[1] These ballots are re-tabulated and the top ten titles form the Polaris short list.

To ensure an impartial outcome, no one with direct financial relationships with artists is eligible to become a jury member.

[10] Some of the 2018 judges include Lana Gay (Indie88), Mike Bell (YYSCENE), Stuart Derdeyn (Vancouver Province), Stephen Cooke (The Chronicle Herald), Brad Wheeler (The Globe and Mail), Alan Ranta (Exclaim!

), Alan Cross (102.1 the edge), CBC Radio personalities Sandra Sperounes, Melody Lau, Lisa Christiansen and Raina Douris and Mitch Pollock, Voir music journalists Patrick Baillargeon and Olivier Boisvert-Magnen, Kimberly Cleave (APTN/Digital Drum) and Carl Wilson.

[31] The purpose of the jury award is to ensure that albums which were artistically important, but not necessarily as commercially popular, still have a fair shot at being selected as winners; to ensure that two different albums are selected, however, the jury does not meet to vote on its choice until after the popular vote winner has been determined.

Non-winning albums can still be renominated in a future year, although the shortlists have shown increased variability since the category reduction.

The 2018 Polaris sponsors include the CBC, the Government of Canada, FACTOR, Ontario Media Development Corporation, Slaight Communications, Radio Starmaker Fund, SiriusXM, Stingray Music/Galaxie, The Carlu, Shure Canada, Toronto radio station Indie88, SOCAN, and Re-Sound20.

In 2006, compilation CD/souvenir program guides featuring one song each from every shortlisted artist were given out at the Polaris Gala.

Between 2008 and 2011, the souvenir program guides instead included download cards for recipients to obtain one song from each of the shortlisted artists.

Polaris began releasing promotional split seven-inch singles beginning in 2012 which were separate from the souvenir program guides.

In recent years, the Polaris Prize has also sponsored a series of promotional singles involving nominated or winning musicians.

5 (2019) [12 inch] Polaris, the Banff Centre and Scion Sessions teamed up for a collaborative residency project featuring past shortlisted artists Shad and Holy Fuck.

The result was the Scion Sessions-sponsored Holy Shad "Legend of Cy Borg Parts I and II" seven-inch single as well as a documentary video produced by AUX TV.