Types of Awards

The Good Design Awards program consists of the Good Design Award, the Good Design Long Life Design Award, and the Good Design Frontier Design Award. Recipients of the Good Design Special Awards, such as the Good Design Grand Award and the Good Design Gold Award, are selected from among the award-winners.

(1) Good Design Award

The Good Design Awards has a long history stretching back more than 50 years.
The present-day Good Design Award is given to designs that have been developed in all spheres of human activity. Designs that would be used by the public or would be available for use by the time the Good Design Award is announced (early October) may be submitted for consideration.

Submissions for the Good Design Award are screened according to the five domains of human activity (1. Human body, 2. Living, 3. Work, 4. Society and 5. Network). After screening based on the information submitted with the application (first screening) and screening of the actual design (second screening), the Good Design Award winners are selected. In recent screenings, judges have tended to value pioneering designs that do not simply attempt to resolve the users' problems, but also guide the user in finding a solution in terms of a lifestyle for the near future.

(2) Good Design Long Life Design Award

The Long Life Design Award highlights design for products that have developed new approaches to manufacturing and personal lifestyle.
This prize is awarded to those endlessly cherished implements and devices over the years, that have earned the public's longstanding support and been recommended by users. The candidates go through the same screening process as submissions for the Good Design Award.

(3) Good Design Frontier Design Award

The Frontier Design Award recognizes ambitious initiatives intended to create a sustainable society and a society centered on ordinary citizens.
This award was newly created in 2009 to reward proposals and experiments that have not yet been implemented. Designers, engineers and students, as well as companies, are eligible for this award, which is given after submissions complete the same screening as for the Good Design Award.

(4) Good Design Special Award

Recipients of the special awards described below are selected from among all award-winners. The certificates of commendation are conferred by the special awards' respective sponsors.
The Good Design Gold Award is given to high-quality designs that have identified particularly sophisticated ways to resolve issues specific to this time period.
The Sustainable Design Award and Life-Scape Design Award recognize designs that address important issues for our lives in the near future.
The Good Design Award of Small and Medium Enterprises rewards ambitious initiatives by small and medium enterprises, while the Good Design Award of the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry rewards comprehensive efforts to revitalize local economies.

(5) Good Design Grand Award

The Good Design Grand Award is given to the most outstanding design among all the designs winning the Good Design Gold Awards.
This grand prize is not simply the highest prize, but is the prize given to the design that symbolizes our age. As such, the recipient of this award is selected by the Judging Committee, the Good Design Award winners and ordinary citizens.