Submissions to the International Women’s Podcast Awards Are Now Open for 2026

The International Women’s Podcast Awards (IWPAs), presented by Tink Media, are officially open for submissions for the 2026 awards. 

This year the International Women’s Podcast Awards are returning with a new team, new branding, a new location, and all the same love of the art of podcasting. With Tink stepping in as this year’s host, the event will expand its reach and visibility while staying true to its founding purpose of championing international women creators in audio both behind the mic and behind the scenes, from podcast hosts and producers, to editors and writers. Entries are now open for the 2026 awards through July 31st, 2026.

The IWPAs have become a cornerstone event celebrating the creativity, innovation, and impact of women in podcasting across genres and geographies. Proudly queer and trans inclusive, the IWPAs showcase creative excellence across multiple categories, recognizing the best in the business from around the world, from those who are self-taught and producing shows solo, to those who form part of larger teams at established audio companies.

There will be 10 returning categories that include “Moment of Compelling Storytelling,” “Moment of Podcasting Panache in a Language other than English,” “Moment of Behind-the-Scenes Brilliance,” and “Moment of Comedy Gold,” as well as a new one: “Moment of Artistry in Advertising” that recognizes podcast ads from paid sponsors and also cross promotions, like promo swaps and feed swaps. “Creating cool, entertaining, and effective audio ads is a lost art,” said Lauren Passell, founder of Tink Media. “We want to remind people that ads have the potential to be all of those things, and encourage people to start going in bolder directions with how they do host-reads.”

• All categories are open to shows from any genre or style (fiction, non-fiction, narrative, interview, panel discussion, investigative, etc.).

• Submissions can come from independently produced shows, solo podcasts, large-scale productions, and everything in between — every submission is treated equally.

• The IWPAs are queer and trans inclusive, allowing submissions from any creators who feel represented by the awards.

• With each entry you can submit up to 10 minutes of audio that you feel best fits that category and will wow our panel of judges.

• The audio you enter must have been released to the public between June 10th, 2025 and July 31st, 2026.

• Entries to the IWPAs are $50 each, inclusive of all platform and processing fees.

The team at Tink is also looking forward to continuing in the tradition started in past years of the International Women’s Podcast Awards with the IWPA Scholarship Program to help underfunded, marginalized independent creators submit to the awards when they may have financial constraints that make applying a difficult decision to make. The IWPA Scholarship Program will be available for covering entry fees to the awards, as well as tickets to attend the event in person in Toronto, for anyone worldwide who would not otherwise be able to participate. Scholarship codes will be given out on a rolling basis through the end of the awards submission period or until the scholarship cap has been reached. Those interested in applying for scholarship entry to the IWPAs can learn more and apply on the Tink website at tinkmedia.co/awards#scholarships.

When you’re ready to submit your podcast to this year’s IWPAs, you can do so at InternationalWomensPodcastAwards.com.