Annual Paperboard Packaging Competition

The Oscars of the Paperboard Industry

Administered and hosted by PPC and judged by a jury of packaging professionals, industry experts, and professors, the Annual Paperboard Packaging Competition is the premier competition for carton manufacturers involved in the concept, design, print, performance, and shelf appeal of paperboard packaging.

The Paperboard Packaging Council’s (PPC) Annual Paperboard Packaging Competition is the premier competition for converters of paperboard packaging. Judged by a diverse panel of packaging experts, the competition reflects the evolving trends in carton design and showcases the industry’s commitment to innovation and advancement.

The competition celebrates excellence in beauty, innovation, sustainability, and craftsmanship, highlighting the strengths of paper-based packaging within the supply chain. Each entry is evaluated on innovation, craftsmanship, and impact, ensuring that the most transformative designs receive top honors.

Companies of all sizes, from global publicly traded organizations to small independent box shops, are encouraged to participate. All entries are judged equally, with converter names and printed logos kept anonymous to ensure a fair and unbiased selection process.

Submit Today

Deadline May 15, 2026

Interested in learning more? Read our updated Rules & Guidelines to set yourself up for success for the 2026 competition!

See our most recent 2025 Paperboard Packaging Competition winners. Then, come learn more about the competition, and how and when to enter by exploring the information below.

Paperboard Packaging Competition Magazine

2025 Winners Click here to download photos and more! Log in to your PPC account to access these resources.

Winners

Deadlines & Fees

83rd Annual Paperboard Packaging Competition

Submission Fee: $249 per entry

Submissions open!

Entry Guidelines + Form

Entry forms are easier and more collaborative than ever! Use our online entry form through Judgify to draft, edit, and submit your entries.

Submit Today

After submitting your entry form(s), mail your cartons to PPC headquarters and send tracking information to packagingcomp@paperbox.org .

Paperboard Packaging Council
ATTN: Kayla Brown-Frye
1350 Main St., Suite 400
Springfield, MA 01103

Questions?

For more info, email packagingcomp@paperbox.org or call 413.686.9191.

Benefits & Tips

Official Awards Program
The perfect sales tool for showcasing your awards as well as the myriad graphic and structural design possibilities inherent to paperboard packaging, this glossy, full-color program features photos and information on each winning entry. It’s distributed to all entrants, PPC members, package design students, as well as conference and trade show attendees.

Entry Photographs
Each entrant receives a number of high-resolution professional photographs of each package entry. And since they’re copyright free, the opportunities for putting these professional photos to good use are endless: display them on your website, print them in collateral material, or provide them to the press alongside your award announcements!

Trophies and Plaques
Wow current and prospective customers with a distinguished, luminous trophy or plaque that touts your win! Top awards are given to the best rigid box, folding carton, and overall entry, and special awards are given to the top entries in the Sustainability and Innovation categories.

Capitalize upon your attractive memento by displaying it in your outer office to impress potential customers, or order extras to give to your current client, thereby cementing the relationship. For a morale booster and a PR opportunity, you could even hold a special ceremony at your plant to reveal the award and honor your design team!

Award Acceptance Photographs
Winners who attend the competition awards ceremony at the PPC Fall Meeting are professionally photographed accepting their trophy or plaque, and will receive a digital copy – another fantastic marketing/PR opportunity!

Industry Recognition
Each year, PPC secures the top winners face time in industry trade publications. Articles on competition award winners appear in print and digitally throughout the year, giving winners industry exposure and building their reputations as outstanding converters.

Additionally, the top entries are regularly placed on display at nationally recognized trade shows such as Pack Expo, giving executives and salespeople from outside the paperboard packaging industry a chance to see the creativity and ingenuity of your design staff and to learn about the clear benefits of paperboard packaging.