Press release from the Nobel Foundation

The Nobel Prize is increased by SEK 1 million 

18 September 2026 View in Swedish
Medal case

© Nobel Prize Outreach. Photo: Clément Morin

The Nobel Foundation has decided that the amount of the 2026 Nobel Prize will be SEK 12 million per prize category. This represents a SEK 1 million increase per prize category compared to previous years. 

“This year, we are celebrating the 125th anniversary of the Nobel Prize, and in connection with this, we are pleased to be able to increase the prize amount by one million. By increasing the prize amount, we uphold the long-term significance of the Nobel Prize and ensure that the financial part of the prize retains its value over time.”, says Hanna Stjärne, Executive Director of the Nobel Foundation. 

When the first Nobel Prizes were awarded in 1901, the prize amount was SEK 150,782 per prize category. The prize amount has been adjusted several times over the past 15 years. The amount of the Nobel Prize was reduced from SEK 10 million to SEK 8 million in 2012, simultaneously with a broader programme to strengthen the Nobel Foundation’s finances being initiated. Since then, the prize amount has been increased on three occasions. Now, in 2026, an additional increase is made amounting to SEK 12 million.  

This year’s Nobel Prizes will be announced on 5–12 October.

Nobel Foundation

The Nobel Foundation is a private foundation established in 1900 on the basis of the will of Alfred Nobel and the founding statutes promulgated in connection with the will. Its primary purpose is to ensure that the intentions of the will of Alfred Nobel are fulfilled. The Foundation is responsible for ensuring that the assets made available for awarding the Nobel Prize are managed in such a way as to safeguard the economic base of the Prize in a long-term perspective and guarantee the independence of the prize-awarding institutions in their work of selecting Laureates. The Nobel Foundation is also entrusted with managing and carefully developing the trademarks and intangible assets that have been built up during the more than century-long history of the Nobel Prize.

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