Printed ticket raffle (one headline prize)
Numbered paper tickets sold in person over 2-6 weeks for one strong prize, drawn in public.
Typically raises
$1,500
$300–8,000 per campaignest.
About $86 per organiser hour
Based on one school or club raffle over 2-6 weeks
Is it right for us?
- Money
- $500–2,000
- Work
- A few evenings
- Helpers
- 16–40 people
- Lead time
- 1–2 months
- Red tape
- Light
Everyone’s done it: everyone knows it, so it's an easy yes
- People
- 1 organiser, 1 treasurer/reconciler, 20-200 sellers (one book each), 1 independent draw witness
- Organiser time
- 10-25 [Estimate]
- Lead time
- 4-8 weeks (prize, printing, 2-6 weeks selling)
- Up-front cost
- Printing $10-$350 for 500-1,000 tickets (how-it-works page price guide). A bought prize is the main risk: it's owed whatever you sell. A donated prize carries almost no risk.
- Risk
- A bought prize is owed whatever you sell. A donated prize carries almost no risk.
How it works
The money, as an example sum
Sell at $5 a ticket, keep $5, so 340 tickets = $1,700, or about $1,500 after about $200 of costs. That’s about the typical result.
Using the figures on this page. Your prices and costs will differ.
Where the money figure comes from
[Estimate] Net of a bought prize. Ceiling: a $5,000 prize allows $25,000 printed; realistic sell-through for a school or club is far lower. an NZ fundraising guide: 'a few hundred' to 'a few thousand' (source has other errors).
Last checked October 2026. Ran this? Tell us what you raised and we’ll use real results to improve the figures.
Step by step
- Confirm you're a society and write the specific purpose (e.g. 'new netball bibs').
- Secure the prize and its retail value in writing before printing.
- Work out the ticket cap: min($25,000, 5 x prize value) / single price; print only what you can sell.
- Create numbered books with all s25 details (the free tool does this) and print.
- Allocate books to sellers and record who has which range.
- Brief sellers: in person only, a numbered paper ticket for every buyer, name and phone on every butt, return date.
- Promote on social media and the newsletter: prize photo plus where to buy in person.
- Collect unsold tickets and money; reconcile each book.
- Hold a public draw with an independent witness from sold tickets only; publish results within a week.
- Deliver the prize, photograph the handover (with consent) and thank the donor publicly.
Getting the word out
Even a well-run plan fails if nobody hears about it. There are two asks, and the first one goes out first.
- Ask for help
- Sellers to take a book of tickets, and businesses to give prizes.
- Ask people to buy
- People to buy tickets.
- When to start
- Ask for helpers first, as soon as the date is set. Start the public ask about 3–4 weeks out, and book newsletter and paper notices before that: small newsletters close early.
Where to put it
- Asking people yourselfMost yeses come from someone asking directly. Give every member a short message they can send to family and workmates.
- PostersPosters at the school gate, the clubrooms and shop windows, with the date, place, price and how to pay.
- School, club and church newslettersYour own newsletter is free and read by the families most likely to say yes. Check when it closes.
- Email lists and group chatsYour members’ email list and the class, team or church group chats. Short, with one date or one link.
The full guide to getting the word out: every channel from flyers to the evening news, with lead times and costs.
What you’ll need
- Place
- Not neededNone needed
- Landowner’s permission
- Not needed
- Council permit
- Not needed
- Food rules
- Not neededNo food sold
- Alcohol
- Not neededNo alcohol sold
- Gambling rules
- NeededClass 2: prizes up to $5,000 and all tickets printed worth up to $25,000. Run by a club or society, with the money going to community or charitable purposes. Prizes at least 20% of ticket value; sold in person only, every ticket numbered (our rule: on paper). Prizes over $5,000 need a Class 3 licence
Class 2 lottery: a society runs it, prizes up to $5,000 retail and turnover up to $25,000, no DIA licence. Sold in person only, no remote sales (Facebook comments, messages, phone, or online orders paid by transfer); our rule is a numbered paper ticket for every entry. Prizes must be at least 20% of tickets printed x price; draw in public within 14 days of close.
Make more from it
Sell tickets at a sausage sizzle
often 100-300 extra tickets a day (estimate)
a foot-traffic table sells to people outside your own circle
Draw it live at a club or school event
more last-minute ticket sales (estimate)
a public draw is required anyway and creates urgency
What you can get donated
Headline prize from a local business or sponsor (meat box, voucher bundle, experience); printing from a parent who works at a print shop.
Tips
- A prize people can picture sells better than a list; use one photo everywhere.
- $5 tickets suit a $500+ headline; $2 suits kids selling to family.
- Bundles ('3 for $10') are fine but never raise the print cap.
Watch out for
- Taking orders by Facebook comment or Messenger and getting paid by transfer, instead of selling in person.
- Printing more tickets once sold out.
- Changing the prize after sales start.
- An individual running it for a personal cause: all profit must go to prizes.
Printed ticket raffle (one headline prize): checklist
0 of 12 done
Before
After
Class 2 lottery: a society runs it, prizes up to $5,000 retail and turnover up to $25,000, no DIA licence. Sold in person only, no remote sales (Facebook comments, messages, phone, or online orders paid by transfer); our rule is a numbered paper ticket for every entry. Prizes must be at least 20% of tickets printed x price; draw in public within 14 days of close.
Also pairs with: supermarket sausage sizzle (selling table)
* General fundraising information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Money figures are examples and estimates, not promises. Check current official requirements before you commit. About this guide