> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.rafflex.io/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.rafflex.io/create-your-first-raffle/add-instant-wins/winlink-explained.md).

# Winlink Prize Fallbacks

How Winlink Instant Wins award free tickets in another competition, and what happens when the linked competition has ended, has sold out, or would take the winner over its ticket limit.

A **Winlink** Instant Win awards the winner free tickets in another of your live competitions instead of (or as well as) a normal prize. It is a great way to move winners from a smaller competition into one of your bigger draws.

The short answer to the most common worry: **a Winlink prize is never lost.** If the platform cannot hand over the free tickets for any reason, it automatically gives the winner the equivalent value as [site credit](/additional-settings/site-credit-and-wallets.md) instead, so nobody is left empty handed.

This page covers how to set a Winlink up, what the winner receives when it works, the situations where the free tickets cannot be added, and what that means for your costs.

{% hint style="info" %}
New to Instant Wins? Start with [Add Instant Wins](/create-your-first-raffle/add-instant-wins.md) for the full setup walkthrough.
{% endhint %}

***

### Setting up a Winlink

#### When creating Instant Wins

1. Open the competition and click the purple **Instant Wins** button at the top of the page.
2. Click **Add Instant Win** and fill in the **Image**, **Prize** and **Tickets** as normal.
3. Switch on the **Winlink** toggle.
4. In **Link to**, choose the competition the winner should get free tickets in. You can type to search.
5. In **Free tickets**, enter how many tickets to award, from 1 to 5,000.
6. Click **Create Instant Wins**.

The **Link to** list only shows your **live** competitions (Active, not yet ended, and not sold out), with each one's end date in brackets, for example "Dream Car (24 Oct)". The competition you are adding prizes to is never offered, and nor are competitions that use **Sequential Tickets**.

#### On an existing Instant Win

1. Open the competition and click the purple **Instant Wins** button (or open the **Instant Wins** tab).
2. Click the **pencil** icon next to the prize.
3. In the **Winlink** section, switch on **Enable Winlink**. (If the section is folded away, click its heading to open it.)
4. Choose the **Competition** and enter the **Free tickets to award** (1 to 5,000).
5. Click **Save changes**.

To remove a Winlink, switch **Enable Winlink** off and save. The linked competition and free ticket number are cleared.

{% hint style="info" %}
**Linked competition has ended?** If the competition you linked to has since finished, it no longer appears in the list, so the **Competition** box may show a number instead of the competition's name. Choose a new live competition and save if you want future winners of this prize to receive tickets.
{% endhint %}

{% hint style="success" %}
**You can combine a Winlink with site credit.** If you switch on both **Site Credit** and **Winlink** for the same prize, the winner receives the site credit payout and the free tickets.
{% endhint %}

***

### What happens when a Winlink is won

Winlink prizes are handled for you from start to finish. The win is marked as **paid** automatically, so it never needs fulfilling by hand.

Shortly after the win, the platform tries to add the free tickets to the linked competition. Most of the time this works perfectly:

* The winner is given the free tickets in the linked competition, as a separate free order that you can find in your orders list.
* They receive the normal order confirmation email for those tickets.
* A note is added to the original order saying the Winlink prize was awarded, and the new free order has a note pointing back to the original one, so you can always trace it.
* The free tickets are then **checked for Instant Wins in the linked competition** too, so a Winlink can chain into further wins.

***

### When free tickets cannot be added

There are three situations where the linked competition cannot accept the free tickets at the moment the prize is processed:

1. **The linked competition has ended or sold out.** There is nowhere to put the tickets.
2. **The free tickets would take the winner over the linked competition's ticket limit.** If that competition has a **Max per user** limit, and the Winlink tickets would push the winner past it, none of them are added. The platform does not hand over part of the prize.
3. **No tickets could be allocated.** For example, there were not enough tickets left in the linked competition when the prize was processed.

In every one of these cases, the platform does the same thing: it converts the prize into **site credit** and adds it to the winner's wallet automatically. A note is added to the original order explaining why.

***

### How the site credit is worked out

This is the part worth reading carefully, because it affects your costs.

The credit amount is the **linked competition's normal ticket price multiplied by the number of free tickets**. It uses the **Price** of the competition you linked to (not any sale price), not the price of the competition the winner was actually playing.

For example, if you Winlink **10 free tickets** into a competition whose tickets cost **£5.00 each**, the winner receives **£50.00 in site credit** when the fallback applies.

The winner can spend that credit on any future purchase on your site.

{% hint style="warning" %}
**Site credit is real money against your business.** A Winlink that points at a higher priced competition costs you more per fallback than one pointing at a cheaper competition. Winlink prizes are also **not included** in the [Instant Win budget bar](/create-your-first-raffle/add-instant-wins/instant-win-budget-explained.md), so factor them into your own sums, especially if you are linking into a premium draw.
{% endhint %}

***

### What the winner sees

* **When tickets are added normally:** the winner gets a standard order confirmation email for their free tickets in the linked competition.
* **When the fallback applies:** the winner gets an email with the subject **Instant Win Site Credit!** (after your site name) instead. It explains the reason in plain language (the raffle has ended, they had already reached the maximum number of tickets, or tickets were unavailable when the prize was processed), shows the sum, for example **10 tickets × £5.00 = £50.00**, and confirms the credit has been added to their wallet.

Either way, the win is recorded as settled, so your records stay tidy.

***

### What this means for you

* **The prize always lands.** The winner receives either the free tickets or matching site credit. There is no situation where they get nothing.
* **Expect some credit payouts late in a campaign.** Because a linked competition can end or sell out before every Winlink prize is won, the later a Winlink is won, the more likely it pays out as credit rather than tickets. This is normal and nothing to worry about.
* **Link to competitions that close later.** Choosing a linked competition that ends well after this one gives winners the best chance of receiving tickets rather than credit.
* **Mind the ticket limit.** If the linked competition has a low **Max per user**, keen customers who already hold lots of tickets are more likely to receive credit instead.
* **Plan the link with cost in mind.** Since the credit value follows the linked competition's ticket price, linking into your most expensive draw means your fallback payouts are larger.

{% hint style="success" %}
However the prize resolves, your winner is looked after automatically. You do not need to step in or fix anything by hand. If an order note ever says a Winlink failed, contact Rafflex support and we will help.
{% endhint %}

***

{% content-ref url="/pages/fMCsqKAfEnoO0vTY5gIC" %}
[Add Instant Wins](/create-your-first-raffle/add-instant-wins.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}