View source for Pulitzer Prize for Biography

{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2022}}
{{short description|American award for distinguished biographies}}
{{Pulitzer}}
The '''Pulitzer Prize for Biography''' is one of the seven American [[Pulitzer Prizes]] annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. The award honors "a distinguished and appropriately documented biography by an American author."<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Biography |url=https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-category/222 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Pulitzer Prize]] |language=en |archive-date=June 28, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190628212619/https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-category/222 |url-status=live }}</ref> Award winners receive US$15,000.<ref name=":3" />

From 1917 to 2022, this prize was known as the '''Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography''' and was awarded to a distinguished biography, autobiography or memoir<ref name="Pulitzer-list">{{cite web |title=Biography: Prize Winners by Category |url=https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-category/222 |access-date=May 31, 2019 |website=[[Pulitzer Prize]] |archive-date=June 28, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190628212619/https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-category/222 |url-status=live }}</ref> by an American author or co-authors, published during the preceding calendar year. It is one of the original Pulitzers. The program was inaugurated in 1917 with seven prizes, four of which were awarded that year.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1917 |url=https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-year/1917 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Pulitzer Prize]] |language=en |archive-date=December 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151224024355/http://www.pulitzer.org/awards/1917 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Recipients==
In its first 97 years to 2013, the Biography Pulitzer was awarded 97 times. Two were given in 1938, and none in 1962.<ref name=prize/>

=== 1910s-1940s ===
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible"
|+Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography winners, 1917-1949<ref name="Pulitzer-list" />
!Year
!Author
!Title
!Ref.
|-
![[1917 in literature|1917]]
|{{sortname|last=Richards|first=Laura E.}} and [[Maud Howe Elliott]], assisted by [[Florence Howe Hall]]
|''[[Julia Ward Howe]]''
|
|-
![[1918 in literature|1918]]
|{{sortname|last=Bruce|first=William Cabell}}
|''[[Benjamin Franklin, Self-Revealed]]''
|
|-
![[1919 in literature|1919]]
|{{sortname|last=Adams|first=Henry}}†
|{{Sort|Education of Henry Adams|''[[The Education of Henry Adams]]''}}
|
|-
![[1920 in literature|1920]]
|{{sortname|last=Beveridge|first=Albert J.}}
|{{Sort|Life of John Marshall|''The Life of [[John Marshall]]''}}, 4 vols.
|
|-
![[1921 in literature|1921]]
|{{sortname|last=Bok|first=Edward}}
|{{Sort|Americanization of Edward Bok: The Autobiography of a Dutch Boy Fifty Years After|''The Americanization of Edward Bok: The Autobiography of a Dutch Boy Fifty Years After''}}
|
|-
![[1922 in literature|1922]]
|{{sortname|last=Garland|first=Hamlin}}
|{{Sort|Daughter of the Middle Border|''A Daughter of the Middle Border''}}
|
|-
![[1923 in literature|1923]]
|{{sortname|last=Hendrick|first=Burton J.}}
|{{Sort|Life and Letters of Walter H. Page|''The Life and Letters of [[Walter Hines Page|Walter H. Page]]''}}
|
|-
![[1924 in literature|1924]]
|{{sortname|last=Pupin|first=Michael I.}}
|''[[From Immigrant to Inventor]]''
|
|-
![[1925 in literature|1925]]
|{{sortname|last=De Wolfe Howe|first=M. A.|link=Mark Antony De Wolfe Howe (writer)}}
|''[[Barrett Wendell]] and His Letters''
|
|-
![[1926 in literature|1926]]
|{{sortname|last=Cushing|first=Harvey}}
|{{Sort|Life of Sir William Osler|''The Life of Sir [[William Osler]]''}}, 2 vols.
|
|-
![[1927 in literature|1927]]
|{{sortname|last=Holloway|first=Emory}}
|''[[Walt Whitman|Whitman]]''
|
|-
![[1928 in literature|1928]]
|{{sortname|last=Russell|first=Charles Edward}}
|{{Sort|American Orchestra and Theodore Thomas|''The American Orchestra and Theodore Thomas''}}
|
|-
![[1929 in literature|1929]]
|{{sortname|last=Hendrick|first=Burton J.}}
|{{Sort|Training of an American: The Earlier Life and Letters of Walter H. Page|''The Training of an American: The Earlier Life and Letters of Walter H. Page''}}
|
|-
![[1930 in literature|1930]]
|{{sortname|last=James|first=Marquis}}
|{{Sort|Raven: A Biography of Sam Houston|''The Raven: A Biography of Sam Houston''}}
|
|-
![[1931 in literature|1931]]
|{{sortname|last=James|first=Henry|link=Henry James (biographer)}}
|''Charles W. Eliot, President of Harvard University, 1869–1901''
|
|-
![[1932 in literature|1932]]
|{{sortname|last=Pringle|first=Henry F.}}
|''Theodore Roosevelt: A Biography''
|
|-
![[1933 in literature|1933]]
|{{sortname|last=Nevins|first=Allan}}
|''Grover Cleveland: A Study in Courage''
|
|-
![[1934 in literature|1934]]
|{{sortname|last=Dennett|first=Tyler}}
|''John Hay''
|
|-
![[1935 in literature|1935]]
|{{sortname|last=Freeman|first=Douglas S.}}
|''R. E. Lee''
|
|-
![[1936 in literature|1936]]
|{{sortname|last=Perry|first=Ralph Barton}}
|{{Sort|Thought and Character of William James|''The Thought and Character of William James''}}
|
|-
![[1937 in literature|1937]]
|{{sortname|last=Nevins|first=Allan}}
|''Hamilton Fish''
|
|-
! rowspan="2" |[[1938 in literature|1938]]
|{{sortname|last=James|first=Marquis}}
|''Andrew Jackson'', 2 vols.
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Shepard|first=Odell}}
|''Pedlar's Progress: The Life of Bronson Alcott''
|
|-
![[1939 in literature|1939]]
|{{sortname|last=Doren|first=Carl Van}}
|''[[Benjamin Franklin (book)|Benjamin Franklin]]''
|
|-
![[1940 in literature|1940]]
|{{sortname|last=Baker|first=Ray Stannard}}
|''Woodrow Wilson, Life and Letters. Vols. VII and VIII''
|
|-
![[1941 in literature|1941]]
|{{sortname|last=Winslow|first=Ola Elizabeth}}
|''Jonathan Edwards, 1703–1758: a biography''
|
|-
![[1942 in literature|1942]]
|{{sortname|last=Wilson|first=Forrest}}
|''Crusader in Crinoline: The Life of Harriet Beecher Stowe''
|
|-
![[1943 in literature|1943]]
|{{sortname|last=Morison|first=Samuel Eliot}}
|''Admiral of the Ocean Sea''
|
|-
![[1944 in literature|1944]]
|{{sortname|last=Mabee|first=Carleton}}
|''The American Leonardo: The Life of Samuel F. B. Morse''
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-01-13 |title=Obituary Note: Carleton Mabee |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2420 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230206033622/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2420 |archive-date=February 6, 2023 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]]}}</ref>
|-
![[1945 in literature|1945]]
|{{sortname|last=Nye|first=Russel Blaine}}
|''George Bancroft: Brahmin Rebel''
|
|-
![[1946 in literature|1946]]
|{{sortname|last=Marsh Wolfe|first=Linnie}}
|''Son of the Wilderness: The Life of John Muir''
|
|-
![[1947 in literature|1947]]
|{{sortname|last=White|first=William Allen}}†
|''The Autobiography of William Allen White''
|
|-
![[1948 in literature|1948]]
|{{sortname|last=Clapp|first=Margaret}}
|''Forgotten First Citizen: John Bigelow''
|
|-
![[1949 in literature|1949]]
|{{sortname|last=Sherwood|first=Robert E.}}
|''Roosevelt and Hopkins''
|
|}

=== 1950s-1970s ===
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible"
|+Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography winners, 1950-1979<ref name="Pulitzer-list" />
!Year
!Author
!Title
!Ref.
|-
![[1950 in literature|1950]]
|{{sortname|last=Bemis|first=Samuel Flagg}}
|''John Quincy Adams and the Foundations of American Foreign Policy''
|
|-
![[1951 in literature|1951]]
|{{sortname|last=Coit|first=Margaret Louise}}
|''John C. Calhoun: American Portrait''
|
|-
![[1952 in literature|1952]]
|{{sortname|last=Pusey|first=Merlo J.}}
|''Charles Evans Hughes''
|
|-
![[1953 in literature|1953]]
|{{sortname|last=Mays|first=David J.}}
|''Edmund Pendleton 1721–1803''
|
|-
![[1954 in literature|1954]]
|{{sortname|last=Lindbergh|first=Charles A.}}
|{{Sort|Spirit of St. Louis|''[[The Spirit of St. Louis (book)|The Spirit of St. Louis]]''}}
|
|-
![[1955 in literature|1955]]
|{{sortname|last=White|first=William S.}}
|{{Sort|Taft Story|''The Taft Story''}}
|
|-
![[1956 in literature|1956]]
|{{sortname|last=Hamlin|first=Talbot Faulkner}}
|''Benjamin Henry Latrobe''
|
|-
![[1957 in literature|1957]]
|{{sortname|last=Kennedy|first=John F.}}
|''[[Profiles in Courage]]''
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-06-02 |title=Rediscover: Profiles in Courage |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=615 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=January 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230127103240/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=615 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
![[1958 in literature|1958]]
|{{sortname|last=Freeman|first=Douglas Southall}}† with [[John Alexander Carroll]] and [[Mary Wells Ashworth]]
|''George Washington'', vols. I-VII
|
|-
![[1959 in literature|1959]]
|{{sortname|last=Walworth|first=Arthur}}
|''Woodrow Wilson, American Prophet''
|
|-
![[1960 in literature|1960]]
|{{sortname|last=Morison|first=Samuel Eliot}}
|''John Paul Jones''
|
|-
![[1961 in literature|1961]]
|{{sortname|last=Donald|first=David|link=David Herbert Donald}}
|''Charles Sumner and the Coming of the Civil War''
|
|-
![[1962 in literature|1962]]
! colspan="2" |No award presented<ref name="none1962">In 1962 the Pulitzer board awarded the prize to [[W.A. Swanberg]] for ''Citizen Hearst''. The trustees of [[Columbia University]], who administer the prize, overturned the award, refusing to honor a book that took a critical look at [[William Randolph Hearst]]. {{cite news |author=McDowell, Edwin |date=May 11, 1984 |title=Publishing: Pulitzer Controversies |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/05/11/books/publishing-pulitzer-controversies.html |url-status=live |access-date=January 12, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090423153050/https://www.nytimes.com/1984/05/11/books/publishing-pulitzer-controversies.html |archive-date=April 23, 2009}}</ref>
!
|-
![[1963 in literature|1963]]
|{{Sortname|Leon|Edel}}
|''Henry James''
|
|-
![[1964 in literature|1964]]
|{{sortname|last=Bate|first=Walter Jackson}}
|''John Keats''
|
|-
![[1965 in literature|1965]]
|{{Sortname|Ernest|Samuels}}
|''Henry Adams,'' 3 vols.
|
|-
![[1966 in literature|1966]]
|{{sortname|last=Schlesinger, Jr.|first=Arthur M.}}
|{{Sort|Thousand Days: John F. Kennedy in the White House|''[[A Thousand Days|A Thousand Days: John F. Kennedy in the White House]]''}}
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2007-03-01 |title=Notes: Schlesinger Dies; New Bookstore Collective |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=386 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160820024153/http://shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=386 |archive-date=August 20, 2016 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]]}}</ref>
|-
![[1967 in literature|1967]]
|{{Sortname|Justin|Kaplan}}
|''Mr. Clemens and Mark Twain''
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-03-05 |title=Obituary Notes: Justin Kaplan; Sherwin B. Nuland |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2200 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207221246/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2200 |archive-date=February 7, 2023 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]]}}</ref>
|-
![[1968 in literature|1968]]
|{{sortname|last=Kennan|first=George F.}}
|''Memoirs''
|
|-
![[1969 in literature|1969]]
|{{sortname|last=Reid|first=Benjamin Lawrence}}
|{{Sort|Man from New York: John Quinn and His Friends|''The Man from New York: John Quinn and His Friends''}}
|
|-
![[1970 in literature|1970]]
|{{sortname|last=Williams|first=Thomas Harry}}
|''[[Huey Long (biography)|Huey Long]]''
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2006-09-15 |title=Share the Wealth of All the King's Men |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=281 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220705221340/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=281 |archive-date=July 5, 2022 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]]}}</ref>
|-
![[1971 in literature|1971]]
|{{Sortname|Lawrance|Thompson}}
|''Robert Frost: The Years of Triumph, 1915–1938,''
|
|-
![[1972 in literature|1972]]
|{{sortname|last=Lash|first=Joseph P.}}
|''[[Eleanor and Franklin (book)|Eleanor and Franklin]]''
|
|-
![[1973 in literature|1973]]
|{{sortname|last=Swanberg|first=W. A.}}
|''Luce and His Empire''
|
|-
![[1974 in literature|1974]]
|{{Sortname|Louis|Sheaffer}}
|''O'Neill, Son and Artist''
|
|-
![[1975 in literature|1975]]
|{{Sortname|Robert|Caro}}
|{{Sort|Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York|''[[The Power Broker|The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York]]''}}
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-08-08 |title=Rediscover: The Power Broker |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=635 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230206023618/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=635 |archive-date=February 6, 2023 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]]}}</ref>
|-
![[1976 in literature|1976]]
|{{sortname|last=Lewis|first=R. W. B.}}
|''Edith Wharton: A Biography''
|
|-
![[1977 in literature|1977]]
|{{sortname|last=Mack|first=John E.}}
|{{Sort|Prince of Our Disorder: The Life of T. E. Lawrence|''A Prince of Our Disorder: The Life of T. E. Lawrence''}}
|
|-
![[1978 in literature|1978]]
|{{sortname|last=Bate|first=Walter Jackson}}
|''Samuel Johnson''
|
|-
![[1979 in literature|1979]]
|{{Sortname|Leonard|Baker}}
|''Days of Sorrow and Pain: Leo Baeck and the Berlin Jews''
|
|}
=== 1980s ===
Entries from this point on include the finalists listed after the winner for each year.
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible"
|+Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography winners and finalists, 1980-1989<ref name="Pulitzer-list" />
!Year
!Author
!Title
!Result
!Ref.
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="4" |[[1980 in literature|1980]]
|{{sortname|last=Morris|first=Edmund|link=Edmund Morris (writer)}}
|{{Sort|Rise of Theodore Roosevelt|''[[The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt]]''}}
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Samuels|first=Ernest}}
|''Bernard Berenson, The Making of a Connoisseur''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Secrest|first=Meryle}}
|''Being Bernard Berenson''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Wolff|first=Geoffrey}}
|{{Sort|Duke of Deception|''The Duke of Deception''}}
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1981 in literature|1981]]
|{{sortname|last=Massie|first=Robert K.}}
|''[[Peter the Great: His Life and World]]''
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-12-10 |title=Rediscover: Robert K. Massie |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=875 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=February 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207020237/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=875 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-12-04 |title=Obituary Note: Robert K. Massie |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3633 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=September 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928134904/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3633 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Kaplan|first=Justin}}
|''Walt Whitman: A Life''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Steel|first=Ronald}}
|''Walter Lippmann and the American Century''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1982 in literature|1982]]
|{{sortname|last=McFeely|first=William S.}}
|''Grant: A Biography''
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-12-20 |title=Obituary Note: William McFeely |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3645 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=May 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220522195552/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3645 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Allen|first=Gay Wilson}}
|''Waldo Emerson''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=McCullough|first=David}}
|''[[Mornings on Horseback]]''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1983 in literature|1983]]
|{{sortname|last=Baker|first=Russell}}
|''Growing Up''
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-01-24 |title=Obituary Note: Russell Baker |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3417 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=April 30, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230430020840/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3417 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Morgan|first=Ted|link=Ted Morgan (writer)}}
|''Churchill: Young Man in a Hurry, 1874–1915''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Smith|first=Richard Norton}}
|''Thomas E. Dewey and His Times''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1984 in literature|1984]]
|{{sortname|last=Harlan|first=Louis R.}}
|''Booker T. Washington: The Wizard of Tuskegee, 1901–1915''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Kaplan|first=Fred|link=Fred Kaplan (biographer)}}
|''Thomas Carlyle: A Biography''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Manning|first=Kenneth}}
|''[[Black Apollo of Science|Black Apollo of Science: The Life of Ernest Everett Just]]''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1985 in literature|1985]]
|{{sortname|last=Silverman|first=Kenneth}}
|{{Sort|Life and Times of Cotton Mather|''The Life and Times of Cotton Mather''}}
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-07-12 |title=Obituary Note: Kenneth Silverman |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3041 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=October 17, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221017133949/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3041 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Feinstein|first=Howard M.}}
|''Becoming William James''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Mott|first=Michael}}
|{{Sort|Seven Mountains of Thomas Merton|''The Seven Mountains of Thomas Merton''}}
|Finalist
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-10-18 |title=Obituary Note: Michael Mott |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3602 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=January 30, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230130090644/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3602 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1986 in literature|1986]]
|{{sortname|last=Frank|first=Elizabeth}}
|''Louise Bogan: A Portrait''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Franklin|first=John Hope}}
|''George Washington Williams: A Biography''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Scheps Weinstein|first=Frida}}
|{{Sort|Hidden Childhood: A Jewish Girl's Sanctuary in a French Convent, 1942–1945|''A Hidden Childhood: A Jewish Girl's Sanctuary in a French Convent, 1942–1945''}}
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="4" |[[1987 in literature|1987]]
|{{sortname|last=Garrow|first=David J.}}
|''[[Bearing the Cross|Bearing The Cross: Martin Luther King Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference]]''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Frank|first=Joseph|link=Joseph Frank (writer)}}
|''Dostoevsky: The Stir of Liberation, 1860–1865''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Richards|first=Leonard L.}}
|{{Sort|Life and Times of Congressman John Quincy Adams|''The Life and Times of Congressman John Quincy Adams''}}
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Sperber|first=A.M.}}
|''Murrow: His Life and Times''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1988 in literature|1988]]
|{{sortname|last=Donald|first=David Herbert}}
|''[[Look Homeward: A Life of Thomas Wolfe]]''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Lynn|first=Kenneth S.}}
|''Hemingway''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=McCormick|first=John Owen}}
|''George Santayana: A Biography''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="4" |[[1989 in literature|1989]]
|{{sortname|last=Ellmann|first=Richard}}†
|''Oscar Wilde''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Gay|first=Peter}}
|''[[Freud: A Life for Our Time]]''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Rampersad|first=Arnold}}
|{{Sort|Life of Langston Hughes: Volume II, 1941–1967: I Dream a World|''The Life of Langston Hughes: Volume II, 1941–1967: I Dream a World''}}
|Finalist
|<ref>{{Cite web |last=Houston |date=2012-01-13 |title=Awards: BIO Winner |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=1642 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=May 18, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220518071335/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=1642 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Sheehan|first=Neil}}
|{{Sort|Bright Shining Lie: John Paul Vann and America in Vietnam|''[[A Bright Shining Lie|A Bright Shining Lie: John Paul Vann and America in Vietnam]]''}}
|Finalist
|
|}
===1990s===
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible"
|+Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography winners and finalists, 1990-1999<ref name="Pulitzer-list" />
!Year
!Author(s)
!Title
!Result
!Ref.
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="4" |[[1990 in literature|1990]]
|{{sortname|last=de Grazia|first=Sebastian}}
|''Machiavelli in Hell''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Conway|first=Jill Ker}}
|{{Sort|Road from Coorain|''[[The Road from Coorain (book)|The Road from Coorain]]''}}
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Price|first=Reynolds}}
|''Clear Pictures: First Loves, First Guides''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Ward|first=Geoffrey C.}}
|{{Sort|First-Class Temperament: The Emergence of Franklin Roosevelt|''A First-Class Temperament: The Emergence of Franklin Roosevelt''}}
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1991 in literature|1991]]
|{{sortname|last=Naifeh|first=Steven}} and [[Gregory White Smith]]
|''[[Jackson Pollock: An American Saga]]''
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-04-16 |title=Obituary Note: Gregory White Smith |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2230 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=April 18, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230418130430/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2230 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=O'Toole|first=Patricia}}
|{{Sort|Five of Hearts: An Intimate Portrait of Henry Adams and His Friends 1880–1918|''The Five of Hearts: An Intimate Portrait of Henry Adams and His Friends 1880–1918''}}
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Wall|first=Joseph Frazier}}
|''Alfred I. Du Pont: The Man and His Family''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1992 in literature|1992]]
|{{sortname|last=Puller|first=Lewis B.}}
|''Fortunate Son: The Autobiography of Lewis B. Puller Jr.''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=McFeely|first=William S.}}
|''Frederick Douglass''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Shelden|first=Michael}}
|''Orwell: The Authorized Biography''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1993 in literature|1993]]
|{{sortname|last=McCullough|first=David}}
|''[[Truman (book)|Truman]]''
|Winner
|<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |date=2022-08-12 |title=Rediscover: David McCullough |url=https://shelf-awareness.com/www.shelf-awareness.com/sar-issue.html?issue=1135 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]]}}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Gleick|first=James}}
|''Genius: The Life and Science of Richard Feynman''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Isaacson|first=Walter}}
|''[[Kissinger: A Biography]]''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1994 in literature|1994]]
|{{sortname|last=Levering Lewis|first=David}}
|''[[W. E. B. Du Bois: Biography of a Race, 1868–1919]]''
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-02-01 |title=Awards: BIO Winner; PROSE Categories |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3913 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=December 3, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221203150456/https://shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3913 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Baker|first=Deborah}}
|''In Extremis: The Life of Laura Riding''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=White|first=Edmund}}
|''Genet: A Biography''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1995 in literature|1995]]
|{{sortname|last=Hedrick|first=Joan D.}}
|''Harriet Beecher Stowe: A Life''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Newman|first=Roger K.}}
|''Hugo Black: A Biography''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Schiff|first=Stacy}}
|''[[Saint-Exupéry: A Biography|Saint-Exupery: A Biography]]''
|Finalist
|<ref name=":7">{{Cite web |date=2014-01-13 |title=Awards: BIO Winner; Story Prize Finalists; NBCC Finalists |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2164 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=March 20, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230320024139/https://shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2164 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1996 in literature|1996]]
|{{sortname|last=Miles|first=Jack}}
|''[[God: A Biography]]''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Loughery|first=John}}
|''John Sloan: Painter and Rebel''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Solomon|first=Maynard}}
|''Mozart: A Life''
|Finalist
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-10-16 |title=Obituary Note: Maynard Solomon |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3846 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=April 20, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230420220817/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3846 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1997 in literature|1997]]
|{{sortname|last=McCourt|first=Frank}}
|''[[Angela's Ashes: A Memoir]]''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Barnes|first=Kim}}
|''In the Wilderness: Coming of Age in Unknown Country''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Parker|first=Hershel}}
|''Herman Melville: A Biography, Volume 1, 1819–1851''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1998 in literature|1998]]
|{{sortname|last=Graham|first=Katharine}}
|''[[Personal History]]''
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-01-19 |title=Rediscover: Personal History |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=681 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=August 8, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200808115844/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=681 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=1998-04-20 |title=PW: Roth, Kakutani Awarded Pulitzers |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/print/19980420/22143-pw-roth-kakutani-awarded-pulitzers.html |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Publishers Weekly]] |language=en}}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Jones|first=James H.|nolink=1}}
|''Alfred C. Kinsey: A Public-Private Life''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Tanenhaus|first=Sam}}
|''Whittaker Chambers: A Biography''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[1999 in literature|1999]]
|{{sortname|last=Berg|first=A. Scott}}
|''[[Lindbergh (book)|Lindbergh]]''
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-09-25 |title=Rediscover: Lindbergh |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=752 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=January 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230127121137/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=752 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Zeitchik |first=Steven M. |date=1999-04-19 |title=FSG Leads Pulitzer Winners |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/print/19990419/20221-fsg-leads-pulitzer-winners.html |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Publishers Weekly]] |language=en |archive-date=January 27, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220127120746/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/print/19990419/20221-fsg-leads-pulitzer-winners.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=du Plessix Gray|first=Francine}}
|''At Home with the Marquis de Sade: A Life''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Nasar|first=Sylvia}}
|{{Sort|Beautiful Mind|''[[A Beautiful Mind (book)|A Beautiful Mind]]''}}
|Finalist
|
|}

===2000s===
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible"
|+Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography winners and finalists, 2000-2009<ref name="Pulitzer-list" />
!Year
!Author(s)
!Title
!Result
!
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2000 in literature|2000]]
|{{sortname|last=Schiff|first=Stacy}}
|''Vera, Mrs. Vladimir Nabokov''
|Winner
|<ref name=":7" />
|-
|{{sortname|last=Mason|first=Bobbie Ann}}
|''Clear Springs: A Memoir''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Sobel|first=Dava}}
|''[[Galileo's Daughter|Galileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love]]''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2001 in literature|2001]]
|{{sortname|last=Lewis|first=David Levering}}
|''[[W. E. B. Du Bois: The Fight for Equality and the American Century, 1919–1963|W. E. B. Du Bois: The Fight for Equality and the American Century 1919-1963]]''
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |last= |date=2001-04-23 |title=Chabon, Ellis Win Pulitzers |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/print/20010423/19025-chabon-ellis-win-pulitzers.html |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Publishers Weekly]] |language=en}}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Brands|first=H.W.}}
|{{Sort|First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin|''The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin''}}
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Wolff|first=Christoph}}
|''Johann Sebastian Bach: The Learned Musician''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2002 in literature|2002]]
|{{sortname|last=McCullough|first=David}}
|''[[John Adams (book)|John Adams]]''
|Winner
|<ref name=":6" />
|-
|{{sortname|last=Carter|first=Jimmy}}
|{{Sort|Hour Before Daylight: Memories of a Rural Boyhood|''An Hour Before Daylight: Memories of a Rural Boyhood''}}
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Smith|first=Jean Edward}}
|''Grant''
|Finalist
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-09-26 |title=Obituary Note: Jean Edward Smith |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3587 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=December 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221224205626/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3587 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2003 in literature|2003]]
|{{sortname|last=Caro|first=Robert}}
|''[[Master of the Senate: The Years of Lyndon Johnson]]''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Dawidoff|first=Nicholas}}
|{{Sort|Fly Swatter|''The Fly Swatter: A Portrait of an Exceptional Character''}}
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Lockwood|first=Lewis}}
|''Beethoven: The Music and the Life''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2004 in literature|2004]]
|{{sortname|last=Taubman|first=William}}
|''[[Khrushchev: The Man and His Era]]''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Gleick|first=James}}
|''Isaac Newton''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Herrera|first=Hayden}}
|''Arshile Gorky: His Life and Work''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2005 in literature|2005]]
|{{sortname|last=Stevens|first=Mark|link=Mark Stevens (art critic)}} and [[Annalyn Swan]]
|''[[de Kooning: An American Master]]''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Greenblatt|first=Stephen}}
|''Will in the World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Souder|first=William}}
|''Under a Wild Sky: John James Audubon and the Making of The Birds of America''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2006 in literature|2006]]
|{{sortname|last=Bird|first=Kai}} and [[Martin J. Sherwin]]
|''[[American Prometheus|American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer]]''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Didion|first=Joan}}
|{{Sort|Year of Magical Thinking|''[[The Year of Magical Thinking]]''}}
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Marshall|first=Megan}}
|{{Sort|Peabody Sisters: Three Women Who Ignited American Romanticism|''The Peabody Sisters: Three Women Who Ignited American Romanticism''}}
|Finalist
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-02-15 |title=Awards: BIO Winner |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=4170 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=February 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207085548/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=4170 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2007 in literature|2007]]
|{{sortname|last=Applegate|first=Debby}}
|{{Sort|Most Famous Man in America: The Biography of Henry Ward Beecher|''[[The Most Famous Man in America|The Most Famous Man in America: The Biography of Henry Ward Beecher]]''}}
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Cash|first=Arthur H.}}
|''John Wilkes: The Scandalous Father of Civil Liberty''
|Finalist
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-01-11 |title=Obituary Notes: Arthur H. Cash; Michel Déon |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2914 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=May 18, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220518054715/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2914 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Nasaw|first=David}}
|''Andrew Carnegie''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2008 in literature|2008]]
|{{sortname|last=Matteson|first=John}}
|''[[Eden's Outcasts|Eden's Outcasts: The Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Father]]''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Duberman|first=Martin}}
|{{Sort|Worlds of Lincoln Kirstein|''The Worlds of Lincoln Kirstein''}}
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Leader|first=Zachary}}
|{{Sort|Life of Kingsley Amis|''The Life of Kingsley Amis''}}
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2009 in literature|2009]]
|{{sortname|last=Meacham|first=Jon}}
|''[[American Lion (book)|American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House]]''
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2009-04-21 |title=Awards: The Pulitzers; Orange Prize Shortlist |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=905 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=October 2, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171002000124/http://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=905 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2009-04-20 |title=The 2009 Pulitzer Prizes for Letters and Drama |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/15142-the-2009-pulitzer-prizes-for-letters-and-drama.html |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Publishers Weekly]] |language=en}}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Brands|first=H.W.}}
|''Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Coll|first=Steve}}
|{{Sort|Bin Ladens: An Arabian Family in the American Century|''[[The Bin Ladens: An Arabian Family in the American Century]]''}}
|Finalist
|
|}
===2010s===
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible"
|+Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography winners and finalists, 2010-2019<ref name="Pulitzer-list" />
!Year
!Author(s)
!Title
!Result
!Ref.
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2010 in literature|2010]]
|{{sortname|last=Stiles|first=T. J.}}
| {{Sort|First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt|''[[The First Tycoon|The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt]]''}}
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2010-04-13 |title=Awards: The Pulitzers |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=1160 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=August 20, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160820022347/http://shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=1160 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Bailey|first=Blake}}
|''Cheever: A Life''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Cooper, Jr.|first=John Milton}}
|''Woodrow Wilson: A Biography''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2011 in literature|2011]]
|{{sortname|last=Chernow|first=Ron}}
| ''[[Washington: A Life]]''
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-06-03 |title=Rediscover: Alexander Hamilton |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=511 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=February 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207081849/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=511 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-04-19 |title=Awards: Pulitzer, Lukas Winners |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=1443 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=February 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230206034500/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=1443 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Brinkley|first=Alan}}
|{{Sort|Publisher: Henry Luce and His American Century|''The Publisher: Henry Luce and His American Century''}}
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=O'Brien|first=Michael|link=Michael O'Brien (historian)}}
|''Mrs. Adams in Winter: A Journey in the Last Days of Napoleon''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2012 in literature|2012]]
|{{sortname|last=Gaddis|first=John Lewis}}
| ''[[George F. Kennan: An American Life]]''
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-04-17 |title=Awards: Pulitzer Winners; Orange Prize Shortlist |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=1718 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=October 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221028053548/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=1718 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":8">{{Cite web |last=Habash |first=Gabe |date=2012-04-16 |title=2012 Pulitzer Prize: No Fiction Award, Jurors 'Shocked' |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/51542-2012-pulitzer-prize-no-fiction-award-jurors-shocked.html |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Publishers Weekly]] |language=en |archive-date=January 19, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230119150319/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/51542-2012-pulitzer-prize-no-fiction-award-jurors-shocked.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Gabriel|first=Mary|link=Mary Gabriel (author)}}
|''Love and Capital: Karl and Jenny Marx and the Birth of a Revolution''
|Finalist
|<ref name=":8" />
|-
|{{sortname|last=Marable|first=Manning}}
|''[[Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention]]''
|Finalist
|<ref name=":8" />
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2013 in literature|2013]]
|{{sortname|last=Reiss|first=Tom}}
| {{Sort|Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo|''[[The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo]]''}}
|Winner
|<ref name=":9">{{Cite web |last=Habash |first=Gabe |date=2013-04-15 |title=2013 Pulitzer Prize: 'Orphan Master' Brings Fiction Prize Back |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/56832-2013-pulitzer-prize-orphan-master-brings-fiction-prize-back.html |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Publishers Weekly]] |language=en |archive-date=January 26, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126191934/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/56832-2013-pulitzer-prize-orphan-master-brings-fiction-prize-back.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Gorra|first=Michael}}
|''Portrait of a Novel: Henry James and the Making of an American Masterpiece''
|Finalist
|<ref name=":9" />
|-
|{{sortname|last=Nasaw|first=David}}
|{{Sort|Patriarch: The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy|''The Patriarch: The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy''}}
|Finalist
|<ref name=":9" />
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2014 in literature|2014]]
|{{sortname|last=Marshall|first=Megan}}
| ''Margaret Fuller: A New American Life''
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-04-15 |title=Awards: Pulitzer Winners; Thwaites Wainwright Nature & Travel Writing |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2229 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=March 10, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220310022608/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2229 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-04-14 |title=Tartt, Fagin Take 2014 Pulitzers |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/61855-tartt-fagin-take-2014-pulitzers.html |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Publishers Weekly]] |language=en |archive-date=November 10, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141110152417/http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/61855-tartt-fagin-take-2014-pulitzers.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Damrosch|first=Leo}}
|''Jonathan Swift: His Life and His World''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Sperber|first=Jonathan}}
|''Karl Marx: A Nineteenth-Century Life''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2015 in literature|2015]]
|{{sortname|last=Kertzer|first=David I.}}
| {{Sort|Pope and Mussolini: The Secret History of Pius XI and the Rise of Fascism in Europe|''[[The Pope and Mussolini|The Pope and Mussolini: The Secret History of Pius XI and the Rise of Fascism in Europe]]''}}
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-04-24 |title=Media Heat: Pulitzer-Winner David I. Kertzer on Fresh Air |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2493 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=July 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220719231717/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2493 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-04-21 |title=Doerr, Kolbert Among 2015 Pulitzer Prize Winners |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2490 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness ]] |archive-date=January 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220128034004/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2490 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Brothers|first=Thomas}}
|''Louis Armstrong: Master of Modernism''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Kotkin|first=Stephen}}
|''[[Stalin: Paradoxes of Power, 1878–1928]]''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2016 in literature|2016]]
|{{sortname|last=Finnegan|first=William}}
| ''Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life''
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-04-19 |title=Debut Novel Among 2016 Pulitzer Prize Winners |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2735 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=March 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230302135954/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2735 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-11-29 |title=Awards: William Hill Sports Book |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2889 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=March 12, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230312023318/https://shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2889 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Alexander|first=Elizabeth|link=Elizabeth Alexander (poet)}}
|{{Sort|Light of the World: A Memoir|''The Light of the World: A Memoir''}}
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Stiles|first=T. J. }}
|''[[Custer's Trials|Custer's Trials: A Life on the Frontier of a New America]]''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2017 in literature|2017]]
|{{sortname|last=Matar|first=Hisham}}
| {{Sort|Return: Fathers, Sons and the Land in Between|''[[The Return (memoir)|The Return: Fathers, Sons and the Land in Between]]''}}
|Winner
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-04-11 |title=The Underground Railroad Among Pulitzer Winners |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2977 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=January 19, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230119025053/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=2977 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Maher |first=John |date=2017-04-10 |title=Whitehead, Thompson Among 2017 Pulitzer Prize Winners |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/73303-pulitzer-prizes-2017.html |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Publishers Weekly]] |language=en |archive-date=August 8, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220808033829/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/73303-pulitzer-prizes-2017.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Faludi|first=Susan}}
|''[[In the Darkroom]]''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|last=Kalanithi|first=Paul}}
|''[[When Breath Becomes Air]]''
|Finalist
|
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2018 in literature|2018]]
|{{sortname|last=Fraser|first=Caroline}}
| ''[[Prairie Fires|Prairie Fires: The American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder]]''
|Winner
|<ref name=":4">{{cite web |title=2018 Pulitzer Prize Winners |url=http://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-year/2018 |website=[[Pulitzer Prize]] |access-date=April 16, 2019 |archive-date=September 11, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190911080447/https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-year/2018 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-04-17 |title=Andrew Sean Greer, James Forman Jr. Among Pulitzer Winners |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3229 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=July 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220701162047/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3229 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Farrell|first=John A.}}
|''Richard Nixon: The Life''
|Finalist
|<ref name=":4" />
|-
|{{sortname|last=Redfield Jamison|first=Kay}}
|''Robert Lowell, Setting the River on Fire: A Study of Genius, Mania, and Character''
|Finalist
|<ref name=":4" />
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2019 in literature|2019]]
|{{sortname|last=Stewart|first=Jeffrey C.}}
| {{Sort|New Negro: The Life of Alain Locke|''[[The New Negro: The Life of Alain Locke]]''}}
|Winner
|<ref name=":5">{{cite web |title=2019 Pulitzer Prize Winners |url=https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-year/2019 |website=[[Pulitzer Prize]] |access-date=April 16, 2019 |archive-date=July 26, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190726100152/https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-year/2019 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-04-16 |title=Richard Powers, David W. Blight Among Pulitzer Winners |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3474 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=January 26, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220126034939/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3474 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Boot|first=Max}}
|{{Sort|Road Not Taken: Edward Lansdale and the American Tragedy in Vietnam|''The Road Not Taken: Edward Lansdale and the American Tragedy in Vietnam''}}
|Finalist
|<ref name=":5" />
|-
|{{sortname|last=Weber|first=Caroline|link=Caroline Weber (author)}}
|''Proust's Duchess: How Three Celebrated Women Captured the Imagination of Fin-de-Siècle Paris''
|Finalist
|<ref name=":5" />
|}
===2020s===
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible"
|+Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography winners and finalists, 2020-present<ref name="Pulitzer-list" />
!Year
!Author(s)
!Work
!Result
!Ref
|- style="background-color:lightyellow;"
! rowspan="3" |[[2020 in literature|2020]]
|{{Sortname|first=Benjamin|last=Moser}}
|''[[Sontag: Her Life and Work]]''
|Winner
|<ref name=":0">{{cite web |title=2020 Pulitzer Prize Winners |url=https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-year/2020 |website=[[Pulitzer Prize]] |access-date=May 5, 2020 |archive-date=July 30, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730234718/https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-year/2020 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-05-05 |title=The Nickel Boys Among Pulitzer Winners |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3732 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=January 30, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230130215553/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=3732 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Maher |first=John |date=2020-05-04 |title=Moser, Whitehead, McDaniel, Grandin, Boyer, Brown Win 2020 Pulitzers |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/83233-pulitzer-prizes-2020.html |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Publishers Weekly]] |language=en |archive-date=November 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211130123841/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/83233-pulitzer-prizes-2020.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{Sortname|first=George|last=Packer}}
|''Our Man: Richard Holbrooke and the End of the American Century''
|Finalist
|<ref name=":0" />
|-
|{{Sortname|first=Deirdre|last=Bair}}
|''Parisian Lives: Samuel Beckett, Simone de Beauvoir, and Me''
|Finalist
|<ref name=":0" />
|- style="background-color:lightyellow;"
! rowspan="3" |[[2021 in literature|2021]]
|{{Sortname|first=Les|last=Payne}}† and Tamara Payne
|{{Sort|Dead Are Arising: The Life of Malcolm X|''[[The Dead Are Arising|The Dead Are Arising: The Life of Malcolm X]]''}}
|Winner
|<ref name=":1">{{cite web |title=2021 Pulitzer Prize Winners |url=https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-year/2021 |website=[[Pulitzer Prize]] |access-date=June 11, 2021 |archive-date=July 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220711134532/https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-year/2021 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-06-14 |title=2021 Pulitzer Prize Winners |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=4006 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=January 23, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230123024752/https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=4006 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last= |first= |date=2021-06-11 |title=Pulitzer Prize: 2021 Winners List |language=en-US |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/11/business/pulitzer-prize-winners.html |access-date=2023-05-11 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
|-
|{{Sortname|first=Heather|last=Clark|link=Heather Clark (writer)}}
|''[[Red Comet|Red Comet: The Short Life and Blazing Art of Sylvia Plath]]''
|Finalist
|<ref name=":1" />
|-
|{{Sortname|first=Amy|last=Stanley}}
|''[[Stranger in the Shogun's City|Stranger in the Shogun's City: A Japanese Woman and Her World]]''
|Finalist
|<ref name=":1" />
|- style="background-color:lightyellow;"
! rowspan="3" |[[2022 in literature|2022]]
|{{Sortname|first=Winfred|last=Rembert}}† and [[Erin I. Kelly]]
|''[[Chasing Me to My Grave|Chasing Me to My Grave: An Artist's Memoir of the Jim Crow South]]''
|Winner
|<ref name=":2">{{cite web |title=2022 Pulitzer Prize Winners |url=https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-year/2022 |website=[[Pulitzer Prize]] |access-date=May 12, 2022 |archive-date=August 2, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220802013936/https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-year/2022 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Maher |first=John |date=2022-05-09 |title='The Netanyahus,' 'frank: sonnets' Among 2022 Pulitzer Prize Winners |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/89252-the-netanyahus-frank-sonnets-among-2022-pulitzer-prize-winners.html |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Publishers Weekly]] |language=en |archive-date=November 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221129181727/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/89252-the-netanyahus-frank-sonnets-among-2022-pulitzer-prize-winners.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-05-10 |title=2022 Pulitzer Prize Winners |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=4229 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]] |archive-date=July 5, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220705011242/https://shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=4229 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|{{Sortname|first=Richard|last=Zenith}}
|''[[Pessoa: A Biography]]''
|Finalist
|<ref name=":2" />
|-
|{{Sortname|first=Janice P.|last=Nimura}}
|{{Sort|Doctors Blackwell: How Two Pioneering Sisters Brought Medicine to Women and Women to Medicine|''[[The Doctors Blackwell|The Doctors Blackwell: How Two Pioneering Sisters Brought Medicine to Women and Women to Medicine]]''}}
|Finalist
|<ref name=":2" />
|- style="background-color:lightyellow;"
! rowspan="3" |[[2023 in literature|2023]]
|{{sortname|last=Gage|first=Beverly}}
|''[[G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century]]''
|Winner
|<ref name=":02">{{Cite web |last=Stewart |first=Sophia |date=2023-05-08 |title='Demon Copperhead,' 'Trust,' 'His Name Is George Floyd' Among 2023 Pulitzer Prize Winners |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/92233-demon-copperhead-trust-his-name-is-george-floyd-among-2023-pulitzer-prize-winners.html |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Publishers Weekly]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-05-09 |title=2023 Pulitzer Prize Winners Include Kingsolver's Demon Copperhead, Diaz's Trust |url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=4476 |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]]}}</ref>
|-
|{{sortname|last=Homans|first=Jennifer}}
|''Mr. B: George Balanchine's 20th Century''
|Finalist
|<ref name=":02" />
|-
|{{sortname|last=Samuels|first=Robert|link=Robert Samuels (journalist)}} and [[Toluse Olorunnipa]]
|''[[His Name Is George Floyd|His Name Is George Floyd: One Man's Life and the Struggle for Racial Justice]]'' 
|Finalist
|<ref name=":02" />
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2024 in literature|2024]]
|{{sortname|last=Eig|first=Jonathan}}
| ''[[King: A Life]]''
|Winner
|'''<ref name=":10">{{Cite web |last=op de Beeck |first=Nathalie|date=2024-05-06 |title='Night Watch,' 'A Day in the Life of Abed Salama,' 'King' Among 2024 Pulitzer Prize Winners
 |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/awards-and-prizes/article/94978-night-watch-a-day-in-the-life-of-abed-salama-king-among-2024-pulitzer-prize-winners.html |access-date=2024-05-08 |website=[[Publishers Weekly]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-05-07 |title=2024 Pulitzer Prize Winners
|url=https://www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?issue=4721#m63738 |access-date=2023-05-08 |website=[[Shelf Awareness]]}}</ref>'''
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
|{{sortname|last=Woo|first=Ilyon}}
|''[[Master Slave Husband Wife: An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom]]''
|Winner
|'''<ref name=":10" />'''
|-
|{{sortname|last=Daugherty|first=Tracy}}
|''Larry McMurtry: A Life''
|Finalist
|'''<ref name=":10" />'''
|- style=background-color:lightyellow;
! rowspan="3" |[[2025 in literature|2025]]
|{{sortname|Jason|Roberts|dab=author}}
|''[[Every Living Thing: The Great and Deadly Race to Know All Life]]''
|Winner
|
|-
|{{sortname|David|Greenberg|dab=historian}}
| ''[[John Lewis: A Life]]''
|Finalist
|
|-
|{{sortname|Amy|Reading}}
|''[[The World She Edited: Katharine S. White at The New Yorker]]''
|Finalist
|
|}

==Repeat winners==

Ten people have won the Pulitzer for Biography or Autobiography twice: 
* [[Burton J. Hendrick]], 1923, 1929
* [[Allan Nevins]], 1933, 1937
* [[Marquis James]], 1930, 1938
* [[Douglas S. Freeman]], 1935, 1958
* [[Samuel Eliot Morison]], 1943, 1960
* [[Walter Jackson Bate]], 1964, 1978
* [[David Herbert Donald]], 1961, 1988
* [[David Levering Lewis]], 1994, 2001
* [[David McCullough]], 1993, 2002
* [[Robert Caro]], 1975, 2003

[[W. A. Swanberg]] was selected by the Pulitzer board in 1962 and 1973; however, the trustees of Columbia University (then responsible for conferral of the awards) overturned the proposed 1962 prize for ''Citizen Hearst''.<ref name=none1962/>

==See also==
{{Portal|Biography}}
* [[Pulitzer Prize for History]]

==References==
{{reflist |2 |refs=
<ref name=prize>{{cite web |title=Biography or Autobiography |publisher=The Pulitzer Prizes (pulitzer.org) |url=http://www.pulitzer.org/bycat/Biography-or-Autobiography |access-date=October 1, 2008 |archive-date=May 25, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150525054128/http://www.pulitzer.org/bycat/Biography-or-Autobiography |url-status=live }}</ref>
}}

==External links==
* {{Commons category inline|Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography winners}}

{{PulitzerPrizes}}
{{PulitzerPrize BiographyorAutobiographyAuthors}}

[[Category:Pulitzer Prizes by category|Biography]]
[[Category:Biography awards]]
[[Category:Awards established in 1917]]
[[Category:Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography winners]]
[[Category:Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography–winning works| Biography]]