best-known marks of quality in design and advertising, recognised by studios, agencies and clients around the world. For freelancers and small studios, the lower fees and the Freelancer of the Year award make it more accessible than many international awards. Winning work becomes part of an archive that reaches back a century.

About The One Club

The One Club for Creativity is a non-profit organisation that runs the ADC Annual Awards and The One Show, along with education programmes, the Young Ones student competition and initiatives to make the industry more diverse. It merged with the Art Directors Club in 2017, bringing two of the oldest creative awards under one roof. Its programmes support creative people at every stage of their careers, from students to the most experienced professionals.

Things to Consider

• Enter early. Fees rise in the standard and final tiers.
• Pick the right discipline. The same project can sometimes be entered in several categories, but each one costs a fee.
• Show the craft. Judges look closely at execution: typography, image-making, detail.
• Prepare clear visuals. Good photographs or a short case film help the jury understand physical work.
• Students: look at ADC Young Ones instead.

Enter the Competition

Interested in submitting your work?

Enter the ADC Annual Awards

For the categories, rules and fees, visit the official ADC Awards website.

Looking for more open calls? Browse all competitions and opportunities on Good Stuff Weekly.

Last verified: October 21, 2026