In the superfinal, "Et uus saaks alguse" performed by Birgit was selected as the winner entirely by a public vote.

Performing during the show in position 2, "Et uus saaks alguse" was announced among the top 10 entries of the first semi-final and therefore qualified to compete in the final on 18 May.

In the final, Estonia performed in position 7 and placed twentieth out of the 26 participating countries, scoring 19 points.

In 2012, "Kuula" performed by Ott Lepland managed to qualify Estonia to the final where the song placed sixth.

The competition consisted of twenty entries competing in two semi-finals on 16 and 23 February 2013 leading to a ten-song final on 2 March 2013.

The final was also broadcast via radio on Raadio 2 as well as streamed online at the official Eurovision Song Contest website eurovision.tv.

On 12 September 2012, ERR opened the submission period for artists and composers to submit their entries up until 10 December 2012.

[7][better source needed] Birgit Õigemeel, Jaan Pehk (member of Kõrsikud), Marilyn Jurman, Rolf Roosalu, Rosanna Lints, Teele Viira and Tenfold Rabbit have all competed in previous editions of Eesti Laul.

[8] Plagiarism accusations were also launched against the song "Meil on aega veel" performed by Põhja-Tallinn which ERR later declared false.

[12][13] The jury panel that voted in the semi-finals consisted of Lenna Kuurmaa, Valner Valme, Mart Niineste, Ithaka Maria, Owe Petersell, Kadri Voorand, Janek Murd, Olav Osolin, Kristo Rajasaare, Els Himma and Heini Vaikmaa.

[14] The final took place on 2 March 2013 at the Nokia Concert Hall in Tallinn, hosted by Anu Välba and Marko Reikop.

In the superfinal, "Et uus saaks alguse" performed by Birgit Õigemeel was selected as the winner entirely by a public televote.

[5] The jury panel that voted in the first round of the final consisted of Olav Ehala (maestro), Sandra Nurmsalu (musician), Marten Kuningas (singer), Tõnis Kahu (music critic), Toomas Puna (Raadio Sky+ program director), Sofia Rubina (singer), Owe Petersell (Raadio Elmar chief editor), Reigo Ahven (drummer), Marju Länik (singer), Toomas Olljum (music manager) and Erik Morna (Raadio 2 head of music).

[17] According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final.

On 17 January 2013, an allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in.

[24] At the end of the show, Estonia was announced as having finished in the top 10 and subsequently qualifying for the grand final.

This jury was asked to judge each contestant based on: vocal capacity; the stage performance; the song's composition and originality; and the overall impression by the act.