Poetry Contests in Canada 2026
Quick answer: 13 Canadian poetry contests with fees in CA$, 4 taking entries right now (September 2026), followed by 10 worldwide prizes taking entries today that poets in Canada can also enter. Each is listed with its entry fee, prize, who can enter and a live open or closed status derived from the organiser's own dates. Every figure was read on the official site in September 2026; confirm there before paying.
Canada's poetry contests run all year: Room, Grain and subTerrain close between March and June, the CBC Poetry Prize on 1 June, the Malahat Review, PRISM, the Fiddlehead and Prairie Fire between October and December, and Arc's CA$5,000 Poem of the Year on 1 February. Most magazine contests charge CA$35 to CA$40 and include a subscription; the CBC prize is for Canadians only, and each row's notes give the organiser's own rule.
Open now (4)
- PRISM international Pacific Spirit Poetry Prize (Canada). Open, closes October 31. Entry: CA$35 per entry from any country, CA$5 each further entry; free entries for Black and Indigenous writers and some low income writers on request. Prize: CA$1,500, CA$600 and CA$400. From UBC Creative Writing and open to all writers, one to three poems of up to 100 lines; the current deadline is published only on Submittable, and the window shown is the magazine's usual one.
- The Malahat Review Open Season Awards (Poetry) (Canada). Open, closes November 1. Entry: CA$35 from Canada or CA$45 from elsewhere, CA$20 or CA$30 early bird until 30 September; CA$10 each further entry; first entry includes a one year print subscription. Prize: CA$2,000 and publication in each of poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction. University of Victoria magazine, open internationally; up to three poems of 100 lines or fewer per entry, not published or submitted elsewhere, closing 1 November.
- Prairie Fire Poetry Contest (Bliss Carman Poetry Award) (Canada). Open, closes November 30. Entry: CA$34 per entry, with a subscription for the first entry in each category. Prize: CA$1,250 and an honourable mention in each of poetry, short fiction and creative nonfiction. Winnipeg magazine with McNally Robinson Booksellers, open internationally; up to three unpublished poems totalling 150 lines, entries taken any time before 30 November.
- The Fiddlehead Ralph Gustafson Prize for Best Poem (Canada). Open, closes December 1. Entry: CA$35 from Canadian addresses or CA$50 from elsewhere, CA$10 each further entry, with a one year subscription. Prize: CA$2,000, publication and CA$65 a page. University of New Brunswick magazine, open internationally; up to three poems of 100 lines or fewer, closing 1 December.
Closed at the moment, reopening on schedule (9)
- The Malahat Review Long Poem Prize (Canada). Opens November 1. Entry: Last round: CA$35 from Canada or CA$45 from elsewhere, early bird CA$20 or CA$30, CA$15 each further entry, with a one year print subscription. Prize: Two winners of CA$1,250 each plus publication. Runs in odd years, alternating with the Novella Prize; a single poem or cycle of 10 to 20 pages, open internationally, next deadline 1 February 2027 with 2027 fees not yet posted.
- Arc Poetry Magazine Poem of the Year (Canada). Opens November 1. Entry: CA$40 for one or two poems, CA$45 for three, CA$5 each further poem up to CA$80, with a one year subscription. Prize: CA$5,000, a CA$500 honourable mention and a CA$250 readers' choice; shortlisted poets paid for publication. Ottawa magazine with the largest single poem prize among Canadian magazine contests; open worldwide, poems of up to 100 lines, early bird until 31 December and a usual 1 February close.
- Room Magazine Poetry Contest (Canada). Opens January 1. Entry: CA$39 from Canada, CA$49 from the US, CA$59 elsewhere, with a one year subscription; CA$7 each further entry; ten free entries for low income writers. Prize: 1st CA$1,000, 2nd CA$250, honourable mention CA$100, all published. For women, trans men, Two-Spirit and nonbinary writers from any country; up to three poems or 150 lines; the 2026 round was extended to 10 April.
- Contemporary Verse 2 (CV2) 2-Day Poem Contest (Canada). Opens March 1. Entry: CA$20 registration, or CA$30 with a one year CV2 subscription. Prize: 1st CA$500, 2nd CA$300, 3rd CA$150, each with a subscription and publication. Winnipeg magazine's 48 hour challenge every April: ten words are released at midnight and the poem must use them all; register about a week before the writing weekend.
- Grain Magazine Short Grain Contest (Poetry) (Canada). Opens January 1. Entry: CA$40 from Canada, CA$50 from the US, CA$60 elsewhere, for up to two entries in one category, with a one year subscription. Prize: 1st CA$1,000, 2nd CA$750, 3rd CA$500, each published in Grain. Saskatchewan Writers' Guild magazine, open internationally; one or two unpublished poems of up to 100 lines, no AI assistance, running 1 January to 15 April 2027.
- FreeFall Magazine Annual Prose and Poetry Contest (Canada). Opens December 1. Entry: CA$25 per entry, with a one year subscription for the first entry. Prize: Poetry: 1st CA$500, 2nd CA$250, 3rd CA$125, honourable mention CA$75. Calgary magazine, open internationally; up to three unpublished poems per entry, running 1 December 2026 to 30 April 2027.
- CBC Poetry Prize (Canada). Opens April 1. Entry: CA$25 per entry, taxes included. Prize: CA$6,000 from the Canada Council for the Arts, a two week Banff Centre residency and publication on CBC Books; four finalists CA$1,000 each. Canadian citizens and permanent residents only, at the age of majority; English entries up to 600 words, unpublished. The 2027 round opens 1 April and closes 1 June 2027.
- subTerrain Lush Triumphant Literary Awards (Poetry) (Canada). Opens January 1. Entry: CA$30 per entry, CA$5 each further entry, with a one year subscription. Prize: CA$1,000 and publication in each of poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction. Vancouver magazine; the poetry entry is a suite of five related poems in up to 15 pages, single poems are not eligible, no residency rule, closing 1 June.
- Montreal International Poetry Prize (Canada). Opens periodic windows. Entry: CA$25 first poem before 1 May, CA$28 after; CA$20 each further poem. Prize: CA$20,000 for one poem; about 60 shortlisted poems published in the prize anthology. Run by McGill University every second year and open worldwide to poets of the age of majority, poems of 40 lines or fewer; the 2026 round closed 15 May, so the next is expected in 2028.
Worldwide prizes open right now to poets in Canada (10)
- Writory International Poetry Contest (International). Open now. Entry: Shown in your local currency (a free entry option is available each month). Prize: Cash prizes, a certificate for every poet, and a five criteria score. Opens on the 1st, closes on the 25th, results on the 30th, every single month. Every poem is scored on creativity, emotion, structure, language and impact and resonance.
- Frontier Poetry Myths and Fables Prize (United States). Closing soon, September 13. Entry: $20 per submission. Prize: 1st $3,000, 2nd $300, 3rd $200, plus publication. A themed annual prize from Frontier, which runs several through the year; a limited free entry window exists for historically marginalized poets.
- Tom Howard / Margaret Reid Poetry Contest (United States). Open, closes October 1. Entry: $25 per submission of up to 3 poems. Prize: $12,000 total across the Tom Howard and Margaret Reid prizes. From Winning Writers, with one category for any style and one for traditional rhyme and meter.
- Reuben Rose Memorial Poetry Competition (International). Open, closes October 1. Entry: $6 for one poem, $14 for three. Prize: 1st $500, 2nd $200, 3rd $100, plus honourable mentions. Run by Voices Israel for English language poetry from anywhere in the world; confirm the opening month on their site.
- Missouri Review Jeffrey E. Smith Editors' Prize (Poetry) (United States). Open, closes October 1. Entry: US$25, which includes a one year digital subscription and a digital TMR Books title. Prize: US$5,000 and publication in the spring issue; every entry considered for publication. Six to twelve pages of unpublished poems, judged by the magazine's editors; no residency rule, though University of Missouri students and staff cannot enter.
- Peter Porter Poetry Prize (Australia). Open, closes October 14. Entry: AU$30 per poem, AU$20 for ABR subscribers. Prize: 1st AU$6,000; four other shortlisted poets AU$1,000 each. Run by Australian Book Review and open to living poets anywhere in the world; one unpublished poem of up to 60 lines, the 2027 prize closing 14 October 2026.
- National Poetry Competition (United Kingdom). Open, closes October 31. Entry: £9 first poem, £6 each subsequent. Prize: 1st £5,000, 2nd £3,000, 3rd £2,000, plus commendations. Run by the Poetry Society and open worldwide; one of the best known single poem prizes in English.
- The Bedford Competition (Poetry) (United Kingdom). Open, closes October 31. Entry: £8.50 per poem, £17 for three. Prize: 1st £2,000, 2nd £400, 3rd £300. An annual open competition with parallel poetry and short story strands; confirm the opening month on their site.
- Mslexia Women's Poetry Competition (United Kingdom). Open, closes December 7. Entry: £12 for up to three poems. Prize: 1st £2,000, 2nd £500, 3rd £250, an Unpublished Poet Prize of £250; winners and 16 finalists published in Mslexia. For women of any nationality in any country; unpublished poems of any length, no AI, closing 7 December 2026 with winners announced 1 March 2027.
- Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest (United States). Open, closes April 1. Entry: free. Prize: $5,100 in total prizes, 1st $2,000. A genuinely free contest from Winning Writers for humorous poetry; closes on April 1.
Questions poets ask
Which Canada poetry contests are free to enter?
None of the Canadian prizes listed here is free this year, though several give free entries to members, students or writers on low incomes and the fee column says so. Writory gives a free entry to each month's winners and to poets who enter three months in a row.
What poetry contests in Canada close next?
The next Canadian deadlines are PRISM international Pacific Spirit Poetry Prize on 31 October, The Malahat Review Open Season Awards (Poetry) on 1 November, Prairie Fire Poetry Contest (Bliss Carman Poetry Award) on 30 November. The list sorts itself by the nearest deadline and marks anything closing within ten days, so the urgent ones are always at the top.
Which Canadian poetry contests are for Canadian residents only?
The CBC Poetry Prize is for Canadian citizens and permanent residents. Most literary magazine contests, including the Malahat Review, PRISM international, Arc, the Fiddlehead and Grain, take entries from anywhere in the world, usually with a higher fee for addresses outside Canada. The notes on each row state the rule as the organiser writes it.
Why do Canadian magazine contests cost CA$35 or more?
The fee almost always includes a one year subscription to the magazine, and entrants outside Canada often pay a little more for postage. Contests without a subscription, such as the Montreal International Poetry Prize's early bird rate, are priced per poem instead.
How is Writory different from the Canadian contests here?
Writory runs every month rather than once a year, from the 1st to the 25th with results on the 30th, and every entrant gets a score out of 100, a certificate and a written reading of the poem rather than a rejection. Poets from Canada compete in one worldwide field; the entry is US$5 for one poem.
Other countries
By the Writory editorial team. Statuses computed September 2026. Writory's contest for poets in Canada, enter Writory's monthly contest, how to enter a poetry contest.