Handyman Superstar Challenge - Format

Format

10 contestants qualify for the competition through submissions to the HGTV website. Since the third season, 20 contestants arrive to Toronto for a qualifying challenge for 10 open competition spots.

At the start of each day, the contestants are taken from their hotel rooms at dawn and taken to the site of the challenges. In the first season, there was only one challenge (due to the episodes being 30 minutes instead of the 60 minutes of the later seasons, to match those of its sister shows). In the second season, there were two challenges per day: a "handyman" challenge showcasing the contestants' skills in the morning, and a "superstar" challenge showcasing the contestants' presentation ability in the afternoon. Mike Holmes, Jim Caruk, and HGTV casting agent Shasta Lutz are the judges for the first two seasons.

Since the third season, starting with the second day of competition (the first day for the qualifying challenge and the "Lion's Den challenge" where head judges Mike Holmes and Jim Caruk evaluate the contestants' basic skills), there is a compulsory challenge in the morning, for which there is a guest judge presiding (neither Mike and Jim are present at the morning challenge). The guest judge may offer advice to contestants on their project. When the challenge ends, Mike and Jim arrive to give a preliminary evaluation with the guest judge (this is a blind evaluation; Mike and Jim do not know which contestant is associated with which project, though after a few days they invariably guess correctly). After the contestants return and defend their works in front of the judges, and a second evaluation determines which of the remaining contestants will not have to partake in the evening "redemption challenge" (and are safe from being eliminated). Normally, three contestants partake in the redemption challenge, except for the one pairs challenge each year, where two teams (four contestants) partake in the redemption challenge (which is an individual affair). The redemption challenge is often related to the main challenge, and both Mike and Jim (but not the guest judge) preside over the challenge.

The worst performer, as deemed by the judges, is eliminated from competition (two in the episode with the pairs challenge).

Eliminations continue until three contestants remain, from which one of the three would be named the Handyman Superstar after a final head-to-head challenge.