Top 5 High School Chemistry Competitions in 2026

Do you love a good challenge that combines problem-solving with scientific knowledge? If so, chemistry competitions are a great way to go deeper into your interest and show your talent. Some also come with significant prizes and recognition.

United States National Chemistry Olympiad (USNCO)

The US National Chemistry Olympiad (USNCO) is a prestigious competition for high school students in the United States. It’s a challenging but rewarding way to test your knowledge and problem-solving in chemistry. Doing well can lead to a spot in the International Chemistry Olympiad.

Competition format:

• The USNCO has two levels: local and national.
• The local exam is typically multiple-choice.
• Top scorers on the local exam qualify for the national level, which has multiple-choice and free-response questions.

Topics covered:

• General chemistry
• Stoichiometry
• Acids and bases
• Chemical equilibrium
• Kinetics
• Thermodynamics
• Organic chemistry
• Analytical chemistry

How to prepare:

• Build a solid foundation: make sure you have a strong grasp of the basics from your high school chemistry classes.
• Practice with past exams: look for past USNCO exams online (a search for “USNCO past exams” should get you there) to get familiar with the format and difficulty.
• Deepen your knowledge: explore resources beyond your class. AP Chemistry or college freshman chemistry textbooks add useful depth.
• Develop problem-solving skills: focus on understanding the underlying concepts and how to apply them, not just memorizing facts.

ChemiCO

ChemiCO is an international, olympiad-style chemistry competition held online, where you test your skills against high school students from around the world.

Master the essentials:

• Review your high school chemistry curriculum, focusing on topics like:
  • Stoichiometry and chemical calculations
  • The periodic table, atomic structure, and bonding
  • Chemical reactions and equations
  • The basics of laboratory practices

Sharpen your skills:

• Practice makes perfect: look for online practice problems or sample ChemiCO questions (a search for “ChemiCO practice problems” should help).
• Think deeper: don’t just memorize facts. Understand the concepts behind them and how to apply them.

Chemagination

Chemagination is a competition designed to spark creativity and explore the future of chemistry. Unlike exam-based competitions, you’re judged primarily on your writing.

Understand the challenge:

• Chemagination asks you to imagine yourself as a scientist 25 years in the future.
• You write an article for a student magazine, ChemMatters, describing a groundbreaking chemical discovery that improves people’s lives.
• The discovery fits one of four categories: Alternative Energy, Environment, Medicine/Health, or New Materials.

Brainstorming and research:

• Dig into your chosen category and brainstorm real-world challenges it can address.
• Research current scientific advances in that field. What are scientists working on today that could lead to future breakthroughs?
• Explore online resources, science magazines, and reputable news sites.

Crafting your innovation:

• Get creative. Imagine a future invention or process based on your research.
• Focus on its positive impact. How does it make people’s lives better, healthier, or more sustainable?

Developing your article:

• Write a clear, engaging ChemMatters article that explains your discovery in a way high school students can understand.
• Avoid overly technical jargon.
• Highlight the chemistry behind your invention. How do the properties of elements and compounds make it work?
• Design an informative cover for ChemMatters to grab readers’ attention.

Tips for success:

• Read past Chemagination entries: this gives you a sense of what judges look for. You can find examples on the American Chemical Society (ACS) website or by searching online.
• Team up: consider collaborating with a classmate to brainstorm and get feedback, while making sure the work is your own.
• Practice makes perfect: write multiple drafts, refining your ideas and explaining your concepts clearly.

You Be The Chemist Challenge

Note: the You Be The Chemist Challenge, run by the Chemical Educational Foundation, has been rebranded as the You Be the Solution Challenge, so you may see it under either name.

Know the challenge:

• It’s for teams of 3-4 students in grades 5-8.
• There are two parts: a test and a video project.
• The test covers chemistry concepts you learn in school.
• The video project lets you explore a sustainability challenge and propose a solution using chemistry.

Sharpen your skills:

• Review your class materials on chemistry concepts.
• Focus on understanding, not just memorizing.
• Practice answering multiple-choice and short-answer questions like those used in the Challenge.

Explore and brainstorm:

• Think about real-world chemistry challenges related to sustainability, like clean water or alternative energy.
• Research these topics and brainstorm solutions that use chemistry concepts you’ve learned.

Get creative:

• Plan your video project.
• How will you explain the challenge and your solution clearly and engagingly?
• You can use skits, experiments, or animations (check the Challenge website for video guidelines).

Practice makes perfect:

• Work with your team on the test and video project.
• Take practice tests together to spot areas for improvement.
• Refine your video based on feedback from classmates or teachers (if allowed by the rules).

Resources:

• The Challenge website (chemed.org/programs/challenge) has practice materials, rules, and information about the video project.
• Search for past winning videos for inspiration.

ISC3 Innovation Challenge

The ISC3 Innovation Challenge is an annual competition focused on sustainable solutions in chemistry. The theme changes each year. A recent one was Sustainable Chemistry and Textiles.

It’s open to innovators around the world who want to develop new ideas to make the textile industry more eco-friendly, looking for ways to reduce the environmental impact of things like dyeing clothes or treating fabrics.

Brainstorming ideas:

• Think broadly about sustainable practices in textiles. How can we reduce environmental impact?
• Consider chemical use at various stages of textile production: dyeing, finishing, and so on.
• Is there a way to replace harmful chemicals with more sustainable alternatives?
• Explore innovations like bio-based dyes or water-saving processes.

In a future year, adapt this thought process to the current theme.

Developing your solution:

• Once you have an idea, research its feasibility and potential impact.
• Focus on the environmental benefits.
• Clearly explain how your innovation addresses the challenge set by ISC3.

Crafting a winning application:

• The ISC3 website outlines the application process and judging criteria.
• Pay close attention to the submission guidelines so your application is complete.
• Tailor your application to highlight the uniqueness and impact of your solution.

Conclusion

If you read this far, you’re clearly interested in pursuing more STEM competitions. I’d recommend exploring other options through Rishab’s Ultimate STEM Student Guide, which is free for anyone and lists 50+ competitions to consider.

About Eashan Iyer:

I am a founding member of The Qurios Institute (the company that runs this blog) and an incoming student at Brown University. In 2023, I co-authored a research paper in the field of theoretical physics. I am also an Eagle Scout and a senior at The Academy for Mathematics, Science, and Engineering in Rockaway, NJ. Learn more about me on LinkedIn.