[1] At the end of the event, Sheynnis Palacios of Nicaragua was crowned as Miss Universe 2023 by R'Bonney Gabriel of the United States.

The competition was presented by Jeannie Mai and Miss Universe 2012 Olivia Culpo for the second consecutive time, along with Maria Menounos.

[13][14] Protests were staged in the capital San Salvador following the allocation of public funds for the hosting of the pageant amid an economical crisis.

[22][23][24] Among the contestants in the edition were Rikkie Kollé of the Netherlands and Marina Machete of Portugal, who became the joint second transgender women to compete in the pageant, after Ángela Ponce of Spain in 2018.

[31][32] Lê Thảo Nhi [vi], the first runner-up of Miss Universe Vietnam 2022, was initially set to participate in this year's edition.

[36][37] This edition marked the debut of Pakistan;[38] and the returns of Denmark, Egypt, Guyana, Hungary, Ireland, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Mongolia, Norway, and Zimbabwe.

[47][48] § – Voted into the Top 20 by viewers In the run-up to the main pageant, the contestants competed in the Voice For Change competition, where they shared their advocacies in the course of a three-minute video.

[58] A sponsored segment with jewelry brand Mouawad and communication platform CI Talks, the winners of the competition was determined through an online vote and by a selection committee.