The Book Prize Index

Trends

How nonfiction prizes have changed.

Explore the publishers, subjects, and prize programs represented in the index over time.

6,556

Events

316

Imprints

1920-2026

Years

Publishing imprints

Imprint leaderboard over time

See which publishing imprints led nonfiction prize recognition in each period.

1920–2026

Years

308

Ranked imprints

6,236

Rows scored

Awards
Show

Rank within the selected 5-year rolling window

Focused line: dashed below Top 15 · gap means no recognition

Imprint rankings over time. Select an imprint from the chart or ranking list to focus it. A dashed line at the bottom means the focused imprint ranked below the displayed cutoff; a gap means it had no recognition in the selected window.192019301940195019601970198019902000201020202026#1#5#10#15>15W. W. Norton: rank 1, value 45NortonPrinceton University Press: rank 2, value 40Farrar, Straus and Giroux: rank 3, value 36Random House: rank 4, value 32Simon & Schuster: rank 5, value 30HarperCollins: rank 6, value 26Yale University Press: rank 7, value 22Penguin Press: rank 8, value 21Cambridge University Press: rank 9, value 20Knopf: rank 10, value 18Oxford University Press: rank 11, value 18Basic Books: rank 12, value 16Bloomsbury: rank 13, value 15Liveright: rank 14, value 14Harvard University Press: rank 15, value 14

Date range

1920-2026

19202026

Prize history

A century of nonfiction prizes

The number of nonfiction prize programs in this index that were active each year.

Program timelines

Records in this indexActive per registryFinal edition
192019401960198020002020Pulitzer PrizeJames Tait Black PrizesAmerican Historical Assoc…John Burroughs MedalAnisfield-Wolf Book AwardsNational Book AwardsGovernor General's Litera…Overseas Press Club AwardsEdgar AwardsBancroft PrizeGeorge Polk AwardsHillman Prize for Book Jo…Phi Beta Kappa Book AwardsDuff Cooper PrizeFrancis Parkman PrizePfizer AwardCosta Book AwardsWolfson History PrizeNational Book Critics Cir…PROSE AwardsIRE AwardsLos Angeles Times Book Pr…Robert F. Kennedy Book Aw…Ackerley PrizeNCR Book AwardChicago Tribune Heartland…Helen Bernstein Book Awar…Royal Society Science Boo…George Perkins Marsh PrizeLionel Gelber PrizePEN/Diamonstein-Spielvoge…Orwell PrizeTruman Capote Award for L…Hilary Weston Writers' Tr…Baillie Gifford Prize for…Frederick Douglass Book P…J. Anthony Lukas Book Pri…Mark Lynton History PrizePEN Hessell-Tiltman PrizeRidenhour Book PrizeFT Business Book of the Y…Barbara and David Zalazni…Dayton Literary Peace Pri…PEN/John Kenneth Galbrait…Cundill History PrizePEN/Jacqueline Bograd Wel…Rachel Carson Environment…Wellcome Book PrizeLaura Shannon PrizePEN/E.O. Wilson Literary…Andrew Carnegie Medals fo…British Academy Book PrizePlutarch AwardKirkus PrizeWainwright Prize
View as data table
ProgramFoundedFinal editionCoverage in indexRecords
Pulitzer Prize1917Active1917-2026594
James Tait Black Prizes1919Active1919-2025108
American Historical Association Book Prizes1923Active1923-2025239
John Burroughs Medal1926Active1926-202587
Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards1935Active1936-2026169
National Book Awards1935Active1935-2025838
Governor General's Literary Awards1936Active1936-2025269
Overseas Press Club Awards1939Active1980-202528
Edgar Awards1946Active1948-2026332
Bancroft Prize1948Active1948-2026189
George Polk Awards1948Active1957-200724
Hillman Prize for Book Journalism1950Active1950-202684
Phi Beta Kappa Book Awards1954Active1954-2025202
Duff Cooper Prize1956Active1956-202570
Francis Parkman Prize1957Active1957-202669
Pfizer Award1958Active1959-202569
Costa Book Awards197120211971-2021125
Wolfson History Prize1972Active1972-2025140
National Book Critics Circle Awards1975Active1975-2025776
PROSE Awards1976Active1991-2026765
IRE Awards1979Active2015-202522
Los Angeles Times Book Prize1980Active1980-2025759
Robert F. Kennedy Book Award1980Active1981-202566
Ackerley Prize1982Active1982-202545
NCR Book Award198719971988-199710
Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize198820191988-201933
Helen Bernstein Book Award for Excellence in Journalism1988Active1990-202665
Royal Society Science Book Prize1988Active1988-2026175
George Perkins Marsh Prize1989Active1989-202536
Lionel Gelber Prize1990Active1990-202688
PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay1990Active1990-202667
Orwell Prize1994Active1994-2026164
Truman Capote Award for Literary Criticism1994Active1995-202532
Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction1997Active1997-2025144
Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction1999Active1999-2025160
Frederick Douglass Book Prize1999Active1999-202587
J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize1999Active1999-202679
Mark Lynton History Prize1999Active1999-202675
PEN Hessell-Tiltman Prize2002Active2002-2024114
Ridenhour Book Prize2004Active2004-202420
FT Business Book of the Year2005Active2005-2025119
Barbara and David Zalaznick Book Prize in American History2006Active2006-202621
Dayton Literary Peace Prize2006Active2006-2026102
PEN/John Kenneth Galbraith Award for Nonfiction2007Active2007-202657
Cundill History Prize2008Active2008-2025188
PEN/Jacqueline Bograd Weld Award for Biography2008Active2008-202623
Rachel Carson Environment Book Award2008Active2008-202618
Wellcome Book Prize200920192009-201939
Laura Shannon Prize2010Active2010-202649
PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award2011Active2011-202557
Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence2012Active2012-2026331
British Academy Book Prize2013Active2018-202544
Plutarch Award2013Active2013-2026101
Kirkus Prize2014Active2014-202578
Wainwright Prize2014Active2014-2025173

Subjects over time

Subject drift

How the subjects of prize-winning nonfiction have changed over time.

Awards
Corpus
Recognition
Years

Subjects / 10 of 19 shown

Share of recognition, 3-year window
19601980200020200%10%20%30%40%50%60%— History— Memoir & Autobiog…— Race & Ethnicity— Biography— Nature & Environm…— Science— Society & Culture— Arts & Criticism— Politics & Govern…— War & Military
peak 40%
peak 60%
peak 20%
peak 27%
peak 24%
peak 17%
peak 50%
peak 18%
peak 11%
peak 9.0%
peak 7.8%
peak 10%
peak 9.1%
peak 6.7%
peak 5.2%
peak 13%
peak 11%
peak 3.0%
peak 1.7%
View as data table (share of recognition by decade)
Subject1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
Biography24%13%26%28%23%25%23%15%
History41%25%18%18%24%20%17%21%
Memoir & Autobiography0%1.5%5.4%5.0%11%6.9%14%14%
Arts & Criticism8.8%12%7.1%8.0%7.1%13%6.5%7.5%
Science2.9%16%12%11%8.1%6.5%5.0%7.5%
Society & Culture2.9%10%5.4%6.5%3.6%2.2%7.7%6.8%
Politics & Government12%7.4%6.3%5.5%5.6%6.9%3.5%3.7%
Race & Ethnicity0%5.9%0%6.5%4.6%5.6%3.5%13%
Nature & Environment2.9%2.9%6.3%2.5%3.0%1.7%3.5%6.8%
War & Military0%1.5%5.4%3.5%2.5%5.2%3.1%0%
Medicine & Public Health0%0%2.7%1.0%3.0%1.3%4.6%0%
True Crime & Justice0%0%0.9%0%1.5%3.0%4.2%1.2%
Religion0%1.5%3.6%1.5%1.0%0.4%0.4%0%
Technology0%1.5%0.9%1.0%1.0%0.9%0%1.2%
Business & Economics0%0%0%1.0%1.0%0%1.5%0%
Travel & Place2.9%1.5%0.9%0%0%0.4%1.2%0%
Gender & Sexuality2.9%0%0%0%0.5%0.4%1.2%0%
Journalism & Reportage0%0%0%0.5%0%0.9%0.4%1.2%
Sports0%0%0%0%0%0%0%0.6%

Cross-prize agreement

Consensus and fracture

How often four long-running prizes recognized the same books.

1984

30.2%

Peak

16.8%

2025

Latest

4

fixed panel

Programs

Recognition
Five-year overlap

Pulitzer · National Book Awards · NBCC · Los Angeles Times · five-year windows

Prizes and sales

When prize winners were bestsellers

Percentage of prize-winning books that appeared on the New York Times Hardcover Nonfiction list in the same or preceding year.

2010

5 of 59

Highest overlap

2014

1 of 55

Lowest overlap

2009–2015

7 years

Coverage

Each bar shows the share and count of that year’s prize winners that also appeared on the bestseller list.