2022 Contest

Entries open on 1 December 2021

The annual World Press Photo Contest recognizes and celebrates the best photojournalism and documentary photography produced over the last year. Enter your work for free and you could win €1,000 as a regional winner and an additional €5,000 as a global winner, have your work showcased to a global audience, and more.

Entries for the 2022 World Press Photo Contest will open on 1 December 2021, until 11 January 2022. We are excited to welcome a multiplicity of stories and a diverse range of photographers from all over the world to enter the contest! 

Why should you enter?

Entering the World Press Photo Contest is free and open to all professional photographers working in the field of photojournalism and/or documentary photography.

As a winner, your work will be:
  • Included in our annual travelling exhibition shown around the world in over 80 cities
  • Published on our website and social platforms with over 2 million followers
  • Included in our yearbook
You will also receive:
  • €1,000 for each of the 24 regional winners and an additional €5,000 for the four global winners
  • An invitation to a winners’ event
  • A physical award
Find out more about prizes here. 
How to prepare

How to prepare

In preparation for the opening of entries on 1 December 2021, there are a few things you can do beforehand. Read more.

Entry rules

Entry rules

In order to facilitate a fair entry and judging
process, it is important that every entrant reads
the entry rules and agrees to them. Read here.

2022 Contest timeline

  • Entries open: 1 December 2021, 12.00 noon CET
  • Entries close: 11 January 2022, 12.00 noon CET
  • Regional winners announcement: March 2022
  • Global winners announcement: April 2022
  • Flagship World Press Photo Exhibition 2022 in Amsterdam: April 2022

Latest news about the contest

2022 Contest: What’s new

To offer a more global and better geographic balance of perspectives, the World Press Photo Foundation is launching a new regional strategy, changing the set-up of the annual contest and the judging.

September 29, 2021

Presenting World Press Photo Foundation’s new strategy

Hear from executive director Joumana El Zein Khoury about the new strategy, and how the foundation plans to live up to the "World" in World Press Photo.

September 29, 2021

Latest news about the contest

2022 Contest: What’s new

To offer a more global and better geographic balance of perspectives, the World Press Photo Foundation is launching a new regional strategy, changing the set-up of the annual contest and the judging.

September 29, 2021

Presenting World Press Photo Foundation’s new strategy

Hear from executive director Joumana El Zein Khoury about the new strategy, and how the foundation plans to live up to the "World" in World Press Photo.

September 29, 2021

Are you looking for more specific information? Visit one of the following pages to find out more about: 

Do you want to be notified about any upcoming announcements regarding the 2022 Contest? Sign up here.

Image credits (top to bottom, left to right): Pantanal Ablaze by Lalo de Almeida, Panos Pictures, for Folha de São Paulo; Fighting Locust Invasion in East Africa by Luis Tato, for The Washington Post; California Sea Lion Plays with Mask by Ralph Pace.

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