Settings

Plugin Settings#

Complete reference for all Raffle for WooCommerce settings.

Accessing settings#

Navigate to: WooCommerce → Settings → Raffle

Settings are organized into six sections: General, Tickets, Display, Compliance, Print Ticket, and Emails. When the Pro addon is active, additional tabs appear for enabled features: Lucky Wheel, Winner Reveal, Entry List, Ticket Picker, Advanced Instant Win, and Reward Points. See Pro Addon documentation for details on each.

General settings#

Enable gift purchase#

Description: Allow customers to buy raffle tickets as gifts for others.

When enabled globally, all new raffle products will have gift purchasing available. Individual products can override this setting.

Generate tickets on#

Options:

Payment Complete: Generate when payment is received
Order Processing: Generate when order moves to “Processing” status
Order Completed: Generate when order is marked “Completed”

Default: Order Completed

Recommendation: Use “Payment Complete” or “Order Processing” for digital-only raffles. Use “Order Completed” if you need manual review.

Early draw when sold out#

Description: Automatically draw winners when all tickets are sold, instead of waiting for the scheduled end date.

Default: No

When enabled globally, all raffles with auto-draw will trigger winner selection as soon as the last ticket is purchased. Per-product override available in the Raffle Data tab under winner settings.

Requires “Automatic draw” to be enabled on the product. If both a minimum tickets threshold and early draw are configured, the threshold must be met before the early draw can proceed.

Default selection method#

Options:

Standard Random: WordPress random function
Cryptographically Secure: PHP’s random_int()
Random.org: True random from atmospheric noise (requires API key)

Recommendation: Cryptographically Secure for most use cases. Random.org for high-profile or public draws.

Random.org API key#

Description: API key for provably fair random selection

How to get:

Visit api.random.org
Create free account
Generate API key
Paste in this field

Free tier: 1,000 requests/day (sufficient for most users)

Tickets settings#

Ticket number format#

Options:

Sequential: Numbers like 0001, 0002, 0003
Random: Alphanumeric codes like A7X9B2
Alphabet (Pro): Letter+number like A01, A02 … B01, B02 (99 per group, max 2,574)

Recommendation: Sequential for traditional feel, Random for preventing guessing, Alphabet for UK competition-style formatting.

Ticket number prefix#

Description: Text prepended to all ticket numbers

Examples:

Empty: 0001
“RAFFLE-”: RAFFLE-0001
“2024-”: 2024-0001

Tip: Keep it short (3-6 characters) for readability.

Starting ticket number#

Description: First ticket number for sequential format

Default: 1

Use case: Starting from 1001 for “bigger” looking numbers.

Ticket number padding#

Description: Minimum number of digits for sequential ticket numbers.

Default: 4 (e.g., 0001)

Display settings#

Show countdown#

Description: Display countdown timer on raffle product pages.

Default: Yes

Show countdown on shop pages#

Description: Display a compact countdown badge on shop and archive pages.

Default: No

When enabled, a small countdown badge appears on raffle product cards in shop/category pages.

Show progress bar#

Description: Display ticket sales progress bar on product pages.

Default: Yes

Only visible when a maximum ticket limit is set.

Show participants count#

Description: Display the number of participants on the product page.

Default: Yes

Show tickets sold#

Description: Display the number of tickets sold on the product page.

Default: Yes

Show prize value#

Description: Display the prize value on the product page.

Default: Yes

Instant Win Winners Display#

Options:

Always show: Winners appear immediately (default)
Only after raffle ends: Winners are hidden while the raffle is still active
Never show: Instant winners are never displayed on the product page or winners shortcode

Default: Always show

Controls when instant win winners are visible on the frontend. “Only after raffle ends” is useful when all instant prizes are claimed before the raffle sells out, to avoid discouraging further purchases. Winners still receive their notification email regardless of this setting.

Frontend accent color#

Description: Customize the accent color for all raffle UI elements on the frontend, including the countdown timer, progress bar, prize badges, tabs, and buttons.

Default: #7c3aed (Purple)

All hardcoded color instances use CSS custom properties, so changing this one value updates the entire raffle appearance.

Guest access#

Options:

Allow guests (current behavior): No restrictions (default)
Block — show “Login required” message: Guests see a login prompt on the product page instead of the add-to-cart form
Force login — redirect to login before add-to-cart: Guests are redirected to the login/my-account page when they try to add a raffle to cart

Default: Allow guests

Block mixed checkout#

Description: Prevent raffle tickets and non-raffle products from being purchased in the same cart.

Default: No

When enabled, adding a raffle product to a cart that already contains regular products (or vice versa) is blocked with a message asking the customer to complete their current order first.

Compliance settings#

These settings control the skill-testing question and free entry features. See Compliance & Privacy for detailed documentation.

Enable skill-testing question#

Description: Require customers to answer a skill-testing question before adding a ticket to cart.

Default: No

When enabled, a random question from the pool is shown on each page load.

Skill-testing question pool#

Description: A repeater field to manage the pool of questions.

Each question includes:

Question text
Type: Text input or Multiple Choice
Correct answer
Choices (for Multiple Choice, one per line)

Click ”+ Add Question” to add more. Click “Remove” to delete a question.

Time limit (seconds)#

Description: Maximum seconds a customer has to answer the skill-testing question. Leave empty or 0 for no limit.

Default: Empty (no limit)

When set, a countdown timer appears next to the question. If time runs out, the answer inputs are disabled and the customer must refresh the page to get a new attempt.

Max attempts per product#

Description: Maximum wrong answers before the customer is locked out of a raffle. Leave empty or 0 for unlimited.

Default: Empty (unlimited)

Tracked per customer email (or IP for guests) and product. After exceeding the limit, the add-to-cart form is disabled with a message.

Multiple choice display#

Options:

Radio buttons (default): All options shown at once
Dropdown select: Options shown in a <select> dropdown

Default: Radio buttons

Radio buttons are better when there are 2-4 choices. Dropdown saves space when there are many choices.

Enable free entry route#

Description: Show a “Free Entry” tab on the product page with alternative entry instructions.

Default: No

Free entry instructions#

Description: Default text shown in the Free Entry tab.

Supports the [Your Address] placeholder, which is automatically replaced with your WooCommerce store address (from WooCommerce → Settings → General).

Print ticket settings#

Primary color#

Description: Primary accent color used on PDF tickets.

Default: #7c3aed (Purple)

Footer text#

Description: Custom text displayed at the bottom of PDF tickets.

Badge text#

Description: Text displayed on the ticket badge area.

Email settings#

Email toggles#

The Emails section provides quick toggles for all raffle-related emails:

Setting	Email	Default
Ticket Confirmation	Sent to purchaser when tickets are generated	Enabled
Gift Notification	Sent to gift recipient when tickets are generated	Enabled
Winner Notification	Sent to winner when selected	Enabled
Admin Winner Alert	Sent to admin when a winner is drawn	Enabled
Admin Draw Failed	Sent to admin if an automatic draw fails	Enabled
Prize Claimed	Sent when a winner claims their prize	Enabled
Ticket Refunded	Sent to ticket holder when their tickets are refunded	Enabled
Admin Mass Refund Summary	Sent to admin after a mass refund completes	Enabled

Customizing emails#

For full email customization, go to WooCommerce → Settings → Emails and find the raffle-specific emails:

For each email:

Enable/Disable: Turn email on/off
Subject: Email subject line
Heading: Email heading text
Additional Content: Custom message

Per-product settings#

These settings are configured on each raffle product in the Raffle Settings tab.

Date & time#

Setting	Description
Start Date	When ticket sales begin
Start Time	Time sales begin (HH:MM)
End Date	When ticket sales end
End Time	Time sales end (HH:MM)

Notes:

Leave start date empty to start immediately
Leave end date empty for no expiration
Uses site timezone

Ticket limits#

Setting	Description
Maximum Tickets	Total tickets available
Max Per Customer	Limit per customer email

Notes:

Empty = unlimited
Per customer limit applies across all orders
Gift tickets are exempt from per-customer limits

Features#

Setting	Description
Allow Gift Purchases	Override global gift setting (Use global / Yes / No)
Auto Draw	Automatically select winners at end
Skip Cart Page	Redirect to checkout after add-to-cart
Ticket Suffix	Text appended after ticket numbers

Winner settings#

Setting	Description
Number of Winners	How many winners to draw (1-10)
Unique Winners	Prevent same person from winning multiple prizes

Instant Win settings#

Setting	Description
Enable Instant Win	Evaluate tickets at purchase time
Mode	Probability or Guaranteed interval
Win Probability (1 in N)	Probability mode: chance denominator
Win Every N Tickets	Guaranteed mode: interval size
Max Instant Winners	Maximum total instant winners (empty = unlimited)
Require Instant Payment	Auto-hide offline gateways

See Instant Win for full details.

Payment gateway restrictions#

Setting	Description
Disabled Payment Gateways	Multi-select of gateways to hide for this raffle

Prize configuration#

Setting	Description
Prize Type	Custom, Product, or Store Credit
Prize Description	Text description of prize
Prize Value	Display value (for Custom type)
Prize Product(s)	WooCommerce products (for Product type)

Compliance overrides#

Setting	Options	Description
Skill-Testing Question	Use global / Yes / No	Override global skill question toggle
Question Source	Global pool / Custom	Use global pool or custom product question
Custom Question	Text	Product-specific question (when source is Custom)
Question Type	Text / Multiple Choice	Answer input type
Correct Answer	Text	The correct answer
Choices	Textarea	MC options, one per line
Free Entry Route	Use global / Yes / No	Override global free entry toggle
Free Entry Text	Textarea	Custom free entry instructions

Default values#

If not explicitly set:

Setting	Default
Ticket Format	Sequential
Prefix	Empty
Starting Number	1
Max Tickets	Unlimited
Max Per Customer	Unlimited
Gift Purchases	Disabled
Auto Draw	Disabled
Number of Winners	1
Prize Type	Custom
Generate Tickets On	Order Completed
Auto-Close Sold Out	Yes
Skill-Testing Question	Disabled
Free Entry	Disabled

Setting recommendations#

For charity raffles#

Ticket Format: Sequential
Prefix: "CHARITY-"
Max Per Customer: 20
Gift Purchases: Enabled
Prize Type: Custom
Number of Winners: 3

For Canadian compliance#

Skill-Testing Question: Enabled
Free Entry Route: Enabled
Question Pool: 3-5 math questions
Free Entry Text: Mail-in instructions with [Your Address]

For store promotions#

Ticket Format: Random
Prefix: Empty
Max Tickets: 500
Max Per Customer: 5
Gift Purchases: Disabled
Prize Type: Product
Auto Draw: Enabled

For high-stakes draws#

Ticket Format: Sequential
Random.org API: Configured
Max Tickets: Limited
Max Per Customer: 1
Gift Purchases: Disabled
Prize Type: Custom (document externally)

Settings migration#

When updating the plugin:

All settings are preserved
New settings get default values
Check release notes for new options

Troubleshooting settings#

Settings not saving#

Check user permissions (manage_woocommerce required)
Clear browser cache
Check for JavaScript errors
Disable conflicting plugins

Settings not applying#

Clear WooCommerce transients
Refresh product page
Check individual product overrides

Random.org not working#

Verify API key is correct
Check quota at random.org dashboard
Test with Standard Random method first