The Easy Way To Enter Online Competitions

Last updated: May 31, 2023

Comping has become a real love of mine – so much so, that I decided to start blogging about it. It’s a fab hobby as it can be completely free to get started (as long as you have a computer or a phone, and internet access) and can give you so much back once you start winning prizes. And believe me, you can quickly start to win prizes. I thought I’d share my favourite, and easiest way, to start if you want to try your luck at comping….entering free online competitions.

The easiest way I’ve found is to become a member of a site where people post links to competitions they have found. This can be competitions run on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, blogs, company websites and magazine webpages. There are literally thousands upon thousands of free competitions out there, and having them all listed in one place makes comping much quicker and easier.

Competition Sites

There are several sites you can choose from if you want to find competitions listed in one place. These include Loquax, The Prizefinder and Hot UK Deals. The one I use, and for no other reason than this is the site I started with since I already had an account registered with them, is Money Saving Expert. This is the one I will talk about here.

On Money Saving Expert (MSE), kind and generous people post competitions that they have found online on to the Competitions Time Board.

Competitions are listed with the end date first (E: 20/06 for example) followed by the prize the competition is offering. They also occasionally show the method by which you need to enter the competition, if it isn’t a standard online entry form. For example, Facebook (FB), Twitter (TW), Instagram (Inst), Pinterest (Pin), Rafflecopter (RC) and Gleam (just listed as Gleam). Some people choose to avoid these types of competitions, but I like them. Facebook in particular has been the most successful for me in terms of wins.

How to enter the competitions

Make sure you are logged in to MSE with an active account. Then, simply click on the competition you want to enter. Inside the post will be the link to the actual page the competition is running on (outside of MSE), any special instructions for entering, answers to any questions you may need to answer, and possibly Terms and Conditions for that competition.

All you need to do is click on the link and go through to the competition itself. Open it in another tab or window, enter the competition – this will usually mean putting in your name, email address, possibly your address and your phone number, plus the answer to any questions they ask you – submit, and wait for the page to show you that you have entered. Close the tab/window and return to MSE.

Make sure that you a) click on the green tick at the bottom of the post to show you have entered. No one else sees this; it is a reminder to yourself that you have entered this competition. Some competitions disqualify you if you have entered more than once so this is an important step. Then b) thank the person who originally posted the comp, and anyone underneath who has posted something useful, such as an answer to a competition question. This is good karma to show your appreciation! After all, people could not post these competitions publicly for hundreds of people to see. This reduces their chance of winning, but they do it anyway so it’s nice to say thank you.

Then you can move on to the next competition. Easy!

I like to reorder the listed competitions by their end date to make sure that I am not missing any closing soon. There is a brilliant guide on how to do this, as well as several other things which will make comping quicker, easier and more enjoyable – click here.

So many prizes out there….

You can see below that under the Competitions Time Board, there are several sub-boards. These are Post, phone and text comps, Regular competitions, Compers Chat Corner, and ‘I won! I won! I won!’

Compers Chat Corner and ‘I won! I won! I won!’ are places to go to ask questions and post news about your wonderful wins! Post, phone and text competitions, and Regular competitions, are a slightly different breed that I will talk about in more detail in future. There are so many different kinds of prizes you can enter to win. Anything you want to win, you can have a go at winning.

This is the quickest way to get started if you want a free way to enter competitions online. These types of comps have a lot of exposure, so many people enter them which consequently reduces your chances. I have had and continue to have good wins using this method, however. It’s a great place to start! Any questions about this method of entering comps, please ask.

ETA: I’ve since started using a different method to enter competitions, although I also regularly use sites like Money Saving Expert to find competitions. Find out what the ultimate resource I recommend is that will help you win more competitions. 

Pin this for later.

Are you a comper? I’d love to know where you like to enter competitions, and what your best wins have been.