> 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/drawing-winners/truenorth-autodraws/auto-draw-when-not-sold-out.md).

# Auto Draw When Not Sold Out

What happens to an Auto draw competition that does not sell out, the short wait after the draw date before the draw runs, and what to do if too few tickets sold.

***

If your [Auto draw](/drawing-winners/truenorth-autodraws.md) competition reaches its **Draw date** without selling out, RaffleX still draws it for you in most cases. There are just a couple of situations to understand so you are never left wondering why a winner has not appeared yet.

The short version:

* If the competition simply did not sell out, RaffleX waits a few minutes after the **Draw date**, then draws.
* If fewer tickets sold than your **Draw Winner Quantity**, the automatic draw cannot run, **Auto draw** is switched off, and you will need to step in.

The rest of this page explains both, and exactly what to do.

***

### A Short Wait Before the Draw

When a competition sells out early, RaffleX can draw it straight away (as long as [Draw on Sold Out](/drawing-winners/truenorth-autodraws/draw-on-sold-out.md) is on). When it does **not** sell out, the competition closes at its **End** date and the draw is due at its **Draw date**. At that point RaffleX deliberately waits a few minutes before drawing.

This is on purpose. Some customers start checking out in the final moments before the deadline, and their payment may still be completing. The short wait gives those in progress orders a chance to finish so their tickets can be included in the draw. It keeps things fair for last minute buyers.

While they wait, customers looking at the competition page see a **Standby!** message showing when the draw is scheduled, along with a note that remaining orders are being given time to complete before the automatic draw.

{% hint style="info" %}
If you are watching at the exact draw time and no winner has appeared yet, nothing is wrong. Give it a few minutes and the draw will run automatically. You do not need to refresh anything in the admin panel or press any buttons.
{% endhint %}

***

### When Too Few Tickets Have Sold

The automatic draw needs at least as many sold tickets as your **Draw Winner Quantity**. For example, if you set **3** winners but only **2** tickets sold, RaffleX cannot pick 3 different winners.

In that situation, once the draw is due:

* The automatic draw does **not** run.
* **Auto draw** is switched **off** for that competition.
* No winner is recorded, and no winner email is sent.

{% hint style="warning" %}
You are not sent an alert when this happens. Do not assume "Auto draw was on, so a winner must have been picked." Always check back on the competition shortly after its draw date and confirm a winner actually appears. If none does, open the competition and look at the **Auto draw** toggle. If it has been switched off, too few tickets sold for the number of winners you set.
{% endhint %}

***

### What to Do if Your Competition Under-Sells

You have three options. You can use them before the draw date if sales look slow, or afterwards once you have seen the result.

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="Extend the dates" %}
Give the competition more time to sell tickets.

1. In your **admin panel**, open the **Competitions** group and click **Competitions**.
2. Click the competition to open it.
3. Move the **End** date later.
4. Move the **Draw date** later too. It must be the same as, or later than, the **End** date, so the form will not save if you only change the **End** date past it.
5. If **Auto draw** has been switched off, switch it back on.
6. Click **Save changes**.
   {% endtab %}

{% tab title="Lower the winners" %}
Reduce the number of winners so it matches the tickets you actually sold.

1. In your **admin panel**, open the **Competitions** group and click **Competitions**.
2. Click the competition to open it.
3. Lower **Draw Winner Quantity**, for example from 3 to 1. With **Auto draw** on, it must be at least 1.
4. Switch **Auto draw** back on if it has been switched off.
5. Click **Save changes**.

If the draw date has already passed, RaffleX picks the competition up again and draws it automatically within a few minutes.
{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Draw it yourself" %}
Leave **Auto draw** off and draw the winner yourself instead.

* If TrueNorth is connected and **Provably Fair Autodraws** is on, you can run a verifiable [live draw](/drawing-winners/truenorth-live-stream-draws.md) using the **Draw Winners** button on the ended competition page.
* Or pick a winning ticket with an outside random number generator and record it with the [manual draw](/drawing-winners/manual-draw.md). In the admin panel, open the competition, click the **Actions** button and choose **Add Winners**.
  {% endtab %}
  {% endtabs %}

{% hint style="warning" %}
**Remember to switch Auto draw back on.** When RaffleX switches **Auto draw** off because too few tickets sold, it stays off. Extending the dates or lowering the winners on their own will not bring the automatic draw back. You need to turn the toggle on again and save.
{% endhint %}

{% content-ref url="/pages/O8AeRxcaRlpBsqPTNj4d" %}
[Manual Draw](/drawing-winners/manual-draw.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}

***

### A Draw Only Ever Happens Once

If a competition already has a main draw winner recorded, RaffleX will not draw it again automatically. This protects you from accidental double draws. It also means that once a winner exists, you must use the manual tools if you genuinely need to change anything about the result.

***

### Quick Checklist

To avoid surprises with Auto draw:

* Set the **Draw Winner Quantity** to a number you are confident the competition can reach.
* If sales are slow, be ready to extend the dates, lower the quantity, or draw it yourself.
* Always check back on the competition shortly after its draw date to confirm a winner was actually drawn.
* If **Auto draw** has been switched off, decide how you want to draw it, and switch it back on if you still want RaffleX to draw for you.

{% hint style="success" %}
In the vast majority of cases, an Auto draw competition that does not sell out is drawn automatically after the short wait, with nothing for you to do. The points above only matter when sales fall short of the number of winners you set.
{% endhint %}