A National Final is a selection process where participating countries organize local competitions to select an artist and/or a song as their representative. These typically begin in late-December and end in mid-March, where entry submissions are due at the Head of Delegations meeting.
The month of February is usually the month where the most selection shows take place. Saturdays during that month have more than one country broadcasting a show in their selection process, which are known as "Super Saturdays" in the Eurovision fan community.
Format[]
Windows for song submissions are determined by the participating broadcasters, and may begin as soon as the conclusion of the previous contest. Songs however, may not be commercially released prior to 1 September before the contest, per the Contest's official rules.
Voting[]
National finals are not restricted to a universal voting system. Many national finals would retain the 12-point system that is in use for the contest itself, though some deviations may occur if a final does not have more than 10 songs in a single round (e.g. Finland's Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu). Participating broadcasters may choose to adopt a 100% jury or televoting system, or a combination of both.
Some national finals such as Estonia's Eesti Laul and Denmark's Dansk Melodi Grand Prix will include an extra stage called a "superfinal" (known as the "Gold Duel" in Norway's Melodi Grand Prix) where the final two (or three) acts voted on by that selection's voting system would go head to head via a public vote to determine the country's representative.
National finals that typically do not adopt the 12-point system in any way include Italy's Sanremo Music Festival and Ukraine's Vidbir.
Where juries are involved, some national finals may choose to invite foreign delegations to make up their jury, in partial or in full. Such juries would consist of past winners or other prominent artists and composers.
Interval acts[]
Interval acts of several national finals may feature performances from past participants of the national finals or the Contest itself, including those representing other countries in the upcoming Contest.
National finals often include comedic sketches that are performed by the presenters or another personality. One notable example who eventually appeared in the Contest is Lynda Woodruff, who first came into prominence in Sweden's Melodifestivalen 2012.
Changes to winning entries[]
Prior to entry submissions during the Head of Delegations meeting, few countries may permit changes to the National Finals' winning songs, such as adopting a tweaked version of the song and replacing lyrics to include other languages such as English or French. They are often cited to allow the audience to better understand the message behind the song. Where songs are over 3 minutes in length, countries are required to make adjustments to the song length per the contest's rules.
- Main article: List of Withdrawn Songs
In rare occasions, winning songs may be replaced with another entry entirely for various reasons.
List of National Finals[]
Below is a list of active programs that are otherwise designated as the respective countries' National Finals.
| Country | Program | Inaugural year | Format | Voting breakdown |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Albania
|
Festivali i Këngës (FiK) | 2004 | Two semi-finals, one final | 50% Jury/25% Domestic Televote/25% Diaspora Televote |
 Austria
|
Vienna Calling - Who sings for Austria? | 2026 | Single-round final | 50% Jury/50% Televoting |
 Croatia
|
Dora | 1993 | Two semi-finals, one final | 50% Jury/50% Televoting |
 Denmark
|
Dansk Melodi Grand Prix (DMGP) | 1957 | Two-round final | 50% Jury/50% Televoting |
 Estonia
|
Eesti Laul | 2009 | Two-round final | 50% Jury/50% Televoting (first round), 100% Televoting (Superfinal) |
 Finland
|
Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK) | 2012 | Single-round final | 25% Jury/75% Televoting |
 Germany
|
Chefsache ESC - Wer singt für Deutschland? | 2025 | Two heats, one semifinal, one two-round final | 100% Jury vote in heats, semifinal and first round of the final, 100% Televote in the second round of the final |
 Greece
|
Ethnikós Telikós | 2025 | Single-round final | 25% International Jury/25% Domestic Jury/50% Televote |
 Iceland
|
Söngvakeppnin | 1986 | Two semi-finals, one final | 100% Televoting in semi-finals, 50% International Jury/50% Televoting in final |
 Italy
|
Sanremo Music Festival | 1956 | Five nights of various scoring criteria | 33% Demoscopic Jury/33% Press Jury/34% Televoting |
 Latvia
|
Supernova | 2015 | Two semi-finals, one final | 50% Jury/50% Televoting |
 Lithuania
|
Eurovizija.lt | 2024 | Five semi-finals, one online wildcard round, one final | 50% Jury/50% Televoting in heats and final, 100% online voting in wildcard round |
 Luxembourg
|
Luxembourg Song Contest | 2024 | Single-round final | 50% International Jury/50% Televoting |
 Malta
|
Malta Eurovision Song Contest (MESC) | 2022 | Two semi-finals, one final | 50% Jury/50% Televoting |
 Montenegro
|
Montesong | 2024 | Single-round final | 50% Jury/50% Televoting |
 Norway
|
Melodi Grand Prix (MGP) | 1960 | Single-round final | 40% International Jury/60% Televoting |
 Poland
|
Polskie Kwalifikacje | 2025 | Single-round final | 100% Televoting |
 Portugal
|
Festival da Canção | 1964 | Two semi-finals, one final | 50% Jury/50% Televoting |
 San Marino
|
San Marino Song Contest | 2025 | Two semifinals, one final | 100% Jury |
 Serbia
|
Pesma za Evroviziju | 2022 | Two semi-finals, one final | 50% Jury/50% Televoting |
 Slovenia
|
Evrovizijska Melodija (EMA) | 1996 | Two-round final | 100% Jury vote in first round, 100% Televote in superfinal |
 Spain
|
Benidorm Fest | 2022 | Two semi-finals, one final | 50% Jury/25% Demoscopic Jury/25% Televoting |
 Sweden
|
Melodifestivalen | 1959 | Five heats, one final | 100% Televoting in heats, 50% International Jury/50% Televoting in final |
 Ukraine
|
Vidbir | 2016 | Single-round final | 50% Jury/50% Televoting |
Other Selections[]
The following countries hold national selections when deemed needed
| Country | Program | Format | Voting breakdown |
|---|---|---|---|
 Armenia
|
Depi Evratesil | Single-round final | 33% International Jury/33% National Jury/34% Televoting |
 Belgium (Flanders)
|
Eurosong | Single-round final | 50% Expert Jury/50% Televoting |
External programs[]
List of regular external programs that serve as de facto national selections.
| Country | Program | Inaugural year |
|---|---|---|
 Georgia
|
The Voice | 2023 |
 Ireland
|
The Late Late Show | 2006 |
 Israel
|
Havokhav Haba (Rising Star) | 2015 |