If you like the idea of winning £1 million but want to know exactly how a prize draw works before entering, you may have come across Win A Million.
The website offers a £1 million jackpot in five draws every week, along with smaller cash prizes. Unlike the traditional National Lottery, there is also a way to enter without buying an entry.
So how does Win A Million work, what are the prizes and how do the odds compare with the National Lottery?
What is Win A Million?
Win A Million is a UK prize draw offering a £1 million jackpot in every main draw.
The main draw takes place five times a week, on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 9pm UK time.
The game is based on selecting four numbers and a separate Millionaire number from 1 to 34. You can either choose your own numbers or use the site’s Lucky Pick option to generate them for you.
It is promoted by Zebra Games Ltd and uses the Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? branding under licence from Sony Pictures Television.
How does Win A Million work?
For each entry, you select:
- Four numbers from 1 to 34
- One Millionaire number from 1 to 34
The numbers have to match the winning numbers in the correct positions.
That’s an important difference from some traditional lottery games. It isn’t enough to have the same numbers somewhere on your entry; their positions matter.
For example, if the winning numbers were 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, an entry containing 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1 would not be an exact match. You would only receive a prize for any numbers that happened to be in the correct positions.
How much does Win A Million cost?
A single online entry costs £1.
There are also subscription options:
| Entry option | Cost |
|---|---|
| One-off entry | £1 |
| Weekly subscription | £3 for 5 entries |
| Monthly subscription | £10 for 20 entries |
| Postal entry | Free, apart from postage |
The weekly subscription works out at 60p per entry, while the £10 subscription works out at 50p per entry. The terms state that the monthly subscription billing cycle is every 28 days.
You don’t have to subscribe. A one-off entry can be used for the next available draw.
What prizes can you win?
There are five prize levels in the main Win A Million draw.
| Match | Prize | Published odds |
|---|---|---|
| 4 numbers + Millionaire Ball | £1,000,000 | 1 in 33,390,720 |
| 4 numbers | £20,000 | 1 in 1,113,024 |
| 3 numbers | £500 | 1 in 8,976 |
| 2 numbers | £10 | 1 in 187 |
| 1 number | £1 | 1 in 8.5 |
These are the published odds for a single entry.
The website also advertises that 1 in every 9 entries wins a cash prize. This is broadly consistent with the published 1-in-8.5 odds for winning £1, but it’s worth remembering that the most common prize is only £1.
What are the chances of winning £1 million?
The published odds of winning the £1 million jackpot with one entry are:
1 in 33,390,720
That’s an enormous number, so although the odds are technically better than the National Lottery’s Lotto jackpot odds, winning the jackpot is still extremely unlikely.
The important thing is not to confuse having better odds with having good odds. One in 33 million is still a very long shot.
Win A Million vs the National Lottery
The National Lottery currently gives the odds of winning the Lotto jackpot at 1 in 45,057,474.
Here’s the comparison:
| Win A Million | Lotto | |
|---|---|---|
| Jackpot | £1 million | Variable |
| Jackpot odds | 1 in 33,390,720 | 1 in 45,057,474 |
| Draws each week | 5 | 2 |
| Free postal entry | Yes | No |
Based purely on the published jackpot odds, a single Win A Million entry has a roughly 35% higher chance of hitting its £1 million jackpot than a single Lotto entry.
That doesn’t make either game an easy way to win money. The chances of hitting either jackpot remain extremely small.
There is also an important difference in how the games work. Win A Million uses four numbers plus a Millionaire Ball, with the positions needing to match, whereas Lotto requires all six main numbers to match for the jackpot.
Can you enter Win A Million for free?
Yes.
Win A Million offers a postal entry route, so you don’t have to purchase an online entry.
The current terms say that postal entries must be sent on an unenclosed postcard with the required personal and account details. Each postcard counts as one entry, and valid postal entries are processed and entered into the next qualifying draw.
The company says that free postal entries are entered alongside paid online entries, giving them the same chance of winning.
You still have to pay for the postage, of course, so it isn’t literally cost-free in the sense of requiring no expense at all.
How often are the draws?
There are five £1 million draws every week:
- Wednesday at 9pm
- Thursday at 9pm
- Friday at 9pm
- Saturday at 9pm
- Sunday at 9pm
That’s considerably more frequent than Lotto, which currently has draws on Wednesday and Saturday.
More draws don’t automatically mean you’ll win, but they do mean there are more individual draws taking place.
What happens if you win?
Smaller winnings are credited to your Win A Million account and can be withdrawn once the relevant requirements have been met.
According to the FAQ, prizes of £20,000 or more require identity verification before they can be claimed.
The minimum withdrawal amount listed by Win A Million is £5.
Is Win A Million worth entering?
That really depends on what you’re looking for.
One interesting feature is the postal entry option. You don’t have to pay the £1 online entry fee, although you will still need to pay for a stamp and postage.
The jackpot odds are also better than Lotto’s on a per-entry basis. However, 1 in 33 million is still an exceptionally unlikely outcome.
The smaller prizes are much easier to win, but the most frequent published prize is £1. That means winning a cash prize isn’t the same thing as making a profit.
I’d therefore look at Win A Million as entertainment rather than a way of making money. If you do choose to enter, set yourself a budget and stick to it rather than increasing your spending because you haven’t won.
What about the other competitions on Win A Million?
The website also runs other cash and prize competitions alongside the main £1 million draw.
These are separate from the main Win A Million game and can have different entry prices, ticket numbers, prizes and rules. The terms say the details for each individual competition are published before entries open.
So if you see a competition offering £200, £500 or another prize for a much smaller entry fee, don’t assume it has the same odds as the £1 million draw. You need to look at the individual competition’s details.
To Summarise
Win A Million is a little different from the traditional lottery.
You can enter the main draw for £1, there are five draws a week, and the top prize is £1 million. The published jackpot odds of 1 in 33,390,720 are better than Lotto’s 1 in 45,057,474, although both are extremely difficult jackpots to win.
The option to enter by post without paying the £1 online entry fee is another difference, although you still have to pay for postage.
But whether you enter online or by post, it’s best viewed as a bit of fun rather than a financial strategy. The odds of winning the big prize are tiny, and even the more frequent £1 prizes shouldn’t be mistaken for a way to make money.
Win A Million official website
Pin Me!
