| Contest: | Junior |
| Year: | 2018 |
| Country: | Albania |
| Preselection: | Junior Fest 2018 |
| Entrant: | Efi Gjika |
| Song: | Barbie |
| Final Result: | 17th, 44 points |
Albania participated in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2018 in Minsk, Belarus with the song "Barbie" performed by Efi Gjika. The Albanian broadcaster RTSH was responsible for the organization of their representative at the contest. Their entry was selected through Junior Fest 2018, a national selection process consisting of sixteen artists competed in order to become the Albanian representative on 23 September 2018.
See main article: Albania in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest. Prior to the 2018 contest, Albania had participated in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest four times since its first entry in 2012, only opting not to participate at the 2013 and 2014 contests. Albania has never won the contest, with their best result being in, with the song "Dambaje" performed by Mishela Rapo, achieving fifth place with a score of 93 points. In 2016, Klesta Qehaja represented Albania in Valletta, Malta with the song "Besoj".[1] The country ended in 13th place out of 17 countries, achieving 38 points. In 2017, Ana Kodra represented Albania in Tbilisi, Georgia with the song "Don't Touch My Tree" and participated in the 2018 national final but did not win.
The national final Junior Fest 2018 took place on 23 September 2018. It consisted of sixteen competing acts participating in a televised production at Amphitheater of the Lake Park in Tirana.
| Draw [2] | Artist [3] | Song [4] | Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hera Hysi | "Melodi pranverore" | Albanian |
| 2 | Emmi Rushiti | "Mbrëmje feste" | Albanian |
| 3 | Kristiana Veshaj | "Sot" | Albanian |
| 4 | Efi Gjika | "Barbie" | Albanian |
| 5 | Jasmina Hako | "Happy" | Albanian, English |
| 6 | Sindi Goga | "Me tinguj fantazi" | Albanian |
| 7 | Iris Sula & Samanta Qoshku | "Çdo gjë do dashuri" | Albanian |
| 8 | Era Rakipllari | "Panorama" | Albanian, English |
| 9 | Merlin Xhai | "Botë e re" | Albanian |
| 10 | Laura Boriçi | "Është koha" | Albanian |
| 11 | Iris Dollani | "Ylberi im" | Albanian |
| 12 | Sajana Kodheli | "Ylli im" | Albanian |
| 13 | Ana Kodra | "Prindër ju lutem" | Albanian |
| 14 | Melodajn Mancaku | "Ëndërroj" | Albanian |
| 15 | Speranza Bregasi | "Ditari" | Albanian |
| 16 | Uendi Goga | "Qiellin dhe yjet i dua" | Albanian |
During the opening ceremony and the running order draw which both took place on 19 November 2018, Albania was drawn to perform fourth on 25 November 2018, following Kazakhstan and preceding Russia.[5]
| + | |||||||||
| Draw | Country | Juror A | Juror B | Juror C | Juror D | Juror E | Average Rank | Points Awarded | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | 6 | 13 | 7 | 5 | 17 | 9 | 2 | ||
| 02 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 10 | 16 | 15 | |||
| 03 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 4 | ||
| 04 | |||||||||
| 05 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 14 | 13 | 19 | |||
| 06 | 15 | 9 | 15 | 15 | 12 | 14 | |||
| 07 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 18 | 5 | 6 | ||
| 08 | 7 | 18 | 10 | 13 | 15 | 12 | |||
| 09 | 19 | 17 | 19 | 12 | 9 | 17 | |||
| 10 | 10 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 19 | 16 | |||
| 11 | 14 | 12 | 16 | 11 | 10 | 13 | |||
| 12 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 7 | ||
| 13 | 12 | 11 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 11 | |||
| 14 | 13 | 5 | 13 | 19 | 7 | 10 | 1 | ||
| 15 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 12 | ||
| 16 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 17 | 11 | 10 | 6 | 17 | 4 | 8 | 3 | ||
| 18 | 18 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 11 | 18 | |||
| 19 | 9 | 6 | 9 | 8 | 3 | 6 | 5 | ||
| 20 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 14 | 3 | 8 |