International Women’s Podcast Awards
Celebrating the creativity, innovation, and impact of women in podcasting across genres and geographies.
2026 awards submissions now open!
✳︎
2026 awards submissions now open! ✳︎
The International Women’s Podcast Awards recognize moments of brilliance in podcasting and the women that produce them.
We champion and celebrate their work, both behind the mic and behind the scenes, from podcast hosts and producers, to editors and writers.
Proudly queer and trans inclusive, the IWPAs showcase creative excellence across multiple categories, recognizing the best in the business from across the world, from those who are self-taught and producing shows solo, to those who form part of larger teams at established audio companies.
With entries received from 35 different countries in 2025, a panel of judges consisting of podcasters, journalists and experienced professionals evaluate the submitted entries each year and select the winners across multiple categories.
The 2026 International Women’s Podcast Awards will be presented by Tink Media, with the award ceremony to be held in Toronto, Canada this autumn.
Uplifting and Amplifying the Voices of Women in Audio
The joy of podcasting lies in its intimacy. In the atmosphere created between the creators and listeners. In the moments of incredible sensitivity, humor, or honesty that keep people engrossed.
The International Women’s Podcast Awards celebrates these intimate moments of podcasting brilliance, and the people that make them happen. We are unlike other awards… We don’t look at the genre your podcast is in, and we don’t care how many downloads you’ve had.
We’re just looking for your exceptional moments of audio brilliance. The ones that make you the most proud of your podcast. The ones you’d choose to show off to others.
Categories
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 International Women’s Podcast Awards (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 across the world, from those who are self-taught and producing shows solo, to those who form part of larger teams at established audio companies.
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. Audio submissions may be edited from multiple points of a single episode to create an entry, but the included material may only be taken from one episode of your podcast.
The audio you enter must have been released to the public between June 10th, 2025 and July 31st, 2026. If the entered audio has not been released publicly by the time of the submission deadline, it unfortunately will not be eligible to win.
-
Audio has a way of helping us reveal some of the most intimate moments of searing truth. Letting your guard down while creating something meaningful to you requires courage, and it can be exposing to be so honest. We love to reward that bravery.
-
Make us laugh! That is all. You don’t need to be a comedian to produce a hilarious bit of comedy gold — send us a moment in your podcast where you cried laughing while making it or listening to it!
-
While podcasts do an amazing job of entertaining listeners, many of them also seek to inform their audience. The best examples of these do so with clear communication of ideas and knowledge. Blow us away with clips highlighting the most brilliantly simple or extra engaging explanations of expertise.
-
If you produce a podcast in a language other than English, we want to hear your very best work and the most memorable moment from one of your episodes.
*This category requires the submission of an English-language transcript to accompany your audio so our judges can read along as they listen to your entry.
-
Whether they’re a CEO, an entrepreneur, a sports icon, a figurehead of a community, or another person with valuable leadership: we love women who lead! We want to hear about the folks on your podcast who’ve shown outstanding leadership and shared their secrets about it.
-
The work of hosts and voice actors is always front-and-center, but who are the unsung heroes of your podcast? The most brilliant moments of audio are where the writers, producers, editors, and podcast professionals out there really shine. They may not be the voices that listeners hear, but we know how invaluable their skills are to bringing your podcast to life.
-
So much of what we love about podcasting is woven around our love of hearing and telling stories. Think about the best story you've ever told, be it fictional, narrative, or even during an interview. We'd love to hear it.
-
If you had to choose a moment from your podcast to play to a class full of young people, what would it be? Who on your podcast could be considered a role model and why? We want to hear their insights and their pearls of wisdom.
-
There is such a diversity in the range of human emotions that can be expressed through audio – be that joy, curiosity, resilience, fear, empathy, heartbreak or any other. We’re after the most incredible audio moments reflecting this, where we’re invited to feel something while listening.
-
Promoting your podcast is just as important as creating it, and creating the perfect advertisement that makes your listeners feel like a part of your audio community and shows that you’re investing time into growing your show is an art in itself. Be it a host-read you aired for another podcast or an advertisement for a paid sponsor, tell us your most creative ways of making boring ads fun.
-
Podcasts have the power to create change in the world, and there are so many people out there using audio as part of a wider message. Share your moments with purpose, moments that say something profound about the world we live in, and what people are doing to change it for the better.
Ready to enter the 2026 IWPAs?
IWPA Scholarship Program
We know how expensive it can be to enter the various awards offered in podcasting, and we believe all podcasters, regardless of their finances, deserve to have their work heard and honored.
Thanks to the support of our sponsors, 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 those who would not otherwise be able to participate. Scholarship codes are valid for one entry into one category per applicant.
This form is meant to help underfunded, marginalized independent creators submit to the awards when they may have financial constraints that make applying a difficult decision to make. Scholarships will be given out on a rolling basis through the end of the awards submission period or until the scholarship cap has been reached.
Have any questions about the International Women’s Podcast Awards or want to learn more about supporting or sponsoring this year’s event?
Reach out to us at awards@tinkmedia.co!
Or learn more by reading our FAQs.