101 Raffle Alternatives for your next Fundraising Event

101 Creative Raffle Ideas to Elevate Your Fundraising Event

Organising a successful fundraising event requires a combination of creativity, engagement, and excitement. One fantastic way to achieve this is through a variety of raffle activities that not only encourage donations but also provide attendees with a chance to win unique prizes and have fun. In this blog post, I’ve compiled 101 alternative raffle ideas that can add a spark to your next fundraising event. Thanks to suggestions from social media posts, things I’ve seen at other events and ideas I’ve tested myself, here is a list to get your creative juices going.

1. Flower Pull:

   Participants pay to pull out a single flower from a vase (that you can’t see through so glass doesn’t work). If it has something at the bottom of a stem (e.g. an elastic band, pen line, tin foil), they win a bigger bouquet of flowers. Regardless of whether it has anything at the bottom of the stem, they keep the flower that they pulled out. Think through your ratio of the number of flowers that represent a bigger bouquet. One in 10 to 15 works well. You can even see if a local florist will donate flowers or bouquets to it.

2. Champagne Coin Roll:

   Put a bottle of champagne on the floor or a table with an area big enough to stand at least two metres away from the champagne and space to the side and behind. People pay £1 to play (best coin to roll) and you give them a small circle sticker to put on their coin to put their initials. Then they roll their coin towards the champagne and at the end of the event the coin that is the closest to the champagne wins that bottle of champagne. Using the sticker with their initials on helps identify who the winner is. You can always keep a record of initials and who they belong to.

3. Lowest Unique Bid Auction:

   Collect together in advance about 10 possible raffle prizes. Write all of these out on a sheet with space for people to write a unique bid next to each one. Participants pay a set amount (e.g. £10) to play the game. They can bid on as many items as they want or only the ones they would like to win. Explain that no other money will be collected from them even if they win a prize. The aim of the game is to write the lowest unique bid for each item that they're bidding on. So if they bid 1p and no one else has also bid 1p for that item, they would win it. But if one other person has bid 1p then it is no longer a unique bid. If that happens, you would then look to the next amount and you keep going until you find that lowest amount that only one person has bid. Give the participants time to play the game, collect all of the sheets and announce who all of the winners are at the end of your event.

4. Present Wrap:

   Collect as many prizes as you can and then wrap them all up individually. Participants then pay a set amount to buy one of the presents/boxes even though they don't know what the contents are. You can put things like restaurant vouchers in boxes that are bigger and wrap things up in bizarre shapes to throw people off guessing what the item could be. Make sure that each present does have a prize but they can be worth less than the amount they've paid.

5. Treasure Map Grid:

   Draw or create a treasure map that's at least A3 size. Then split the entire map into a grid making sure there are enough squares for most people to join in the game. People then pay to buy a square where they think the treasure is hidden on the map. Ask them to write their name and contact number in the square they have chosen. Make sure you have the ‘treasure’ (the prize) on display next to the map so people know what they could win. At the end of the event, announce which square won and award the prize.

6. Jenga Block with Prizes Written On:

   Find a Jenga block set that you can write on. On each block write a prize someone could win. Set the Jenga blocks as normal and make sure that the writing on each block is face down so it can't be seen. Participants pay to play the Jenga game and remove one block. If they successfully pull out the block they read the prize written on it and win it. If they knock down the tower they don't win a prize. If you have time you might want to reset your Jenga block to raise more money but make sure that your prizes are repeatable.

7. Alcohol Bottle Pull:

   Display a large collection of alcohol bottles. If any of them have a sticker at the bottom of them those participants win an extra bottle or crate of bottles that have been kept to the side. Make sure the amount that people pay to join in the game reflects that every time they pay they will take a bottle of alcohol home with them.

8. Jam Jar Pull:

   Similar to the Pull game alternatives already listed in this blog, have a collection of jams with a few jars with a sticker on the bottom. If they pull one that has a sticker on the bottom they win a larger prize for example a batch of scones and cream.

9. Chocolate Pull:

   Pull raffle alternatives are great fun but a chocolate one is even more popular. People pay to choose a chocolate bar and if it has a sticker at the bottom they win a larger box of chocolates. Make sure to price the Pull well to reflect that every entry wins a bar of chocolate.

10. Candle Pull:

    Similar to all the other Pull events already described this one uses candles. Choose prizes related to the theme of relaxation such as a bigger candle or a hamper of candles.

11. Stationery Pull:

    This is a Pull with a slight twist and works well at school events. Collect together lots of pieces of stationary and if the item has a sticker or a mark on it they win a bigger item of stationery like a pencil case.

12. Lego Car Build and Race:

    Gather together as much Lego as you can including lots of sets of wheels. People pay to create a Lego car ready for a racing tournament later on at the event. Have a ramp and finish line set up. Then run a tournament for the Lego racing cars to see which one makes it to the end to win. Have Lego prizes for the winner and top runners-up. All Lego used to build the cars comes back to you ready to run the activity at a future fundraising event.

13. Wind-Up Toy Race:

    A wind-up toy race can create lots of excitement and in my experience, screaming. Have a collection of wind-up toys and people pay compete in the next race having nominated which wind-up toy will be theirs for the race. Once you have all of the wind-up toys sponsored by someone, let the race begin. You may want to mix up which wind-up toys you use for races so bystanders don't learn which wind-up toys that always win. Have prizes for the winner of each race.

14. Balloon Pop:

    Write out all of the prizes that you've collected for this game on individual small slips of paper. Then blow up one balloon per slip of paper and post the piece of paper in the balloon just before you tie the knot. People then pay for a balloon and are given a pin to pop it. They win the prize that is written on that piece of paper that was inside the balloon.

15. Drop a Coin in Water to Land on Prize Circles:

    A simple game with little setup but brings out peoples competitive side. Have a bowl or tank of water filled to the top and with a target pattern secured to the bottom of the bowl or tank. People then pay to drop a token into the water in the hope that it will land in the bullseye. For each token that lands in the bullseye, they win a prize. People can also use the coins they already have to enter to game but you may want to put an amount limit so people aren't using 1p coins to win prizes that are worth far more.

16. Christmas Card Pick:

    This is a great one for a Christmas theme event. Write out all of your prizes in individual Christmas cards. People then pay to buy a Christmas card and win the prize that is written inside. Make sure lots are worth less than the amount they pay to enter but have a few attractive prizes that are worth far more.

17. Hoopla:

    This is a classic game where people pay to be given a selection of hoops. Two metres in front of them, set up some spikes or poles pointing upwards and they have to hook their hoops on the poles to win a prize. You could run this where if they get all hoops on the spikes they win a prize or you could have numbered values on each spike and at the end of the event announce who has got the highest score and they are awarded the prize.

18. Slide Plate to Land Within Marked Zones:

    This works well on a floor that you can slide things easily across. Draw some lines on the floor at least two metres away from where each participant will stand. They are then given a plate to push along the floor flat facing down for it to land in a certain zone. Each participant that can get their plate into the zone wins a prize.

19. Lucky Dip:

    Using a lucky dip at your event means that everyone who pays to enter, gets a prize. Either wrap up each prize and place them in a big bucket or have it so people can't see what the prizes are and have to feel around for the prize that they want to win. You can use straw, sand or beanbag balls to help fill out the bucket and hide some of the presents prizes.

20. Throw Coin to Land on Plate Floating in Paddling Pool:

    Set out a padding pool filled with water. In the middle, have a plate that floats at the top. Making sure that people stand a certain distance away and they have to throw their coin or token to land and stay on the plate. If they do they win a prize.

21. Money Tree - Scratch Cards Hanging Off Tree:

    Create a tree out of whatever resources you have available. Place on the tree a selection of scratch cards, folded bits of paper or sealed envelopes. People then pay to choose one of the items off the tree and they win the prize revealed through the item they chose.

22. Scratch Card Darts Board:

    Have a dart board set up with prizes pinned to the board. These can be scratch cards, slips of paper or stickers. Decide in advance whether you want people to be able to see what the prizes are so they know where to aim or whether the prizes are kept hidden. People then pay for a dart or pay for three darts and they win one of the prizes if they're able to get the dart to land directly on it.

23. Hoopla but with Bottles as Prizes:

    This is similar to the hoopla event described earlier in the blog but instead of using poles and sticks for the people to hook their prizes onto, use actual bottles they can win. When someone hooks their hoop on the bottle they win it and take it home. Make sure you have plenty of bottles to keep replacing the ones that have been won.

24. Step Ladder - Throw Bean Bags Onto Steps:

    This game involves using a step ladder and bean bags. Each rung of the stepladder represents a different prize. The ones lowest to the ground are worth less and the ones near the top are the exclusive prizes. People pay for as many bean bags as there are rungs on the stepladder. They then take each beanbag and aim to throw it so it lands on the step ladder but they must start by throwing it onto the lowest rung/step first. If it lands and stays on the lowest rung, they can then start aiming for the next step up. Only those that get 100% accuracy with each of their throws will manage to reach the top exclusive prize. Make sure you have lots of prizes representing the lowest rung but you will need less of each prize as you go further up the step ladder.

25. Splat the Rat:

    This is a Whack-a-mole style game with a rat. Participants pay to have three turns to splat the rat. If you're going to make your own splat the rat, use a drain pipe tube leaning against a stepladder. Create a ‘rat’ out of a sock filled with something heavy. Someone then drops the rat (sock filled with something heavy) and participants have to hit the rat with a racket they've been given before it hits the floor coming down the pipe. if they do they win a prize.

26. Teddy Tombola:

    This is the classic tombola game but themed with teddies. Participants pay to choose some raffle tickets from the tombola. One of the simplest ways to do this is put all of your prizes with corresponding raffle tickets ending in a 0 or 5. People pay for their raffle tickets and if it has one of the corresponding tickets to a teddy, they win that teddy. If you were running this event, it may be worth having small sweets at hand for those that don't win any prize to help with the disappointment faced by young children.

27. Candle Tombola:

    Like the classic tombola game already listed all of the prizes are candles. This might work well at a ladies event or something themed around Mother's Day.

28. Bottle Tombola Including Alcohol, Shampoo, Ketchup:

    Using the classic tombola idea but all of the prizes are bottles. But they can also be bottles of sauce or hygiene products as well as alcohol.

29. Golf Challenge to Rest on Money Note:

    Have a £5 note or slip of paper that represents a prize pinned down to the floor. Participants then pay to hit the golf ball (like putting) and if it lands and stays on that £5 note or the slip of paper they win that prize. You may want to give each participant a number of turns as part of the amount they pay but if they win the prize they don't use the rest of their turns.

30. Ball in Bucket and Not Bounce Out:

    Have a big bucket set up that is at a 45° angle. Participants pay to throw a ball into the bucket and if it stays in the bucket they win a prize. To make this game fun, make sure the ball is nice and bouncy and they don't stand too close to the bucket. You can also increase the value of their prize depending on how many balls they're able to keep in the bucket by the end of all their turns.

31. Ring the Bull - Hook on the Nose of a Bull:

    This game is a bit like the hoopla but instead of spikes or poles in the ground, you use a bull or an image of a bull with some big horns coming out of it. Participants then have to hook their hoop onto the hook coming out of the bull. To add variation, you can increase the value of the prize depending on the number of successful hoops they can hook on the bull.

32. Guess How Many Lego Pieces in Jar:

    Lots of children (and some adults) love playing with Lego. So fill a jar with Lego and people have to guess the amount of pieces that are in the jar. The LEGO can be an assortment of LEGO pieces or can include a full set with instructions that are given with the jar.  Have a sheet of paper written out to record their guesses and at the end of the event you announce which person got the closest guess and they win the jar of Lego.

33. Beer Pong:

    Set out some plastic cups and participants pay to bounce table tennis balls to land and stay in the plastic cups. You may want to run the event with points per cup and the total is added up at the end or each cup represents a different prize.

34. Higher or Lower Card Game:

    Have a deck of cards ready and people are shown one card from the top of the deck. Once they've seen the card, they have to guess whether the next card in the deck will be higher or lower than the current card. If they're correct, they then get to guess the next card and whether it is higher or lower. Five correct guesses in a row means that they win a prize. If you can find a big set of playing cards for the event even better.

35. Dig for Prizes in Sand:

    A bit like a lucky dip, hide all of your prizes in the bottom of the sand. Participants then pay to go sifting through the sand for a prize. They can dig down with their hands or use shovels, cups or plastic sieves to help them find their prize.

36. Cup of Sand with Prize In - Sift Sand:

    Participants pay to buy a cup that is filled with sand. At the bottom of each cup, there is a prize. Once they have bought their cup, they can sift through the sand in a tray to the side of your stand to find their prize. Prizes can be a variety of things including small and cheaper things like sweets up to pieces of paper that contain words about a bigger prize they have won.

37. Paper Aeroplane Throw to Land on Target:

    Participants pay to be given a piece of paper that they can then fold and turn into a paper aeroplane. Have set out in front of them a target on the floor or a bucket that becomes their target for them to aim their paper aeroplane into. If they hit the target or get the paper aeroplane in the bucket, they win a prize.

38. Balance Coin on Floating Lemon:

    This is a challenging game that is harder than it sounds. Have a bowl full of water with a lemon in it that floats at the top. Participants then pay for a token (or use their coin to enter the game). The aim is to place that token or coin on the lemon without it slipping off and falling to the bottom of the bowl. If they can keep their token or coin balanced on the lemon for 10 seconds, they win a prize.

39. Auction:

    Auctions work well for higher value items that people want to win. In advance, tell people all the prizes that they can win through the auction. Take each item one at a time and ask people to bid for how much they want to win that prize. Start with a low amount that is less than the prize is worth and announce a higher increment each time someone bids the amount you have called. You may want to give people bidding cards to wave or simply just to put their hands in the air. Keep going with the auction until no one will bid the next amount and the person who has indicated they want to bid for the highest amount wins that prize. Make sure they pay for the item they have bid before they're able to take it home. This also requires someone to record all of the amounts that have been bid for each item and the name of each person or the number of their card.

40. Silent Auction:

    This is like an auction but nobody knows what other people have bid. Have all the auction items on display and in front of each have a box or jar for people to put their bid amounts in. People don't need to pay to enter but for each item they want to bid on, they take a piece of paper, write their name and the highest amount they're prepared to bid for the item, fold it up and post it into the box or jar in front of the item. At the end of the event go through each box or jar finding the highest amount that has been bid. Those people are then the winners. Make sure they pay the highest amount they made before they're able to collect the price.

41. Spin the Wheel of Prizes:

    Have a wheel set up and mark on the wheel different prizes that can be won. People pay to spin the wheel and whichever part of the wheel the spoke lands on, they win that prize. Each segment on the wheel does not have to be in equal size so you can make the exclusive prizes a smaller segment and the lower priced prizes bigger segments. You can also put prizes such as having an extra spin.

42. VIP Tickets:

    Use any of the games listed in this blog but have prizes related to VIP experiences that people can win for the event itself. If your event includes a sit down meal later on in the event, one of the prizes can be the VIP table at the front or it could be an extra bottle of wine for their table. It could also include free entry to play the other games you have at the event or free tickets for next year's event.

43. Chauffeur Ride to the Event:

    If you are selling tickets to your event and can contact everyone who is coming, contact them in advance with an exclusive prize of a chauffeur driven ride to your event. You may want to run this as a silent auction and people send in their bids to you of the highest amount they're willing to pay. Or it could be for every person who shares, comments and likes a social media status is entered into a prize draw and the winner gets the chauffeur driven wide to the event.

44. 50/50 Raffle:

    This is a raffle where people could possibly win 50% of the total amount of raffle ticket sales. There would just be one winner at the end of the event and if their ticket is pulled out of the raffle, half of the money goes to your fundraising cause and the other 50% goes to the winner. This is a simple raffle because it means that you don't need to find or buy any prizes.

45. Gift Card Auction - Don't Know What It Is:

    If you're able to collect numerous gift cards, auction these off to the highest bidder. However, don't announce what the gift card is for or the amount of the gift card. With gift cards, people tend to only bid just slightly over what the gift card is worth but adding this element of mystery means that people will potentially bid higher.

46. Wine Tree - Sell Whole Tree or Tier at a Time:

    If you can collect lots of bottles of alcohol, arrange them in a tree formation where you have different tiers or levels with bottles on with lots of bottles on the bottom tier and fewer bottles on the top tier. Choose any of the other games listed in this blog to help run the game such as silent auction with people bidding on each tier of the bottle tree. Or they can guess the value of each tier and the closest person wins. The winner then wins the entire tier of all the bottles.

47. Auction Bags - All Containing Secret Prizes:

    Run an auction where the prizes are sealed bags with various prizes inside people have no idea what is in each bag. They may contain low-value items or high-value items including gift cards. People then bid their highest amounts for what they're willing to pay for each bag.

48. Guess the Value - Closest Wins:

    Have a selection of prizes and people guess the value of each prize. The person who guesses the closest value for each prize wins that prize. To make the game more interesting and fun, each prize should be a collection of smaller prizes to make it harder to add up the value of all the different things included. If more than one person correctly guesses the value the prize is split between them.

49. Linkee - Whoever Gets Answer with Fewest Guesses:

    If you've ever played the game Linkee, this game will be familiar to you. The idea of the game is to guess the answer before anyone else with the fewest amount of clues. You start the game by giving one clue. After that, you give another clue and you keep going with your clues until someone correctly guesses the answer. The person or team that correctly guesses the answer first with the fewest number of clues wins.

50. Art Auction Including Local Artists and Children:

    This is a standard auction but the prizes are pieces of artwork. These could be done by local artists or children in the local area. Some of the artwork will vary in quality but the sentimental value of work done by children will help the auction raise more money.

51. Basket Bingo - Choose Prize from Basket:

    Bingo is a popular and well-known game. Each time someone wins align or a full house they win a prize from the lucky dip basket.

52. Reverse Raffles - Last Person Wins What They Want:

    This is a twist on your standard raffle and gets the group laughing and having fun. Participants pay for a raffle ticket which is put into a tombola. They can buy as many raffle tickets as they want to increase their chances of getting the prize they want. At the end of the event, announce a raffle ticket and that person gets to come and choose a raffle prize from the selection of prizes. However, they may not end up keeping it so they need to stand at the front with the person announcing the raffle tickets. When the next raffle ticket is announced, that person can choose whether they pick another prize from the selection or pick a prize that has already been chosen. If they pick a prize that someone else has already chosen, that person has to hand their prize over and they then leave the game. If you have a small group of people you can run the game so every single raffle ticket is called or you announce in advance how many raffle tickets will be pulled out. This means that ideally, you want your raffle ticket to be called last so you can then choose the prize that you want. At the end of all the raffle tickets being called, anyone still holding a prize gets to take that home.

53. Treasure Hunt - All Who Complete Win a Prize:

    Organise a treasure hunt at your event and everyone who pays to enter the treasure hunt wins a prize. This means that prizes need to be of all the same value and have lots of them so everyone who completes the treasure hunt will win a prize. Alternatively, you can run your prizes like a lucky dip or a raffle tombola as a way of choosing which prize the person wins.

54. Mystery Box Raffle:

    Like the auction bag idea, this is where your prizes are hidden and exclusive mystery boxes. You can auction the boxes off or run it as a tombola and so only the winning tickets get to win the mystery box of the same raffle number.

55. Bid to Put Someone in Jail for the Night:

    Auction prizes don't have to necessarily be items that cost you lots of money. You can find ways to auction off things there are more about having fun than the value of the prize. For example, people can bid to choose someone to spend the night in a fake jail.

56. Knock Out Skittles - Last Person to Stay In Wins:

    This is a Skittles game where the last person standing wins. Have a game of Skittles set up and people pay to join the tournament. Put people in order of turns and the first person rolls the ball to knock over at least one skittle. When Skittles are knocked over, they are not replaced until all have been knocked over. The next person then rolls the ball to try and knock down a skittle. If someone is unable to knock down a single skittle on their turn, they are out of the tournament. People can only move on to have another turn if they knock down a skittle on their previous turn. Keep going until there is only one person left in the tournament and they win the prize. You can run this Skittles tournament as many times throughout your event as time allows.

57. Heads or Tails Game:

    Participants pay to guess whether a tossed coin will land on heads or tails. You will need to play this as a group game and have as many people enter the game as possible. Just before tossing the coin in the air, ask people to guess whether they think it will land on heads or tails. If they think it will land on heads, they place their hands on their heads. If they think it will land on tails, they place their hands on their own bottom. Once everyone has voted, reveal how the coin landed. If they guess correctly, they stay in the game. If they guess wrongly, they leave the game. Keep running this until you only have a few participants left and ask them to come to the front so everyone can watch the final rounds. Keep doing it until one person wins. They can either win the coin itself or a much bigger prize.

58. Free Goodies for Everyone Who Shares Your Event on Social Media:

    To help encourage greater publicity for your upcoming event, ask people to share it on their social media. For each person who shares the event post, they win a small prize at the event. Alternatively, everyone who shares the social media post is entered into a free prize draw and they win their prize at the event. It could be a physical prize or it could be something like free entries into the fundraising games.

59. Who Can Make the £5 Make the Most Money:

    This is a fun enterprise idea where participants are given £5 but they are all competing to see who can make the most money out of that £5. For example, they may choose that £5 to buy lots of sweets and then run a raffle with the sweets as surprises. Or they could use the £5 to buy craft supplies to make items to then sell. All of the money made goes back to the nonprofit and there is a prize for the person or group who raised the most money.

60. Tickets in Jar for Set Prizes – Also known as a Chinese Auction:

    This event is a cross between a silent auction and a raffle. For each of your prizes to be won, place a box or jar next to it. People then buy raffle tickets with their names on and place them in the box or jars of the items they would like to win. For example, they could buy 5 raffle tickets and place all of them in one box or jar because they really want to win a certain prize. Or they could spread their raffle tickets between a variety of different prizes. At the end of the event, draw out one of the raffle tickets from the box or jar for each prize and the person whose name is called out wins it. Therefore the more raffle tickets they buy, the more likely their raffle ticket will be pulled out.

61. Golden Ticket in Chocolate Bars:

    Similar to a chocolate pull, this is where you put golden tickets inside a chocolate bar. If someone pays to choose a chocolate bar and opens it to find a gold ticket inside, they win a bigger prize.

62. 100 Raffle - Only 100 Tickets, So It’s Exclusive:

    This is like a normal raffle, however, there are only 100 tickets available. Therefore, you can sell the tickets at a higher value because the tickets are exclusive. Have a variety of prizes ready to be won and when all 100 tickets have been sold, you can then pull out the raffle tickets announcing who the winners are and they get to choose the prize they want to take home.

63. Gifts to take home for someone.

    This idea works particularly well at school fundraising events and works well when themed around Christmas and Mother's or Father's Day. The participants pay to choose a gift for someone they love. They do this in a way without revealing to the person who may be with them which gift they've chosen. Then that gift is wrapped for them and they get to take it home to give to the person they love. This means that family members and friends get presents that have been chosen by the child and they have no idea what has been chosen. It works well to have a limited range of items but buy them in bulk or wholesale. You can even wrap them up in advance so when the money is given and the present is chosen, it's ready to pass on to them straight away. People can buy as many gifts as they want for as many different people.

64. Golf Challenge - Hole in One:

    If your event is at a golf course, have a prize or prizes for those who are able to get a hole-in-one during the course of their game. Or you can use this as a putting challenge and everyone who pays to enter has the opportunity of putting the ball into the hole and they win a prize if they're successful.

65. Sponsorship Packages for the Event:

    To boost the amount you're able to raise a your event, consider whether you can offer sponsorship packages to local businesses. Packages can include publicity on the tickets and posters for the event or publicity in a leaflet or booklet that is given out at the event itself. Packages could include VIP seating and free tickets to your event. It could also include being able to give a speech at the event or announcing who the winners are. Think through creatively all that you could offer that doesn't necessarily cost you money or costs you very little but would help raise the profile of a local business that would want to be part of your event.

66. Buy a Bundle of Tickets at the Start of the Event for All Events:

    People may not bring much change with them to your event. To help, you can give people the opportunity of buying a bundle of entry tickets to various different games to be bought at any point during the event. For example, if lots of your events cost 50p, people can buy a 11 tickets for £5 in one bundle at the entrance to the event. They then exchange a ticket for an entry to that game. Giving a free incentive of a ticket at the beginning means that people may be more likely to spend more on tickets than they would have done. It also means that those people who don't come with cash or run out of cash can use their card to pay for a bundle of tickets and it doesn't cost your nonprofit too much in card fees.

67. Water Balloon Darts - Prize Written Inside:

    This is a cross between the balloon pop and art board game. Use different coloured paper and cut them up small enough to go inside a balloon. Fill the balloon with water and pop one of your coloured slips of paper inside. Before you set it up, attach these to your wall and people pay to throw a dart and pop one of the balloons. Whatever colour piece of paper drops out to the balloon corresponds to the prize they win. Have lots of extra water balloons ready to the side to replace the ones that get popped during the game.

68. Token Given Each Time Someone Enters a Competition:

    This is a way of rewarding people who spend lots of money to enter your fundraising games. Each time someone pays to play one of the games, they're given a token to hold onto until the end of the event. At the end of the event, people count up the tokens they have won and the person with the highest amount of tokens wins a prize.

69. Coin Tower - Use Coins from Their Own Wallets - Tallest Wins:

    This is a clever way of using up all of the coins that people have spare in their purses and wallets. Using their spare change, they try and create the tallest tower possible. The person who creates the tallest tower at the end of the event wins the prize. People may choose to work together on contributing their coins to make their tower taller but the same prize is still shared between them equally.

70. Money Wall - Envelopes of Different Amounts:

    Looking to raise a certain amount through donations at your event? Work out the total amount you want to raise and then split it into smaller amounts of various sizes. Have these displayed on a wall (or even in the shape of something such as a Christmas tree for a Christmas event) and people choose the amount that they will donate at the event. When they choose an amount, that card is either turned over or replaced by it another blank card to show that that amount can no longer be pledged. So if you did this as a Christmas tree, you would have lots of your smaller donations at the bottom of the Christmas tree shape with your bigger donations towards the top. When people pledge that amount to give, turn the card over to reveal green on the other side. When all of the donations have been pledged, you'll be left with a green Christmas tree.

71. Battle of the Sexes - Two Boxes for Donations and IOUs:

    This is a competition to encourage donations between genders with two donation boxes or pledges. Have two boxes or jars representing each gender and at the end of the night count up which box or jar contains the most money or pledges. You will then be able to announce which gender was the most generous.

72. Cutest Pet Competition - Pay to Enter:

    Lots of people love their pets so you can run a cutest pet competition. People pay to enter a picture of their pet and the cutest pet that is chosen by a selection of judges, wins a prize such as a voucher for the local pet store.

73. Find Donor to Match Donations from the Event:

    As a way of making your donations go further, see if you can find a major donor who would be willing to match the amount that has been raised at your fundraising event. They can choose to match up to a certain amount that they are willing to pay or leave it open-ended. Share at your event that you have a match donor and so explaining to everyone that all of their donations are doubled. This encourages people to give more than they would have done because they know that it will be doubled by someone else.

74. VIP Parking Sold in Advance:

    If your event is going to draw lots of attention and people will be driving to the event, you can auction off VIP parking spaces, run similarly to a silent auction. Alternatively, you can sell the parking spaces and the first five people who book them win them.

75. Buy a Key - Some Open Chests, Some Don't - Keys Hidden:

    Have lots of boxes and bags that are locked but contain prizes. People then pay to buy a key to see whether it unlocks any of the locks to win that prize. Have lots of keys that don't open any boxes as well.

76. Ask for Donations of Prizes Associated with Your Cause:

    Spending as little as possible on all the resources for your fundraising event will help you raise a greater profit. Therefore ask for donations for your event. You can ask for general donations of items to be prizes or ask for specific donations related to your cause.

77. Money Bouquets - Buy a Coin and Turn Over:

    This is similar to a Pull game. People pay to buy a coin. If when they turn the coin over it has a sticker on the other side, they win a money bouquet that's worth significantly more. This game means that you don't have to buy prizes because the prizes are money.

78. Gnome a Garden - Highest Bid Wins Gnoming Someone's Garden:

    This is an idea that creates a lot of fun and causes some cheeky havoc. Run as an auction or a silent auction, people bid to have someone’s garden ‘gnomed’. This involves secretly placing gnomes in someone's garden as a surprise for them the next day. Think through all the risks involved with this kind of game and whether it would work at your event.

79. Bless Someone - Highest Bid Nominates Someone for a Blessing:

    Again run like an auction or a silent auction, people bid to win the chance to nominate someone to receive blessings. If they are the highest bidder, their nominated person receives a different blessing each day for a week.

80. Prickly Hedgehog - Sticks Stuck Into a Hedgehog:

    Like the other Pull events mentioned in this blog, this one uses cocktail sticks placed into what looks like a hedgehog. At the start of the game, you will have a hedgehog full of sticks. People pay to pull out a stick and if it has a coloured tip, they win a bigger prize.

81. Lollipop Pull:

    Have on selection lots of lollipops where you can't see the bottom of the stick. People pay to pull out a lollipop and if the bottom of the stick is coloured, they then win a bigger prize such as a bigger lollipop. Everyone who enters wins the lollipop that they pay for.

82. Donated Mugs Filled with Prizes:

    Ask for donations of as many mugs as possible. Then fill those mugs with different prizes. People can then pay for a mug that they choose or it can be run like a raffle tombola.

83. Pick a Picnic - If Family Fun Day:

    If your event is a family fun day, run an exclusive raffle tombola, silent auction or buy a mystery box to win a picnic for the family to enjoy while they're at the event.

84. Jar Toss:

    Similar to the hoopla or balls into a bucket, people are aiming to throw tokens or coins into a jar from a distance. If the token or coin lands in the jar, they win a prize.

85. Challenge to Fill Smartie Tubes with 20ps:

    Did you know that a 20p pieces fits perfectly into a smarty tube? A fun way to raise money with children is to give each child a tube of smarties. However, they then need to collect as many 20p’s as possible to fill up their tube of smarties. You could have prizes for any child who manages to fill it to the top or a prize for the children who raised the most. One smarty tube should collect about £12 worth of 20p’s up to £27 of £1 coins.

86. Clothes Swap:

    Organise a clothes swap event where participants exchange clothing items. Collect some in advance of the event so the first people who turn up have a choice of things to look through. You can ask people to pay per item to swap or use the clothes swap as an incentive to get people to your event and run lots of other fundraising games around it.

87. Wishing Tree:

    Collect lots of prizes and group some together. Then write out those prizes in terms of wishes. For example, a meal voucher could be written as “I wish to be treated to a delicious meal”. People can donate to choose a wish or it can be run as any of the other blog ideas.

88. Car Wash at the Event:

    If people are likely to be driving to your event, offer a car washing service while they’re at the event itself. People pay to have their car washed and park it in a designated spot. By the end of the event, their car is washed and ready for them to return home.

89. Plant Sale:

    A plant sale can work really well in the spring or summer months. Ask people from the start of the calendar year to be ready to grow and donate plants to your cause ready to sell at your fundraising event. You may even want to supply plant pots and seeds to encourage people to get involved. If you have young children they too can grow plants to sell and help your fundraising cause.

90. Make-Up Pull:

    Hopefully, you've picked up by now how a Pull works at a fundraising event. But the possibilities and themes are endless. If you're running a pamper event, you might want to consider a makeup or toiletry Pull fits in keeping with your event. If they pull out a piece of makeup that has a sticker on the bottom, they win a bigger pamper prize.

91. Name the Teddy:

    Find yourself a big cuddly teddy that lots of people might like to win. Then produce a grid sheet for people to write their own names and contact details plus a suggested Teddy name. Find a fair way to choose the name of the teddy at the end of the event and announce who the winner is. They win the teddy itself.

92. Caption Competition:

    Host a caption competition with funny or creative captions. If you're running a school fundraising event, you could produce a funny picture involving some of the staff. If it's for nonprofit, think about how you can produce a funny picture involving those who work for your nonprofit and potentially related to the cause that you raise money for. People pay to write a funny caption and at the end of the event the caption that has made the judging panel laughed at the most, wins. Share the picture and the winning caption and award the winner with a prize.

93. Recipe Book from People's Recipes:

    Compile a recipe book featuring contributions from attendees. If you know someone who makes a particularly good dish that lots of people like, make sure to ask them to include their recipe. If your fundraising involves families, you might want to include lots of recipes for treats and recipes written up by children themselves.

94. Swear Box or Given List of Words:

    If you are in an environment where lots of people swear, consider the use of a swear box. Every time someone swears they have to put a donation in the box. Alternatively, you could come up with a list of words that can't be mentioned during the event and if anyone overhears someone saying one of the words, they have to go and put a donation in the box.

95. Food Roulette Like Bertie's Flavoured Beans:

    Like the Spin the Wheel game, this involves having lots of different things to eat. People could spin the wheel and win cake but they could also win Brussels sprouts. Have a collection of things that people would really like to eat but a few in there that are less popular to get the giggles going. People pay for a chance to spin the wheel.

96. Bring Old Clothes to Donate to Charity:

    When people come to your event, you want them to bring money to join in the fundraising games but you could also ask them to bring other things as well. For example, you could ask people to bring their old clothes to donate to charity. Once all the clothes have been collected you can collect them up into black sacks and sell them to organisations that pay by the weight for clothes. Or if you have a charity shop as part of your nonprofit, the clothes go directly to the shop.

97. Ticket Upgrades:

    In advance or at the event itself, you can sell ticket upgrades for the event. For example with their ticket upgrade, every time they pay to enter a fundraising game they get an extra turn or the chance to retake one of their turns. Or they get to stand closer to the target they're aiming for. For each fundraising game there could be a different reward to make it easier to win.

98. Blue Line Auction:

    People pay for entry to join the blue line auction for each auction item they would like to win. Announce the auction item that they are playing for and all of those of paid to enter come and stand behind a blue line. You then announce a certain number of seconds in which they have to wait before crossing the line. Without using watches or other timing devices, they must cross the blue line when they think the time is up. The person who crosses the line closest to the actual time (being recorded by a stopwatch), wins the auction item.

99. Treasure Cupcakes:

    Selling food at your fundraising event is really popular. Cakes always go down well. But in some of the cakes share that you have hidden some treasure. If they find the treasure in the cake, then they win a bigger prize. Make sure that people break open their cakes before biting into them so they don't accidentally swallow the treasure.

100. Buy a Brick for a Lego Model Representing Your Work:

    Create a 3D model of something representing your work or a popular or fun creation. People then pay to buy a brick and place it on the model following the plan you have. Make sure that the finished model is displayed for a long time for people to be able to see what they have been part of making and for them to enjoy telling people that they have been part of building it.

101. Scavenger Hunt of Prizes Around the Venue:

    Organise a scavenger hunt for prizes hidden throughout the event venue. You might want to announce this at the very start of the event or during your event when everyone has arrived. People don't necessarily pay to enter the game but it's a fun way to get people involved. If you are selling tickets to your event, you can announce it as part of what their ticket price includes.

Conclusion:

These 101 alternative raffle ideas are sure to add an element of excitement and engagement to your next fundraising event. Whether it's classic games with a twist, creative auctions, or interactive challenges, these ideas can help you raise funds while providing attendees with a memorable experience. Customise these ideas to fit your event's theme and audience, and watch as the enthusiasm and generosity flow in support of your cause. Good luck with your fundraising event!