Evaluation

The GOOD DESIGN AWARD puts emphasis on the viewpoint that whether the design "can enrich people's lifestyle and society", which is, so to speak, the value and significance for users and society.
At the screening of the GOOD DESIGN AWARD, the judging committee examines whether an entry design can serve as a positive model in the society of the future. The screening is done based on comprehensive, balanced judgment with multifaceted thinking from a wide range of perspectives.

Considering design to represent the series of processes of thinking, such as identifying, planning and realizing those goals, the GOOD DESIGN AWARD regards individual items to be one certain design solution.
Accordingly, instead of asking only whether that solution is fit for purpose, the judges also examine the ideas and the methodologies, asking whether it leads to a chain of new creations.

GOOD DESIGN AWARD holds five words of fundamental themes as “Principles of GOOD DESIGN AWARD”. The principles have a role to provide the source of judging shared with judges.

The judges identify the values that entries create in society and consider the appropriateness of those values. Next, they examine the entry's relationship to its concept before looking at its shape and structure. That is, they look to see whether the actual design matches the intent of the planning stage and whether the design is reasonable. They also look in depth at whether the design is likely to propose some values for people's lives or society and whether it realizes such value.

The number of winners or the pass rates for the GOOD DESIGN AWARD is not determined beforehand. In 2022, 5,715 entries were screened, and 1,560 entries won the award. The number might look high, but we can say the number of winners is not that high when looking at the number of each category, because the GOOD DESIGN AWARD has broad tangible and intangible categories.