National Book Award for Poetry · 2025 · Winner
National Book Award for Poetry
2025 Winner
2025 Shortlist & Longlist
Shortlist
Complete History
2020s
2010s
- 2019Sight Lines — Arthur Sze
- 2018Indecency — Justin Phillip Reed
- 2017Half-light: Collected Poems 1965-2016 — Frank Bidart
- 2016The Performance of Becoming Human — Daniel Borzutzky
- 2015Voyage of the Sable Venus — Robin Coste Lewis
- 2014Faithful and Virtuous Night — Louise Glück
- 2013Incarnadine — Mary Szybist
- 2012Bewilderment: New Poems and Translations — David Ferry
- 2011Head Off & Split: Poems — Nikky Finney
- 2010Lighthead — Terrance Hayes
About the National Book Award for Poetry
The National Book Award for Poetry is one of America's premier poetry prizes, awarded annually by the National Book Foundation to a US citizen for a distinguished collection of poetry published in the US. The award has been given since 1950, with a hiatus from 1983 to 1990 when it was subsumed into other award structures. In its current form it recognizes both established and emerging voices in American poetry. Prize money of $10,000 goes to the winner, with $1,000 to each finalist. Past winners represent the full range of American poetic tradition, from W.H. Auden and Robert Lowell to Jesmyn Ward, Frank Bidart, and Patricia Smith. The award process begins with a longlist announced in September, followed by five finalists in October and the winner in November at the National Book Awards ceremony in New York City. Judges are drawn from the pool of distinguished American poets, critics, and educators. The award does not restrict itself to any particular style or school of poetry, recognizing formal verse, free verse, hybrid forms, and innovative approaches alike. A. R. Ammons, Philip Levine, and Alan Dugan are among the poets to have won this award twice.
Frequently Asked Questions
- US citizens who publish a poetry collection in the US between December 1 of the previous year and November 30 of the award year are eligible.
- The winner receives $10,000 and a bronze medal. Each of the five finalists receives $1,000 and a bronze medal.
- Winners are announced in November at the National Book Awards ceremony. Longlists are announced in September and finalists in October.
- Yes. The award was not given from 1984 to 1990 while the National Book Awards were restructured. It was reinstated in 1991.
- Yes. A. R. Ammons won in 1973 and 1993, Philip Levine in 1980 and 1991, and Alan Dugan in 1962 and 2001, among others.
- Yes. Both new collections and new and selected poems volumes are eligible, as long as the volume contains a substantial amount of previously uncollected work.
- No. Poetry originally written in English by a US citizen is required. Translations are eligible for the separate Translated Literature category.