From residential architecture and interiors to hospitality, healthcare and adaptive reuse, this year’s awards reveal the breadth of spatial design in Aotearoa.
Double Courtyard by Roberts Gray Architects | Gold – Residential Architecture: Houses
From finely resolved homes and interiors to hospitality, healthcare, workplace and adaptive reuse projects, the 2026 Best Design Awards have revealed the breadth of design practice across Aotearoa. The winners were announced on 9 October 2026, with the annual awards spanning disciplines including Spatial, Industrial Design, Graphic, Digital, Animation, Social Good, Toitanga and Value of Design.
Among the recipients are a number of practices represented on ArchiPro, with recognised work ranging from individual homes and multi-residential developments to hospitality, healthcare, workplace and public projects.
Exhibit on Jervois by Monk Mackenzie | Gold – Residential Architecture: Multiresidential
Double Courtyard by Roberts Gray Architects | Gold – Residential Architecture: Houses
Residential architecture features strongly in the results. Roberts Gray Architects received Gold for Double Courtyard House in Residential Architecture – Houses. Set on the Te Arai coast, the home is organised as two offset pavilions around two courtyards, creating different relationships with the surrounding dunes, planting and sea.
Three Sixty Architecture was recognised with Gold for Black Miller House, a renovation and extension on a 32-hectare Kaikōura property. The project retains and adapts the existing house, adding new pavilions while working with the site's established forest, garden and coastal landscape.
W3, jointly with CEDE, received Gold for Jack’s House, while Monk Mackenzie was recognised for Exhibit on Jervois. The Herne Bay development comprises six residences, with a carved stone and concrete façade using splayed bays to manage privacy, light and views along Jervois Road.
Interior design brings another group of practices into the results. Material Creative received Gold for Sherwood Residence, a renovation of a 1977 Mid-Century home in Portland, Oregon that retains the original character while opening up the kitchen and introducing new timber, stone and colour. The project also received recognition in the Colour Award Spatial category.
Sticks + Stones Design was recognised with Gold for Brightwater, while Du Bois Design received recognition for Tea House in Residential Interior Architecture & Interior Design.
Craggy Range - Lofty Heights by RTA Studio | Gold – Hospitality: Food and Beverage – bars, cafes, restaurants
Aligne Studio by Kate Pilot Design + Natalia Glucina Interiors | Gold – Healthcare & Wellbeing
Hospitality and public projects were also well represented. RTA Studio received Gold for Craggy Range- Lofty Heights, as well as the MTG – Hawke’s Bay Museum Research Archives Centre in Public Development. CTRL Space received Gold for Mother, its Grey Lynn bakery and eatery, where the interior brings together the working kitchen, service areas and dining spaces.
Space Studio received Gold for The Pavilion, Pacific Lakes in Healthcare & Wellbeing. Located within Pacific Lakes Village in Pāpāmoa, the interior brings dining, lounge and gathering spaces together beneath a timber structure, with stone, dark timber and integrated joinery defining the scheme.
Kate Pilot Design, jointly with Natalia Glucina Interiors, was recognised for Aligne Studio in Healthcare & Wellbeing. The result sits alongside The Wonder Group, which received multiple recognitions across healthcare, workplace and retail, including GP&Me Medical Centre, Casabella and Aotea – Auckland Airport.
The awards also recognise larger workplace and public projects. Designgroup Stapleton Elliott, jointly with Rua Pītau, received Gold for Te Aho Tupua, while the Chief Post Office Refurbishment was recognised in Repurposed Spaces / Adaptive Reuse, with Heritage Architects – Salmond Reed among the credited practices.
The recognition extends beyond spatial design. Forté received Gold in Digital for its e-commerce website in Large Scale E-Commerce, with Milk and Wildlabs credited for the project. The award adds a digital dimension to the architectural, interior and spatial work recognised elsewhere across the programme.
Mother by CTRL Space | Gold – Hospitality: Food and Beverage – bars, cafes, restaurants
The Pavilion, Pacific Lakes by Space Studio | Gold – Healthcare & Wellbeing: Over $10 million
Together, the results provide a useful snapshot of contemporary design in Aotearoa, with recognised work spanning homes, interiors, hospitality, public buildings, workplaces, adaptive reuse and digital experiences. Browse the 2026 Best Design Awards and explore the more projects and professionals on ArchiPro.
