The contest is judged primarily based on who had the most points in each category at the end of the 6 week contest (40%), but also by popular vote for Favorite Overall (10%), Best Picture (20%), Best Name (10%) and Best Backstory (20%)

The mascots are judged on a curve with the highest in each category scoring 100, and then every other mascot's score being a percentage of that. For example, if there are three entrants in the Horse Tickets/Shows category and Mascot A ends 11,000,000 points, and Mascot B ends with 9,900,000 points, and Mascot C ends with 5,450,000 points, thier scores will be as follows in the points category: Mascot A - 100, Mascot B - 90, Mascot C - 49.54.

The same is done for each of the judging categories (based on the number of votes), and then each mascot's collection of scores is put into a weighed score calculator to determine their final score.

The mascots with the highest final scores will be the winners in their individual categories. Bonus prizes can be won by mascots in any category because scores are derived separately for EACH category (Horse tickets/shows, horse no tickets/no shows, dog tickets/shows, and dog no tickets/no shows), so it's possible for an animal in a no ticket/no show category to have a higher ending score than an animal in a ticket/show category.