The World’s 50 Best Bars is an annual list and awards event that recognises and celebrates the best of the global bar industry. Now in its 17th year, the list provides an international ranking, voted for by more than 800 drinks experts from across the globe with a 50/50 gender balance. The panel of voters is refreshed by a minimum of 25% each year.

The World’s 50 Best Bars represents the ultimate international guide to the world’s top bars and drinking destinations. The first list was announced in 2009, with annual awards ceremonies held in London, Barcelona, Singapore, Madrid and now Hong Kong in 2025.

The World’s 50 Best Bars awards is the drinks industry’s most anticipated night of the year, bringing together the best bartending talent from around the globe, with a live countdown of the list, culminating in the announcement of The World’s Best Bar, sponsored by Perrier.

Voting academy

The Academy comprises renowned bartenders, consultants, drinks writers and well-travelled cocktail specialists, selected from around the world to represent a diversity of expert opinion.

As the bar industry evolves, so does the Academy. There are 29 academy chairs representing 29 geographic regions across the globe. The list is the result of the votes from The World’s 50 Best Bars Academy’s very best bar experiences across the voting period.

The main rules of voting are:

» Voting is strictly confidential

» Panellists vote for eight bars, in order of preference

» Voters must have visited the bars they nominate within the voting window

» Voters are not permitted to vote for bars they own or have a financial, personal or vested interest in

» Nominations must be made for the bar and not for the bar owner or bartender (except in the case of special individual awards)

» Panellists cannot vote for a temporary bar, pop-up, or guest shift, or for a bar based on an experience that does not take place at the bar itself

» Voters are required to remain anonymous and voting is secure and independently adjudicated by Deloitte.