Holding a raffle is a really popular way to raise money for your favourite charity. Buying a ticket (or tickets!) gives people the chance to win a prize while simultaneously providing the warm, fuzzy glow that comes from supporting a good cause. It’s no wonder people love raffles!
And if you’re planning on holding a raffle to benefit your favourite cause, you’re probably thinking about ideas for prizes. If so, read on as we’ve compiled a comprehensive list of great raffle prize ideas for adults.
Think before you spend.
Aim to get as many donated prizes as possible. If you can persuade local businesses or artisans to donate items, you’ll maximise the amount of money you raise for your chosen charity or good cause.
Before you acquire your prizes, it’s a good idea to work out who your potential ticket purchasers are. If you are targeting a specific group, such as parents or university students for example, you should tailor your prizes to appeal to them. Conversely, if your participants are less easily defined, you’ll need to source items which appeal to a wide variety of people.
Ideally, aim to have a couple of larger prizes and at least three or four smaller ones. While the larger prizes act as an incentive for people to purchase tickets, having several smaller ones increases the odds of someone winning, making them more likely to take part in your raffle.
Raffle prize ideas
Services
Physical items are not the only type of raffle prize you can offer. For many people the chance of getting household chores or DIY tasks completed by a professional is a huge incentive to purchase a raffle ticket. This type of prize is likely to prove especially popular with working parents. Ideas include:
- Ironing
- Cleaning
- Gardening / lawn care
- Car valeting
- Car servicing
- Babysitting
- Professional oven cleaning
- Window cleaning
- Pressure washing
- Decorating
- Doggy day care
- Dog grooming
- Handyman services
Pampering / relaxation ideas
- Hairdressing or barber appointment
- Beauty treatments: manicure/pedicure, facial, make-up lesson, eyelash tinting
- Massage
- Spa day
Gift cards
Gift cards that allow customers to shop across a wide variety of stores are a great idea as the winner can choose exactly what they would like. Amazon vouchers would also be a good choice, or you could offer a cash prize.
Subscriptions
A subscription would make a fantastic raffle prize; it’s the gift that keeps on giving – month after month. And with a huge selection of items to choose from, getting a prize that will appeal to your participants should be a doddle. Here are just a few ideas:
- Coffee
- Tea
- Cheese
- Cooking boxes
- Gin
- Cocktails
- Wine
- Champagne
- Socks!
- Houseplants
- Magazines
- Books (checkout Daunt Books and/or Persephone Books)
Both companies enable subscription holders to tailor the subscription according to their personal preferences.
Lessons / classes
Many people would love the opportunity to be able to learn something new, but it can be expensive. Even if you’re only able to provide a couple of lessons, people are likely to find this very attractive. Consider things such as:
- Driving lessons
- Language lessons
- Quilting or sewing classes
- Pottery classes
- Art classes
- Cake decorating classes
- Floristry classes
Entertainment / days out
- Theme-park tickets
- Concert tickets
- Cinema tickets
- Theatre tickets
- Crazy golf
- Ice skating
- Football or rugby match tickets
- National Trust / English Heritage/ CADW membership
- Escape room gift voucher
Gardening Gifts
- Garden tools
- Seeds
- Garden centre gift voucher
- Garden ornaments
- Large planters
- Ready planted hanging baskets
- Patio furniture
- Outdoor clocks
- Solar lights
Sport and Fitness
- Gym membership
- Session with a personal trainer
- Yoga classes
- Zumba classes
Food and alcohol prizes
- Afternoon tea
- Fish and chip supper
- Bottle of champagne
- Spirits
- Dinner for two at a local restaurant
- Selection of cupcakes from a local bakery
- Chocolate hamper (Wow)
Gift baskets
Raffle gift baskets comprise groups of similarly themed items that are placed in a basket or container of some kind and then raffled as a single item. There are any number of themes you could use to make up an exciting raffle basket, and they make activity gift vouchers even more desirable by pairing them with physical items. Here are some of our favourite ideas:
- Spa Basket
Pair a manicure or pedicure gift voucher with a fluffy towelling robe, scented candles, an eye mask, fancy toiletries and nail polish.
- Coffee or Tea Basket
This could include vouchers for a local coffee shop, a French press or teapot, ground coffee, or a selection of speciality teabags, coffee syrups, luxury biscuits and a set of bone china mugs.
- Book lovers’ basket
Fill the basket with a small selection of best-selling paperbacks (or an Amazon gift voucher) add a clip on booklight, bookmark, chocolates, and a Penguin books mug.
- Food hamper
There are endless permutations for this one! However, it’s probably simplest if you avoid fresh items. We suggest filling your basket with a selection of items such as fancy crisps, dips, chocolates, brownies and a bottle of wine. Alternatively, make the basket savoury or sweet rather than a mixture of the two.
- Seasonal baskets
If you’re holding a raffle at Easter or Christmastime, fill a basket with seasonally appropriate items. During the winter months, create a basket filled with items such as a cosy blanket, hot chocolate, marshmallows and a hot water bottle with a luxury cover.
- Car Care Basket
This one could be presented in a bucket rather than a basket! Include items such as screen wash, de-icer, a windscreen scraper, car wax, sponges and a hanging air freshener.
Check out your local laws
Before you go ahead with an event, you need to be aware that raffles are a form of gambling, and as such must comply with UK & Irish gambling laws.
It is your responsibility to obtain any licences you may need, and to comply with the rules regarding ticket sales and prize allocation. UK law does not allow you to run a raffle for commercial profit or private gain. Irish laws have strict maximum on the value of the prizes that can be won.
For small raffles, such as charity events, these laws aren’t overly restrictive. You just need to do some research ahead of time.
That’s a Wrap
We hope you’ve found this list of raffle prize ideas for adults useful and that it’s inspired you to raise funds for your favourite charity.
At PartyWizz, we specialise in providing entertainment in Ireland & in the UK for all occasions. We pride ourselves in working only with the best entertainers in each category.
