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The Recording Academy has revealed the key dates, deadlines and rule amendments for the 68th Annual Grammy Awards, taking place on Sun, Feb. 1, 2026, at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, with nominations set to be announced on Fri, Nov. 7, 2025.
Following its annual board meeting, it has also announced several new awards and changes to the awards process, effective immediately. The full Grammy rulebook can be accessed here.
Perhaps most interesting among these new awards is best album cover, which, like the introduction of a best songwriter award three years ago, was a surprisingly longtime omission, especially considering the longtime presence of best liner notes and “packaging” awards (the two separate packaging awards have been combined into one).
“The Academy’s top priority is to represent the music people that we serve each year,” said Harvey Mason jr., CEO of the Recording Academy. “That entails listening carefully to our members to make sure our rules and guidelines reflect today’s music and allow us to accurately recognize as many deserving creators as possible. As we kick off another exciting GRAMMY Season, we look forward to celebrating the amazing power of music and its ability to bring so many people together.”
GraMMY AWARD FIELD AND CATEGORY UPDATES
General Field
Eligibility for Best New Artist has been expanded to include artists who have been previously nominated in Album Of The Year, but whose contributions fell below the current 20 percent playing time threshold. This update allows acts who were credited as featured artists on projects that were GRAMMY nominated for Album Of The Year in a previous awards cycle to be eligible for Best New Artist consideration.
Country Field
The existing Best Country Album Category has been renamed Best Contemporary Country Album, and a new Category, Best Traditional Country Album, has been added.
Classical Field
In Classical Categories, composers and lyricists/librettists are now eligible for GRAMMY recognition alongside all other key creative personnel including artists, producers, and engineers on winning albums.
Packaging Field
The existing Best Recording Package and Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package Categories have been combined into one single Category: Best Recording Package. A new Category, Best Album Cover, has also been added.
The physical product eligibility requirement for Best Recording Package, Best Album Notes, and Best Historical Album has also been expanded to be more representative of today’s marketplace. This change ensures that physical album packages sold directly to fans through an artist’s or label’s website are eligible for GRAMMY consideration.
Additionally, the Craft Committee serving in this field is transitioning from a regional to a national model.
Category Definition, Eligibility, & Criteria Updates
Minor updates to definitions, eligibility and criteria across multiple fields and awards have been reviewed and revised to be more expansive and inclusive. A full list of those changes can be found on page six of the rulebook.
Key dates for the 68th Annual GRAMMY Awards season are as follows:
Aug. 31, 2024 – Aug. 30, 2025
Product Eligibility Period
July 7, 2025 – Aug. 22, 2025
Media Company Registration Period
July 16, 2025 – Aug. 29, 2025
Online Entry Period
Oct. 3, 2025 – Oct. 15, 2025
First Round Voting
Nov. 7, 2025
Nominees Announced for the 68th Annual GRAMMY Awards
Dec. 12, 2025 – Jan. 5, 2026
Final Round Voting
Feb. 1, 2026
68th Annual GRAMMY Awards, broadcasting live on the CBS Television Network and streaming live and on demand on Paramount+.
English (US) ·