Here's how the Eurovision voting system works - including why the UK can’t vote in the semi-finals

Each participating country has a professional jury which decides where to award points and audiences at home can also vote for their favourites too, which adds a fresh layer of unpredictability.

Last year, for the first time, voting was opened to non-participating countries - something which will continue during Eurovision 2024. But for this year’s contest in Malmo, Sweden there have been several additional changes to the voting system.

Here’s how Eurovision voting works and why some countries - including the UK - can’t vote during semi-finals.

Here is how voting has changed for Eurovision 2024

Among other Eurovision voting rules, organisers have revealed that for Eurovision 2024 viewers from around the world - outside of those in participating countries - will be able to vote for their favourite songs ahead of each semi-final and the final.

For 24 hours before the shows, fans from the “Rest of the World” can place their votes in advance to help their favourites progress through the song contest.

In addition, voting during the Grand Final will now open just before the first song is performed. Votes can be cast throughout all of the performances on Saturday, May 11 and for 40 minutes once the final country has taken to the stage.

How does Eurovision work?

Organised by the European Broadcasting Union, each participating country must put forward an artist - which can be decided via an internal process or a public selection show - to compete.

Participants must adhere to a comprehensive set of rules, including those such as performing lead vocals live and submitting original songs which are no more than three minutes long.

Excepting the “Big Five” countries - France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK - whose broadcasters make the biggest financial contributions toward Eurovision, each country will compete during the semi-finals to earn their place at the Grand Final.

Since last year’s competition, only audiences at home determine which countries will take part in the final through voting.

However, the overall winner is decided by a system of points assigned by both audiences and professional juries.

How are countries assigned points?

After every act has performed, two sets of points are then awarded by each country.

The first set of points will come from a professional jury, while the second is from viewers watching the show in that country.

Each country’s professional jury is made up of five industry professionals, who rank each song from least to most favourite. Points are then awarded from zero to twelve, meaning each jury awards a total of 58 points (1 – 8, 10 and 12).

Interestingly, the juries give their points based on the second dress rehearsal which will take place on Friday, May 10. Unlike audiences at home, who can vote for any reason, juries rank songs based on factors including the song’s originality and the quality of performance.

Meanwhile, when the Eurovision audience vote closes, the ten most popular songs in each participating country are then allocated points from 1 to 8, 10 and 12. This means that the audience of the participating country also award a total of 58 points.

In the case of audience votes from the “Rest of The World”, the same scale is applied for the ten most popular songs - with the weight of one additional voting country.

Once voting has ended, a representative from each nation will appear on screen to announce the results of their jury.

This is where the famous phrase “douze points” comes in.

Often one of the most unintentionally interesting parts of the evening, there’s usually some strange outfits, awkward jokes or technical delays which can lead to fun moments (particularly if Graham Norton is commentating).

How is the winner of Eurovision decided?

The winner of Eurovision is decided by a points system which combines both the audience and jury votes.

After all the points from the jury have been awarded and displayed on the live scoreboard, the combined number of points from both public votes are then revealed.

Beginning with the country which received the fewest number of points from the jury and working up the scoreboard backwards, the winner is the country at the top of the scoreboard once all of the points have been issued.

It’s part of what makes the scoring system confusing – but also interesting, as jury scores and public votes can differ wildly, leading to last minute points upheavals and unexpected champions.

Why can’t the UK vote in Eurovision semi-finals?

There are two Eurovision semi-finals, with the first on Tuesday, May 7 and the second on Thursday, May 9.

In the semi-finals, only the countries which take part in each show - and those from the "Rest of the World" - can vote.

Viewers from the UK will be able to vote during the first semi-final, but not during the second semi-final on Thursday.

Olly Alexander will also perform for the UK during the Tuesday semi-final - despite having secured a place in the final already - alongside fellow “Big Five” country Germany and host nation Sweden.

However, when the Grand Final arrives voting is open to all participating countries.

How to vote for Eurovision 2024

There are several ways for audiences to vote during Eurovision 2024.

Fans can vote over the phone, via the Eurovision app or online. Each person can vote up to 20 times but voters will be unable to select their own country’s entry, out of fairness.