How to run a fair Twitch giveaway
Updated October 25, 2026
A good giveaway brings viewers back, rewards your regulars and gets chat talking. A messy one causes arguments. This guide walks through planning, running and finishing a giveaway that everyone can see was fair.
1. Pick the prize and the reason
Game keys, gift cards, merch and in-game items are popular. Tie the giveaway to a moment, such as a follower milestone, a birthday stream or the end of a subathon, so it feels like a thank-you rather than a gimmick. Make sure you can actually deliver the prize to anyone who might win, wherever they live.
2. Write short, clear rules
Put them in a chat command or a panel so mods can point to them. Cover:
- Who can enter: everyone, followers, or subscribers only
- How to enter: type !join once in chat
- When entry closes and when the draw happens
- How the winner must respond, for example in chat within 5 minutes, or a redraw happens
- Where it's valid: any regions the prize can't be sent to, and any age limit
In many places a prize draw that people must pay to enter counts as a lottery, which is heavily regulated. Keeping entry free for everyone, even if subs get a separate bonus draw, avoids most problems. Twitch's own rules and the laws where you and your viewers live apply; this guide isn't legal advice.
3. Set up chat entry
- Open the TumbleDraw wheel spinner, go to the Twitch chat tab and enter your channel name.
- Keep !join as the keyword, or pick your own like !raffle.
- Tick Subscribers only for a sub giveaway.
- Press Connect to chat. Each viewer is added once, however many times they type the keyword.
- Add the OBS overlay so viewers can watch their names appear.
The overlay reads chat and keeps its own list, separate from the website tab. When you use it, run the draw from the overlay with !spin. If you'd rather click Spin yourself, capture the website's browser window in OBS instead.
4. Draw on stream
Announce that entry is closed. On the website, press Disconnect in the Twitch chat tab so late joins aren't added. With the overlay, anyone who types !join after the draw starts is held back and only added once it's over, so they can't sneak into that draw. Then spin the wheel or run the lotto ball draw live. Viewers seeing their own name in the machine and watching the draw happen is the best proof you can give that it wasn't rigged.
TumbleDraw picks the winner with your browser's cryptographic random generator, giving every entry the same chance, before the animation starts. The animation just shows the result.
5. Confirm and redraw if needed
Ask the winner to type in chat. If they don't answer in the time your rules say, press Remove this entry and draw again. Doing this on stream keeps it transparent. The Results tab keeps a timed list of every winner, which is handy if someone asks later.
6. Deliver the prize safely
- Send game keys or codes privately, in a Twitch whisper or Discord message, never in public chat.
- Only ask for what you need. For physical prizes that means a shipping address, which you should delete afterwards.
- Warn your community that you'll never ask for passwords or payment to "claim" a prize. Scammers often pretend to be streamers after giveaways.
7. Announce it
Thank everyone who entered and congratulate the winner on stream or on social media (with their permission). A screenshot of the winner card makes a nice post and tells viewers when your next giveaway is.
Quick checklist
- Prize ready and deliverable
- Rules posted in a command or panel
- Chat entry connected and the overlay on screen
- Entry closed before the draw
- Winner confirmed in chat, redraw if they don't respond
- Prize sent privately