D&AD has revealed the winners of its 2026 Awards, with this year’s competition drawing entries from a record-breaking 89 countries and awarding 573 Pencils across 46 categories.
More than 50,000 pieces of work were submitted for consideration, reflecting what organizers described as one of the most globally competitive years in the awards program’s 64-year history.
The United States once again led all countries with 235 Pencil wins overall, followed by the United Kingdom with 184. France, Germany, and Brazil rounded out the top five.
When it came to coveted Yellow Pencils, the U.S. also topped the rankings with 27 wins, narrowly ahead of the UK’s 25. Canada and Singapore each earned five Yellow Pencils, while France secured four.
Singapore emerged as one of the standout stories of the year, collecting 11 Pencils in total, including five Yellow Pencils. The show placed Singapore tied for third globally in Yellow Pencil wins alongside Canada, reinforcing the country’s growing influence within the international creative industry.
This year also saw major momentum for D&AD’s Culture discipline, which experienced a 49% increase in entries year-over-year, the largest growth of any discipline in the competition.
Three new categories debuted in 2026:
- Sport Entertainment
- Cultural Influence
- Brand Transformation
Together, the new categories awarded 27 Pencils in their inaugural year.
Among categories, Magazine & Newspaper Design led all fields with 28 Pencil wins, including four Yellow Pencils. Film also secured four Yellow Pencils, while Art Direction, Graphic Design, and Experiential: Activation and Participation remained among the most-awarded categories overall.
The total Pencil breakdown for 2026 included:
- 2 White Pencils
- 52 Yellow Pencils
- 149 Graphite Pencils
- 368 Wood Pencils
- 2 Future Impact Pencils
An additional 557 entries received shortlist recognition.
“What stood out most was the sheer creative bravery and excellence on display,” said Lisa Smith, D&AD President and Global Chief Design Officer at Uncommon Creative Studio. “Across disciplines we saw teams pushing into genuinely new territory, from storytelling and traditional craft to emerging technologies and new forms of expression.”
She added, “Creativity is very much alive and the work that won did so because it moved the standard of creative excellence forward.”
D&AD CEO David Patton said this year’s awards reflected a significant shift in where globally recognized creative work is now emerging. “64 years in and the D&AD Awards have never felt more global or more vital,” Patton said. “The breadth of countries entering and the quality of work they’re producing tells you everything about where commercial creativity is headed.”
Patton pointed specifically to growing submission volume from markets including the UAE, India, Argentina, and Saudi Arabia as evidence that world-class creative ambition is no longer concentrated in just a handful of traditional advertising capitals.
“Singapore is perhaps the best example of that shift,” he added. “Eleven Pencils, five of them Yellow, an achievement that signals where global creativity is heading.”
All winning and shortlisted work is now available on the D&AD website, with the organization’s official rankings and Black Pencil winners scheduled to be announced during the September awards ceremony.
REELated:
Ogilvy Singapore leads 2026 One Show Gold Pencil winners
