Key Info about the Postcode Lottery
At its core, the People’s Postcode Lottery is a subscription-based lottery that British people all across the UK love to play whilst also raising money for honourable causes. Instead of going to the shops and picking your lucky numbers, tickets are instead based upon your postcode. All players need to do is sign up with their postcode and pay a minimum of £10 a month to partake.
After you’ve signed up, your postcode is automatically entered into the lottery pool, with new prizes up for grabs every single day of the month. Whenever a winning postcode is announced, then every player within that particular postcode wins!
In 2020 alone, the ticket sales for the People’s Lottery amounted to a staggering £487 million. Taking this figure into consideration with the fact that 33% of ticket prices go to a different charity every day, players can rest assured that they’re contributing to the greater good whilst also experiencing the thrill of playing alongside their community.
Postcode Lottery Prize Tiers
Currently, the Postcode Lottery has five prize tiers which we shall elaborate upon in the upcoming sections alongside the odds of winning from each tier. The five prize tiers are as follows:
- £10 Draw
- £20 Draw
- £1,000 Draw
- £30,000 Draw
- £3,000,000 Draw
The £1,000 Daily Prizes is announced daily from Monday to Sunday, whereas the £30,000 Street Prize draw is picked every Saturday and Sunday. Additionally, the £10 draw takes place on Saturday and the £20 draw takes place on Sunday. If that wasn’t enough, every month players in a certain postcode stand to share an incredible £3,000,000 Postcode Millions Prizes should they win. This prize is then split fairly between all of the winning players.
How Many People are Playing?
Considering that there are roughly 1.8 million postcodes in the UK, and over 68% of postcodes in Great Britain are playing, this means that roughly 1.22 million postcodes are included weekly within the postcode lottery. In 2020 alone, 82% of players won a prize in some shape or form with the People’s Postcode Lottery.
Postcode Lottery Odds
Taking these figures into consideration, we’d like to illustrate your odds of winning and give a breakdown of how the Postcode Lottery odds could work in your favour within each prize tier. We remind you that if you have used one of the best casino bonuses in the UK to play lottery, the odds might change, so read the promo’s T&C in advance. If you’re short on time, however, here’s a quick list of the approximate odds of winning in each draw.
- £10 Draw – 1 in 305
- £20 Draw – 1 in 305
- £1,000 Draw – 1 in 2,033
- £30,000 Draw – 1 in 152,500
- £3,000,000 Draw – 1 in 1,22 Million
£10 and £20 Draws
Every Saturday, 1,000 postcodes are selected with each player in that postcode winning £10. On Sunday, another 1,000 postcodes are selected with players in these postcodes winning £20. As there are 4 Saturdays and Sundays every month, this means that players have roughly a 4,000 in 1,220,000 chance of winning. Or in simpler terms, players have a 1 in 350 chance of winning £10 and £20 draws each week.
£1,000 Draws
With this particular draw, 20 postcodes are selected daily to win a £1,000 prize. Bear in mind that this £1,000 draw is for each ticket and doesn’t need to be divided like the £3 million prize. Considering that there are approximately 1.22 Million postcodes in each draw and that there are 20 winners picked 30 days in the month, the odds of winning this prize are roughly 600 in 1.22 million or 1 in 2,033.
£30,000 Draws
Like the previous prize, if Lady Luck knocks on your door and you win the £30,000 draw, you don’t have to share it with your neighbours! On the flip side, however, the odds are trickier. The £30,000 draw takes place every Saturday and Sunday, meaning there are eight chances to win it every month. Therefore your odds of winning are 8 in 1.22 Million, or approximately 1 in 152,500.
£3 Million Street Prize Draws
With this prize tier, you must remember that you will have to split the jackpot with your neighbours also playing in the Postcode Lottery. In other words, you can only win a share of the £3,000,000 monthly prize. The maximum amount that is won by any single ticket is 10% of the total draw proceeds up to £400,000.
Doing some simple calculations, the approximate probability of winning the £3 million street prize is 1 in 1.22 million. According to the winners’ section on the Postcode Lottery site, the average jackpot win for this jackpot claims to be somewhere in the range between £100,000 and £200,000.
Claiming Your Winnings
As we’ve mentioned several times, your ticket is based upon your postcode and there is a £10 monthly subscription involved. There are no contracts involved and you can easily set up a Direct Debit via debit cards or PayPal. If you win, it’s incredibly simple to claim your prize, with the money taking up to 28 days to be paid into your account. In a contrast, the online casinos UK lottery games payout much faster, in a matter of days.
We recommend visiting the Postcode Lottery website regularly for all of the latest results. If your bank account hasn’t yet been registered, then you need to ring the People’s Postcode Lottery on 0808 1098765 to arrange a payment method for your winnings.
According to the latest figures, over 68% of all postcodes in the UK are playing in the Postcode Lottery, so chances are your next-door neighbours could be already in on the action. Don’t get left behind!
Winners are typically notified by email, SMS, letter, or phone call depending on the scale of the prize won. If you win a Street Prize or Postcode Millions draw, then the Postcode Lottery will reach out to you. We recommend that you check the caller is definitely from the People’s Postcode Lottery by asking them to do the following.
- Confirm your ticket number
- Confirm your player reference number
- Confirm your first draw date
If they are truly legit, then they’ll be more than happy to set your mind at ease so that you can begin enjoying your newfound winnings.
Charitable Causes
While it isn’t a character itself, the People’s Postcode Lottery certainly has an altruistic character as it supports a number of good causes in their daily and weekly draws. Since its formation in England in 2005 and expansion to Scotland in 2007 and Wales in 2010, the Postcode Lottery has donated over £700 million to humanitarian causes.
Today, a minimum of 32% of all ticket prices is donated to support leading charities, with the charity in focus constantly changing throughout the week. This generous approach is further highlighted when one compares this contribution percentage to those of the UK National Lottery (28%) and the Health Lottery (20.3%).
If that wasn’t enough, the Postcode Lottery’s prizes are valid for 180 days, and if prizes aren’t claimed they are simply donated to great causes in the Postcode Trust. If you’d like to learn more about how money has been donated to great causes over the years, you can find a full breakdown here.
Final Impressions
As we draw this detailed review of the People’s Postcode Lottery to a close, we’d like to leave you with our lasting impressions of the organisation. Firstly, the Postcode Lottery is regulated and licensed by the UK Gambling Commission and BeGambleAware.org, so you can be positive that it isn’t a scam. Anyone over 16, who is a citizen of England, Scotland and Wales can take part and easily find support for harmful gambling behaviours.
While its lack of live draws and divergence from the excitement of traditional lotteries may be off-putting to some, the free Postcode Lottery also offers favourable odds of winning small prizes. Not only that, but it also offers a greater community companionship than other UK lotteries whilst also doing fantastic work for many worthwhile charities.
If you feel like exploring new opportunities, we want to inform you that many online casinos also offer lottery games. Their jackpots are impressive, while the experience is not any less exciting than purchasing a lottery ticket. In addition, nowadays, you can take advantage of the best casino bonus codes in the UK, which will contribute to your overall online gaming adventure. Alternatively, you can head to the best live casino UK and enjoy its thrilling and life-like games.
Frequently Asked Questions
Just in case you might still have questions or queries about the People’s Postcode Lottery, we’ve decided to compile many of our readers most commonly asked questions below and answer them once and for all. If you’d like to discover other fascinating features of the UK’s gambling culture, make sure to check out the rest of our in-depth guides for further insights.
How can I check if my postcode has won the postcode lottery?
Typically, the Gambling Commission-approved software will pick a random winning postcode, with the results being announced daily in the Prize Draw Calendar. If you've gotten lucky and won something, then you will be notified by email, SMS, phone call, or by letter depending on the size of your prize. Any unclaimed winnings will be automatically donated to a charitable cause. Read more about how to play the postcode lottery.
What are the odds of winning the postcode lottery?
Considering that there are roughly 1.8 million postcodes in the UK, and over 68% of postcodes in Great Britain are playing, this means that roughly 1.22 million postcodes are included within the postcode lottery, which would suggest highly favourable odds of winning in comparison to other lotteries. In 2020 alone, 82% of players won a prize in some shape or form with the People’s Postcode Lottery
Which postcode has won the most on the postcode lottery?
At the time of writing, the colossal postcode of Birmingham (B) holds the distinction for having the most winners ever since the postcode lottery began. Since the postcode lottery began, there have been over 778 wins (and counting) from the Birmingham area, with Newcastle (594) Manchester (567) coming in hot in second and third place. If you’d like to discover more about the Uk's leading lotteries be sure to check out our site for more info.
