How the Baby Of The Year Competition Works From Entry To Final Vote

If you've recently heard about Baby of the Year, you're not alone. Every year, thousands of families discover the nationwide online competition through a friend's social media post, a family text message, or a shared voting link. Naturally, one of the first questions they ask is: What exactly is Baby of the Year?

Baby of the Year is a nationwide online competition open to babies under 24 months old. Now entering its third year, the campaign is hosted by Colossal and supports a national nonprofit through a charitable grantmaking organization.

Registration is free and remains open through September 9, while voting begins August 31. A parent or legal guardian who is at least 18 can submit an entry online by providing basic information about the child and uploading a photo for review. Eligible babies must be younger than 24 months when entered, and the parent and child must meet the residency requirements described in the official rules.

What Entering The Competition Involves

Once an entry is approved, the baby receives a profile that the family can share with relatives, friends, and other supporters. The profile is the center of the competition experience, since it holds the child’s photo and information while also giving supporters a place to return when each new voting period begins. Parents retain ownership of the images they submit while granting the competition permission to display and use those materials in connection with Baby of the Year only. Learn more about Colossal’s Trust and Privacy commitment here.

How Daily Voting And Donation Votes Work

Once voting opens, each eligible supporter can cast one free vote every 24 hours. Parents can use their own free daily vote for their child, and grandparents, friends, coworkers, and other supporters can also participate. The free vote requires social media verification, which the competition uses to confirm voter identity and reduce automated voting, duplicate accounts, and other activity that could distort the results.

Supporters who are at least 18 may also support a participant by voting by donation. Donations are made to a registered public charity that serves as the campaign’s grantmaker.

What Happens As The Field Gets Smaller

The public voting period unfolds through a series of tournament-style rounds, beginning with larger groups and gradually narrowing to the final competitors. Babies with the highest qualifying vote totals in each round in their groups advance. Colossal reviews voting activity and will remove any activity that violates the rules.

Voting is scheduled to close November 5, and the winner will be announced on or before December 5. The verified 2026 winner will receive $25,000, appear in an advertorial, and appear in a national ad campaign..

For most families, the experience will begin with a favorite photo and a few messages to people who already enjoy receiving baby updates. Reading the Official Baby of the Year Rules before the profile goes live makes the later stages easier to follow, particularly once daily votes, donation questions, and requests from enthusiastic grandparents begin arriving at the same time.

This contest is not sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with the publisher. All prizes, rules, and details are determined by the organizer and are subject to change. Please refer to the organizer’s official website for the most current information.

BDG Media newsroom and editorial staff were not involved in the creation of this content.