[3] The competition was open to everyone, with over 820 entries being received from across Aberdeenshire, the rest of Scotland and the UK, and even as far afield as Canada and New Zealand.

A panel of judges reviewed the proposals before ultimately narrowing them down to a shortlist of five designs, which were submitted for a public vote on 1 December 2022, with polling remaining open until 13 January 2023.

[1] Design A The bright golden background represents light, due to Aberdeenshire being the first county in mainland Scotland to greet the rising sun, and providing a good view of the stars at night.

The five black jewels are for the traditional areas of the historic county (Buchan, Formartine, Gairoch, Marr and Strathbogie).

[4] 621 votes (14.76%) Design E The blue pall symbolises the Dee and Don rivers flowing through the county and into the North Sea.