Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Red Dot Design Award?

The Red Dot Design Award is an international design competition. The accompanying distinction, “Red Dot”, has become established internationally as one of the most sought-after seals of quality for good design. In order to appraise the diversity in the field of design in a professional manner, the award breaks down into three disciplines: the Red Dot Award: Product Design, Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design and Red Dot Award: Design Concept. Each competition is organised once every year.

What is the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design?

The Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design is an international design competition. It is directed at agencies, designers, brands and companies from all over the world. The competition is divided into two sections. In the “Brands” section, companies have the chance to present their brand in its entirety. By contrast, the “Communication Design” section provides a forum where individual works and projects in communication design can be entered in different categories.

The entries are assessed by an international jury. The Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design is organised once every year.

What is the “Red Dot”?

The Red Dot is a seal of quality for good design that is awarded in the three competitions of the Red Dot Design Award.

What can I enter in the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design?

The “Communication Design” section is open to works that were published after 1 July 2021 or will be published before 1 July 2024  and that were not already entered in the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design in the past. Projects realised solely in order to take part in the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design cannot be entered. In the Brands section, manufacturers as well as service companies can submit their integrated brand identity for evaluation. Brand concepts designed exclusively for the Red Dot Award are not permitted.

More detailed information is available in our General Terms and Conditions. 
» GTC 2024 (PDF, 264 KB)

In which form can I submit projects to the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design?

Depending on the category, entries in the “Communication Design” section can be submitted as an original or in a digital form. The form of the entry is defined in our Guide to Success for the section “Communication Design” (PDF, 3.3 MB).

In the “Brands” section, companies can present their brands comprehensively and use all of the aforementioned formats. You can find detailed information in the Guide to Success for the section "Brands" (PDF, 3.3 MB).

How many works can I enter in the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design?

A participant can register any number of works for the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design.

How do I take part in the Red Dot: Junior Award?

The Red Dot: Junior Award is part of the section “Communication Design” in the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design.

Information about submission, as well as dates and fees can be found on the page “Communication Design | Participate” and under the menu option “Junior Award”.

What is the Red Dot: Junior Award?

The Red Dot: Junior Award is a part of the section “Communication Design” in the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design. It is geared to students and trainees as well as to up-and-coming designers who have graduated within the past two years. Like all other competition participants, everyone who takes part in the Red Dot: Junior Award has a chance to receive a Red Dot or a Red Dot: Best of the Best. The participant with the most convincing project in the competition year also receives the distinction “Red Dot: Junior Prize” along with prize money of 10,000 euros.

Who can take part in the Red Dot: Junior Award?

The Red Dot: Junior Award is open to students, trainees and emerging designers who have graduated within the past two years. A copy of the apprentice- or student-ID, or the degree certificate has to be uploaded as a PDF file for verification with english translation, if the original one is not in english language. Further information can be found in our Guide to Success for Red Dot: Junior Award in section “Communication Design”.

What can be entered in the Red Dot: Junior Award?

Trainees and students can enter communication design projects, regardless of when they were created or published. These projects must have been created as part of their training or studies.

Young professionals who graduated no more than two years ago can register projects that were published after July 1, 2021 or will be published before July 1, 2024 and have not yet been registered for the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design in the past. In this case, the projects must have been created as part of a commission. Projects that were realized exclusively for participation in the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design are not eligible to participate.

How can I register in the “Communication Design” section?

1. Download the Guide to Success
2. Register on the My Red Dot portal
3. Select category and provide project information
4. Upload digital material
5. Enter the designer and client details
6. Select payment method and complete registration
7. Depending on the category: Ship the physical exhibit

Can I register my work in multiple categories of the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design?

Depending on the nature of the work, your work can be entered in one or several categories. The registration must be completed separately for each entry. Each entry stands alone and requires its own presentation material.

However, please be aware that a same work cannot be entered in various sub-categories within one category in the “Communication Design” section. On our website, you can find the categories for the “Communication Design” section.

Which details do I need to provide when registering in the “Communication Design” section?

The mandatory details for “Communication Design” are as follows:

• Project details (project name, project type, publication date, choice of category and sub-category)
• Form of entry (physical or digital)
• Project description (min. 500 – max. 1,200 characters)
• Information about the client and the designer
• Bank details

All project registration details must be provided in English.

You can find detailed information about registration in our Guide to Success for the “Communication Design” section (PDF, 1,2 MB).

What does “project type” refer to?

The project type is the shortest description of your work, or a rough classification, e.g. “annual report”.

Which category should I choose?

If you are unsure which category to choose, take a look at our Winners section. There you will find all the award-winning projects from past years, sorted by category.

If you need help choosing a category, please feel free to contact us.

Which sub-category should I choose?

The sub-categories serve as directions for the main categories and provide an overview to understand which projects can be entered. Please note that projects are assessed and can win an award in the main categories, not in the sub-categories.

What should be included in my project description?

The Red Dot Jury receives an information sheet that contains the main details on your project as well as a description. The description should present your work briefly and objectively and explain in just a few sentences what makes it unique. We recommend that you do not use figurative or flowery language and that you keep the description simple, precise and informative.

How can I register in the “Brands” section?

1. Download the Guide to Success
2. Register on the My Red Dot portal
3. Select industry and provide brand information
4. Enter brand owner and if applicable, agency/agencies involved 
5. Upload brand profile, logo and further materials
6. Select payment method and complete registration

Which details do I need to provide when registering in the “Brands” section?

The mandatory details for “Brands” are as follows:

• Core information about brand (brand name, choice of industry)
• Information about the brand owner
• Brand profile (PDF max. 10 pages) and logo
• Form of entry (digital)
• Payment details

All details must be provided in English.

You can find detailed information about submission in our Guide to Success for the “Brands” section (PDF, 1,2 MB).

What should be included in my brand profile?

You can upload your brand profile and your logo to the My Red Dot Portal. Use the profile to describe your brand values and outline the design and communication measures you take to position your brand. Describe how the brand differs from competitors in the same industry and highlight the points that are important for your brand identity. We recommend discussing the following aspects: vision and brand values, design and brand communication, brand identity and differentiation.

Detailed information as well as examples can be found in the Guide to Success “Brands” (PDF, 1,2MB).

Which material should I upload in “Jury presentation”?

For the jury presentation, you have the option to upload specific design and communication examples in the form of photos, movies or sound files that convey the values and positioning of your brand. Additionally, you can provide a URL for a website or an app where you present your brand and jurors can get a representative impression of your brand.

You can find detailed information about this in the Guide to Success for the “Brands” section (PDF, 1,2 MB).

What is the PI code and where can I find it?

The PI code is the ID code of the work you enter. As soon as you click on “Status of my entries” in your My Red Dot account, you will find your PI code as the first part of the heading for each entry. Please always refer to this code in all of your communications with us as it will help us to process your request.

Until when do I have to upload digital material?

Digital material has to be uploaded to complete a submission. Please note that you can not edit your application or any digital materials, once your application has been submitted.

What are the requirements for uploading files?

Please name your files with Latin characters and do not use special characters in the file name. All information on the file specifications can be found in the Guide to Success for the “Communication Design” section (PDF, 1,4 MB) or in the Guide to Success for the “Brands” section (PDF, 1,2 MB).

When does evaluation of the entries take place?

Adjudication for the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design takes place in July.

What happens during adjudication?

Every entry that is received on time and complies with the entry rules is admitted for adjudication; there is no pre-selection. The works and brands are scrutinised by the 24-member jury in a process spanning several days.

What does it cost to take part in the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design?

The registration fee for a work in the “Communication Design” section or a brand in the “Brands” section depends on the date of registration.

An overview of the valid dates and costs can be found here.

What costs are incurred if I receive a distinction in the “Communication Design” section?

The cost of the obligatory Winner Package varies according to the type of distinction and the scope of the presentation in the International Yearbook Brands & Communication Design and online in the Winners Section.

An overview can be found here.

What costs are incurred if I receive a distinction in the “Brands” section?

The costs of the obligatory Winner Package vary depending on the type of distinction and the scope of the presentation in the International Yearbook Brands & Communication Design and online in the Winners Section.

An overview can be found here.

What are the benefits of winning a Red Dot?

The Red Dot stands internationally for good design quality. If your work or your brand wins a Red Dot, you can advertise using the globally recognised Red Dot label, which is an ideal communication tool. Additionally, all of the winners benefit from the presentation in the yearbook, in international exhibitions and in the Winners section.

When will I find out if my project has received a distinction?

You will receive an e-mail in July with your results in the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design. You can also download your notification under “My results” in your My Red Dot account.

What distinctions can I receive in the “Communication Design” section?

The jury presents various distinctions in the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design.

These include the “Red Dot”, the “Red Dot: Best of the Best”, the “Red Dot: Grand Prix” and the “Red Dot: Junior Prize” in the “Communication Design” section. The winners receive the corresponding labels for their communication.

What distinctions can I receive in the “Brands” section?

The distinctions in the “Brands” section are the Red Dot, the Red Dot: Best of the Best and the Red Dot: Brand of the Year. The award winners receive the corresponding labels for their communication.

When can I start communicating my distinctions

Once you have booked your Winner Package, you will receive your Red Dot label and can publicly communicate your success and award.

From July 2024, Red Dot will communicate the awarded brands and projects on selected channels. Furthermore, press enquiries about the winners will be answered individually from this point on. Beginning in November, all award-winning projects will appear in the Winners section on the Red Dot website as well as in the International Yearbook Brands & Communication Design.

When can I start using the Red Dot label?

You can download the label in your My Red Dot account once you have successfully booked the Winner Package.