Genre
Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards (Eisner Awards)
Comic-Con International
In short
The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards are presented each July by Comic-Con International in San Diego, for comics, graphic novels, webcomics, and books about comics. Comic shops, libraries with graphic novel collections, and the trade press follow the nominations. Publishers and creators both submit directly, with no fee listed, one copy per item and a cover letter listing titles, categories, and credits. If you publish with a comics publisher, ask whether they are entering, since an imprint may send up to five entries per category.
This cycle closedChecked September 13, 2026 (opens in a new tab)
Every label is a fact from the official rules, never a judgment about whether the award is worth entering. How we describe awards.
The last verified deadline has passed. Check the official source for the next cycle.
Sign in to be emailed when entries open again.
The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, presented by Comic-Con International each July in San Diego, recognize comics, graphic novels, webcomics, digital comics, and comics-related books and periodicals. The roughly thirty categories include best graphic album (new and reprint), best graphic memoir, best reality-based work, best publications for early readers, kids, and teens, best U.S. edition of international material, best adaptation from another medium, best digital comic, best webcomic, best comics-related book, and best academic or scholarly work, plus creator categories.
Publishers and creators submit entries directly, so self-publishers can enter. Any work shipped to retailers or bookstores or first made available online in the United States during the eligibility year qualifies, provided it is no more than 50 percent reprint material (except in the reprint and archival categories). One copy is required, physical copies are preferred but PDFs are accepted, and webcomics are entered by URL. Publishers may submit up to five entries per category, and each submission needs a cover letter listing titles, categories, and credits.
An independent panel of judges chooses the nominees, the final ballot goes online in May to the comics industry (publishers, creators, distributors, retailers, librarians), and winners are announced at Comic-Con in July. No entry fee is listed in the call for entries.
Why it may matter
The Eisners are the comics field's most widely reported awards, and nominations are used by comic shops, libraries with graphic novel collections, and the trade press. Because creators can enter their own work with a single copy and no fee, a self-published or small-press graphic novel is not at a structural disadvantage at the entry stage.
2026 cycle: 2026 Eisner Awards (works published in 2025)
- Eligible publication dates
- January 1, 2025 to December 31, 2025
- Final deadline
- March 13, 2026 (passed)Checked September 13, 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Deadline note
- All entries must be received at the Comic-Con offices in San Diego by March 13, 2026
- Entry fee
- No entry fee is listed in the call for entriesChecked September 13, 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Results
- Nominees announced in spring; industry voting from May; winners announced at Comic-Con in July 2026
- Notes
- Last posted cycle; the 2027 call for entries had not been published when this record was verified
Worth knowing
Our reading, not a rule the organization published. We judge an award on the rubric in how we describe awards.
The most recent call for entries covered works published in 2025, with entries due at the Comic-Con offices by March 13, 2026. As of September 16, 2026 the Eisner Awards page (comic-con.org/awards/eisner-awards/ (opens in a new tab)) carried the 2026 results and no call for 2027 entries. The call for the 2027 awards (works published in 2026) is normally posted on comic-con.org (opens in a new tab) late in the year; check there for the new deadline and any category changes. A single copy covers a work entered in multiple categories.
Rules and deadlines change. We last checked this information on September 16, 2026. If you see something that needs updating, please tell us.
Run this award? Confirm or correct this record.
Use your work email. If it is on the domain the record already links to, we send you a link that opens the record for you to confirm or correct. Otherwise a person reads it and gets back to you.