Is there a technique to winning on premium bonds? (2024)

FAQs

How can I increase my chances of winning Premium Bonds? ›

You buy £1 bonds and each has an equal chance of winning, so the more you buy, the more your chances improve. NS&I sexes up the draw by personifying its IT equipment – it calls it Ernie (Electronic Random Number Indicator Equipment). In reality, it's a simple, audited, random number generator.

People can buy Premium Bonds on any day of the month to be eligible for the next possible draw. This is not the following month, but the one after. For example, people can buy Premium Bonds any time before 30 April, in order to be in June's draw.

The chance of winning the £1 million jackpot over the course of a year (or 12 monthly prize draws) is one in 49,563,028 if you have £100 in Premium Bonds. If you have £1,000 invested, the odds of winning are one in 4,954,991. And if you have the maximum £50,000 in bonds, your chances increase to one in 96,839.

You are lucky – only 9.16% of people who have put £50000 in premium bonds over 6 months win more than £450. So there you have it. Pretty lucky. Not surprising to me as I've had a lucky few years, financially at least.

They now have a 1 in 192,720 chance of winning £50,000, compared with 1 in 2,142,180 a year ago. Someone with the £50,000 maximum holding now has a 1 in 38,855 chance of winning £100,000, compared with 1 in 392,733 a year ago. They have a 1 in 19,272 chance of winning £50,000, compared with 1 in 214,218 a year ago.

There is no evidence to suggest that buying premium bonds in a block increases your chances of winning. However, the more bonds you have, the greater your chance of winning a prize. If you have some spare cash that you can't afford to lose, you could use this to buy premium bonds.

Simply complete an application form and send it to us, with a cheque payable to NS&I. If you or a child you're buying for already have some Premium Bonds, you can buy via bank transfer (including standing order).

Every month there are two top prizes of £1 million and around 3.1 million smaller prizes. Interest isn't paid on Premium Bonds, instead, an annual rate is used to calculate the prize fund for the monthly draws. The annual rate is reviewed on a regular basis and currently sits at 3.3%.

We pay out two £1 million jackpots each month. We then divide the balance of the prize fund share allocated to the higher value band equally among the remaining prize values.

Drawbacks of Premium Bonds

If you want a regular income, Premium Bonds may not be the best option for you - you may be better off looking at different types of investment or savings accounts, including isas. You'll also receive no interest, as the interest accrued on bonds goes towards the prize fund.

Does someone win a million on Premium Bonds every month? ›

What are the prize amounts for premium bonds? Most recently, the total prize amount for premium bonds was £96,395,075. The prizes are banded into higher value (£5,000 to £1million), medium value (£500 and £1,000) and lower value prizes (£25, £50 and £100). There are around 3.3 million prizes in total every month.

But what happens if you've won the coveted £1 million jackpot? The two lucky bondholders who take home the top monthly prize find out in a very different way: they receive a visit from a member of NS&I staff known as 'Agent Million'. So who is Agent Million? And what's their job like?

Five hundred Premium Bonds holders have now been made millionaires since the £1 million jackpot prize was first introduced in 1994 thanks to February's landmark draw.

You can see if you won in the May prize draw on 3 May using the nsandi.com prize checker or the official prize checker app, available on either Android or iOS. You will need your Premium Bonds holder's number to use the website and your NS&I number or holder's number to check via the prize checker app.

How long does it take to cash in Premium Bonds? According to NS&I, it takes up to three banking days for the money to reach your account, unless you have elected to cash in after the next draw.

Dealing with Premium Bonds after someone's death

Assets are generally sold or encashed during the administration period, although some can be transferred to beneficiaries who wish to keep the holding.

You should win one or more prizes from four draws each year.

You can easily withdraw money from yours or your child's Premium Bonds without needing to create an online profile. All you need to do is fill out a quick online form. Make sure you have your account details to hand.

Because yields are higher today than at any time since the 2008 global financial crisis, bonds now have better expected returns and can cushion against further price declines. An overweight to cash or very short-term securities worked well in 2022, but adding more duration exposure could prove valuable going forward.

You can withdraw the money that you put into Premium Bonds any time you like. However, your savings won't be earning any interest so they will lose value over time due to inflation, but there is the chance of winning cash prizes and the average annual prize rate is 1.4%.

What are the odds for the premium bond in 2023? ›

In January 2023 NS&I announced an additional Premium Bond prize rate increase was to take effect at the start of February. The prize rate is now 3.15% and the chances of a win at the monthly draw are 1 in 24,000.

Example of a Bond Premium

A person would buy a bond at a premium (pay more than its maturity value) because the bond's stated interest rate (and therefore the bond's interest payments) will be greater than those expected by the current bond market. It is also possible that a bond investor will have no choice.

The maximum investment in premium bonds is £50,000, but if you are considering placing anything like that sum of money in bonds, you would be well advised to seek financial advice before placing your trust in Electronic Random Number Indicator Equipment (ERNIE).

High-Interest Savings Accounts

That would translate into $5,000 of interest on one million dollars after a year of monthly compounding. The 10-year earnings would be $51,140.13. The rates on both traditional and high-interest savings accounts are variable, which means the rates can go up or down over time.

The quick answer is that you could make as high $5 million a year of pre-tax interest income on $100,000,000 if you invest it in a 1-year Certificate of Deposit (CD). On a monthly basis, this means that the pre-tax interest income on $100 million would be $416,666.

Savings bonds are a government-backed, reliable investment that earn interest, reaching full maturity after 30 years.

Some of the disadvantages of bonds include interest rate fluctuations, market volatility, lower returns, and change in the issuer's financial stability. The price of bonds is inversely proportional to the interest rate. If bond prices increase, interest rates decrease and vice-versa.

A bond might trade at a premium because its interest rate is higher than the current market interest rates. The company's credit rating and the bond's credit rating can also push the bond's price higher. Investors are willing to pay more for a creditworthy bond from the financially viable issuer.

NS&I will notify winners via email or text. If you opt to have your prize transferred to your bank account, you'll receive it by the seventh working day of the month. Alternatively, you can choose to have your prize reinvested into more Bonds.

You can download lists of all winning Bond numbers for each of the last six months.

How long do unclaimed Premium Bonds last? ›

This will also tell you if you've got any unclaimed prizes! Premium bond winnings never expire, so even you won back in the 1950s, the money is still good.

If you want full value, you should hold the Series EE bonds at least until maturity, and if you want extra, you can hold them until 30 years. But once 30 years have passed, it's a good idea to cash them in because you won't get any extra benefit.

How to claim Premium Bonds after a death. The Executor can trace and claim Premium Bonds belonging to the deceased either online or by post. If applying by post, they must include a copy of the death certificate and the Will. If applying online, the Executor must complete a bereavement claim form.

Can I cash it in before 30 years? You can cash in (redeem) your I bond after 12 months. However, if you cash in the bond in less than 5 years, you lose the last 3 months of interest. For example, if you cash in the bond after 18 months, you get the first 15 months of interest.

In January 2023 NS&I announced an additional Premium Bond prize rate increase was to take effect at the start of February. The prize rate is now 3.15% and the chances of a win at the monthly draw are 1 in 24,000.

The prizes are banded into higher value (£5,000 to £1million), medium value (£500 and £1,000) and lower value prizes (£25, £50 and £100). There are around 3.3 million prizes in total every month.

May 2023 could be a good time to buy bonds, particularly in the short end of the curves in developed markets. For example, as we recently argued, 6-month US Treasuries and two-year German government bonds look attractive given the prevailing market narrative that the global central bank tightening cycle is ending.

In December, Fed officials projected they'd raise rates as high as 5.1% in 2023. That forecast could change. But it seems most of the losses in fixed income are behind us, Chao said. Plus, bonds and other types of “fixed income” are entering the year delivering much stronger returns for investors than they did in 2021.

Straight to your bank account

If you win, we'll let you know the good news by email or text message. You'll then normally receive your prize money in your bank account by the 7th working day of the month.

You can choose to have your prizes paid directly to your bank account (or NS&I Direct Saver) or reinvested into more Bonds, giving you even more chances to win. Choose either of these options and we'll let you know by text or email if you win.