It is awarded annually to a manga series published in the previous calendar year of eight or fewer collected volumes in length.

To this end, the prize utilizes a judging criteria of recognizing manga one would "want to recommend to friends", rather than a strictly meritocratic evaluation of artistic excellence.

[5] The second round is a ranked vote, where each member reads each nominated work at their own expense, and selects their top three choices in order of preference.

[6] The inaugural Manga Taishō was awarded on March 28, 2008,[7] to Gaku: Minna no Yama by Shinichi Ishizuka, and in 2024 to Spacewalking with You by Inuhiko Doronoda.

The most-nominated series are Delicious in Dungeon by Ryoko Kui and Onna no Sono no Hoshi by Yama Wayama, each with four.