The European Central Bank has published the Design Contest Jury’s report on the redesign of euro banknotes, setting out ten winning design proposals that will feed into the final selection of a new banknote series. The shortlist comprises five proposals under the theme “European culture” and five under “Rivers and birds”, reflecting the Eurosystem’s effort to give future euro banknotes a design that is secure and functional while also more relatable, inclusive and aligned with Europe’s shared identity and sustainability goals. The report details a two-phase contest launched in July 2025 for EU-based graphic designers. An open call drew 1,241 applications, from which 25 designers were invited to develop proposals for the EUR 5, EUR 10, EUR 20, EUR 50, EUR 100 and EUR 200 banknotes. By 24 April 2026, 39 pseudonymised proposals had been submitted, including 23 for “Rivers and birds” and 16 for “European culture”. An independent jury with one member from each euro area country assessed the submissions against predefined visual, technical and required criteria, including creativity, thematic consistency, accessibility, differentiation between denominations and compliance with mandatory design constraints, and selected five winning proposals for each theme without ranking them. The Governing Council will take the final decision on the future euro banknote design at end-2026, based on the contest outcome and the results of public surveys scheduled for summer 2026.
European Central Bank2026-07-23
European Central Bank publishes ten winning design proposals for future euro banknotes, final choice due at end-2026
The European Central Bank has published the jury report naming ten winning design proposals for future euro banknotes, with five proposals each for the themes “European culture” and “Rivers and birds”. The shortlist emerged from 39 submissions assessed by an independent euro area jury. The Governing Council is expected to make the final design choice at end-2026 after considering the public’s preferences.