How to run a fair online giveaway

The 8 steps at a glance

A fair giveaway has 8 steps, and each one leaves something entrants can check for themselves.

What to put in the giveaway rules

Good giveaway rules answer 8 questions before anyone enters. Post them where every entrant sees them, such as a pinned post or a linked page.

1. Who can enter: age, location and any exclusions, such as staff and their families.
2. How to enter, and how many entries each person can have.
3. When entries open and close, with the time zone.
4. What entry costs. Free entry, with no purchase needed, is the simplest choice.
5. What the prize is and how it is delivered.
6. How and when the winner is drawn, and where people can watch.
7. How the winner is contacted and how long they have to reply.
8. What happens if the winner doesn't reply or isn't eligible, such as a redraw.

Name the draw method in the rules. Picks on Wheel Spinning are drawn with the browser's crypto.getRandomValues before the wheel moves, and the page on how the wheel picks explains the method for anyone who asks.

How to collect and clean entries

To collect entries cleanly, use one entry channel and one closing time, then copy the entries into a plain list.

Wheel Spinning does not connect to Instagram, YouTube, TikTok or any other platform, so it can't read comments or followers. Copy or export the entrant names yourself, then paste them into the wheel, one per line. A CSV or Excel (.xlsx) export works too: press Import file, and the first column becomes the entries.

Clean the list by the rules you published:

• Duplicates: if the rules allow 1 entry per person, press Remove duplicates in the Entries tab. Undo brings the lines back if you need them.
• Ineligible entries: remove anyone the rules exclude, and note who and why.
• Late entries: drop anything that arrived after the closing time.
• Private details: show usernames or entry numbers on screen, never email addresses or phone numbers.

For numbered entries, such as raffle tickets, the random number wheel draws from a range and skips any numbers you exclude.

How to set and disclose the odds

To set and disclose the odds, give each entrant their entries as a weight, then publish the percentages the wheel shows. Each chance equals that person's entries divided by the total entries. With 1 entry each, 50 entrants have a 2% chance each.

To give extra entries, open "Weights, colors & images" in the Entries tab and set a weight for each person, such as 3 for someone with 3 entries. Weights run from 0.01 to 1,000. An imported CSV can carry weights too, in a column headed weight, chance, odds or tickets.

Publish the odds with the entry list, before the draw. A screenshot of the weights table shows every name next to its percentage. Typing a name twice is another way to give 2 entries, as long as "Count duplicates separately" is on in Customize.

A prize wheel works the other way round: each slice is a prize, and the odds decide which prize someone wins. The prize wheel for giveaways shows those odds in a table, imports an entrant list and keeps a winner log you can export as CSV.

How to run the draw on camera

To run the draw on camera, show the list and odds first, then spin once per prize in one uncut take.

1. Open the wheel with the final list. Scroll through the Entries box on camera so viewers can see the names.
2. Show the weights table if anyone has extra entries.
3. Set the spin time in Customize. A spin of 5 to 10 seconds keeps the suspense without dragging.
4. Turn on "Remove the winner automatically" when you draw more than one prize. Choose "Every copy" when a name can appear on more than one line, so nobody wins twice.
5. Press Full screen and spin. Let the wheel stop by itself, then read the name from the popup.
6. Draw the prizes in the order the rules give, such as the grand prize first.

Never spin again because of who won. The only reasons to redraw are the ones your rules list, such as an ineligible winner or no reply by the deadline. Blind mode hides the names while the wheel turns, which adds suspense without changing any odds.

Record the screen during the draw

Record the whole draw in one unedited take, from the entry list to the winner popup. The recording is your proof if anyone questions the result.

• Use any screen recorder, such as OBS Studio or the recorder built into your computer.
• Keep a clock visible, or open the Results tab after the spin to show the pick with its time.
• Keep the original file until the prize is delivered and every question is settled.
• Post the recording, or the live stream replay, with the winner announcement.

Streaming the draw live works too. The guide to using a wheel on stream covers OBS setup and viewer giveaways.

Log winners with timestamps

The Results tab records every pick with its time, and Export CSV saves the full history with dates. Keep that file with the rest of your giveaway records.

The prize wheel keeps its own winner log with timestamps and exports it as CSV. On every wheel, the history stays in this browser only and holds the latest 500 results, so export the CSV before you clear browser data.

How to contact winners

To contact winners, use only the channel your rules named, and give a clear deadline to reply.

• Announce the winner publicly by username, with the recording.
• Message the winner from your official account only, and say in the rules that you never contact winners from any other account.
• Ask only for what you need to send the prize, such as a shipping address, in a private message.
• Never ask a winner for a password or a payment to claim a prize.
• Redraw on camera with the same method if the deadline passes, and log the redraw.

Giveaway rules vary by place and platform

Laws for contests, sweepstakes and giveaways differ by country and by US state, and each platform adds its own promotion rules. In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission's advertising FAQ for small businesses says sweepstakes-type promotions that require a purchase are illegal. Instagram's Promotion Guidelines make the organizer responsible for running a promotion lawfully, with official rules and a statement that Instagram does not sponsor it. YouTube's contest policies make the creator solely responsible for a contest, require official rules and require free entry. Read the current terms of every platform you use before you launch. This guide is not legal advice; for a valuable prize or a business promotion, ask a lawyer who knows the places where your entrants live.

Questions about fair giveaways