A guide to raffle websites in the UK: what a good raffle site needs

A raffle website does more than sell tickets. It has to follow the rules, earn a new player's trust in a few seconds, and stay fast when everyone arrives at once on draw night. This guide covers what a good UK raffle site needs, with a checklist to use before you launch. If you're still deciding how to build yours, start with raffle website builders in the UK compared.

What makes a raffle website different

From the outside, a raffle site looks like an online shop. Underneath, it works very differently. It has to give every player their own ticket numbers without overselling, add postal entries to the draw, run fair random draws and instant wins, check ages, apply spending limits, and cope when lots of players arrive just before a raffle closes. A normal shop template isn't built for any of that, which is why most raffle businesses use a platform made for raffles.

You'll also hear these sites called competition websites or prize draw websites. The same rules apply whatever you call yours.

The legal must-haves on your site

These are the parts of your site that keep your raffles within the law and in line with the DCMS Code. They're also what banks, payment providers and Meta look at when they review your business.

• A free entry route on every raffle. Show it clearly on the raffle page before anyone pays, not only in the terms, with simple instructions. Free and paid entries need the same chance of winning. See the free entry route explained.
• Terms and conditions written for raffles. They should cover who can enter, how the free route works, how winners are picked and contacted, and how prizes are delivered.
• Rules and odds for every raffle. The DCMS Code asks for a clear summary of how each type of draw works, and, where possible, information on the chance of winning before players enter, such as the maximum number of tickets.
• How winners are drawn. Publish your draw method, whether that's a verifiably random computer draw, a certified drawing machine or a draw supervised by an independent person. See how to pick a raffle winner fairly.
• 18+ only. Ask players to confirm their age, and say in your terms that entries from under-18s are void.
• Spending limits and breaks. Let players set their own monthly limit, and take a break from their account or close it, without having to contact you.
• A complaints process and support links. Explain how players can complain and how you'll handle it, and point anyone worried about their spending to support.
• A privacy policy and a cookie banner. You'll hold player data, so explain how you use it, and follow the ICO's guidance on cookies.
• Your business details. Online businesses need to show their name, a geographic address and an email address, plus a VAT number if they're VAT registered. A limited company also has to show its registered name, company number, registered office address and where it's registered, such as England and Wales.

Our DCMS Code checklist goes through the Code point by point, and are online raffles legal in the UK? explains why the free entry route matters so much.

Design that sells tickets

Many players arrive from a social post or an advert, on their phone, and decide in seconds whether to stay. Good raffle design makes that decision easy.

• Big, honest prize photos with an accurate description of exactly what the winner gets.
• The key facts at a glance. Ticket price, tickets remaining, closing date and draw date near the top of every raffle page.
• A live countdown to the closing time, so players know when they need to enter by.
• A simple ticket selector that lets players choose how many tickets they want in a tap or two.
• A short checkout. Few fields, card wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay where your provider supports them, and ticket numbers shown straight after payment and sent by email.
• Clear navigation. Live raffles, instant wins, winners, how it works and FAQs, easy to reach from every page.
• Your own brand. A site that looks like yours, not the same template everyone else uses, is easier to remember and easier to trust.

If your adverts get plenty of clicks but few entries, look at your raffle page and checkout on a phone first. That's often where players drop off.

Build trust from the first visit

New players don't know you yet. Before they pay, they'll look for signs that your raffles are real and fair.

• A winners page with real winners and their prizes, shared with their permission.
• Draws you can show. Keep a record of every draw, and if you draw live, keep the recordings.
• Reviews on independent sites such as Google and Trustpilot, not just quotes on your own pages.
• Clear contact details and company information, so players know who they're dealing with.
• A secure checkout on HTTPS, using your payment provider's secure card form.
• An active social presence, with winner posts and live draws that show the business is running.

Never suggest you're licensed or approved by a regulator unless you are, as that would mislead players.

Speed and reliability on busy nights

Raffle traffic comes in waves. A new raffle, an email to your players or the last hour before a big draw can bring lots of visitors at once. If the site slows down or tickets oversell at that moment, you lose sales and trust in one go.

• Hosting that copes with sudden spikes in visitors
• Ticket allocation that can't oversell or give two players the same number
• Fast pages on mobile data, with images sized for phones
• Someone to call if something goes wrong at a busy time

Speed matters for Google too. Its ranking systems look at page experience, including how quickly pages load.

Payments that work for raffles

Many payment providers won't accept prize draw businesses, so check before you build and get the answer in writing. Your provider should also be able to tell credit cards from debit cards, because the DCMS Code limits credit card spending to £250 a month per player and rules out credit cards on instant win draws. Card wallets make checkout quicker for players coming back for the next raffle.

Help people find you on Google

• A clear page title and description for every page and raffle
• One main heading per page, with content written for people, not stuffed with keywords
• A sitemap submitted to Google Search Console, so new pages get found
• Pages that answer what players want to know, such as how your draws work and who has won

Search won't replace social media and email, but it brings in players who are already looking for raffles to enter.

Measure what matters

• Conversion rate. How many visitors go on to buy a ticket.
• Where sales come from. Which adverts, posts and emails bring buyers, not just clicks.
• Repeat players. How many come back for the next raffle.
• Sell-through. How quickly each raffle sells, so you can size the next one.

Your launch checklist

• Free entry route on every raffle page, shown before purchase
• Terms, privacy policy and cookie banner live
• Rules, odds and draw method published
• 18+ check, spending limits and account breaks working
• Complaints process and support links in place
• Business details on the site
• Payment provider confirmed in writing, with credit card limits set
• Test orders placed on a phone, and a free entry added to a draw
• Winners page and how-it-works page ready
• Page titles and descriptions set, and your sitemap submitted to Google
• A plan for busy nights: who's watching the site, and how draws are recorded

How Reffle helps

Reffle builds your raffle website for you, styled around your brand, on a platform made for raffles. Every Reffle site has the free entry route, odds information, 18+ confirmation, spending limits and compliance pages built in, and Reffle is a signatory to the DCMS Code. We set up Reffle Pay for card payments, provide a legal opinion letter from our solicitor and terms written for raffle sites, and help you get approved to advertise. New features land almost every week.

See real raffle businesses running on Reffle in our portfolio, explore every feature, or book a free demo and we'll give you straight answers, including whether Reffle is the right fit for you.

Questions people ask

Does a raffle website need a licence in the UK?

Not if your raffles run as prize draws with a proper free entry route, or as competitions that need real skill. Your website has to show the free route clearly, which is why it tops the list above. More in do you need a licence to run a raffle website?

Can I build a raffle site on a normal website builder?

You can build the pages, but general builders aren't made for tickets, free entries and draws, and many of the payment providers that come with them don't accept raffle businesses. We compare the options in raffle website builders in the UK compared.

What pages does a raffle website need?

At a minimum: a home page with your live raffles, a page for each raffle, instant wins if you run them, winners, how it works, FAQs, contact, terms, privacy and cookies, and pages on player protection and complaints.

Do I need an app as well as a website?

Not to start with. A fast mobile site matters most, because many players buy on their phone. An app can help later, by making it easier for regular players to come back.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Sources: DCMS Voluntary Code of Good Practice for Prize Draw Operators (gov.uk); The Company, Limited Liability Partnership and Business (Names and Trading Disclosures) Regulations 2015, regulations 24 and 25, and the Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002, regulation 6 (legislation.gov.uk); ICO guidance on cookies (ico.org.uk); Google Search Central guidance on page experience. Last checked October 2026.