Prize competition operators spend heavily to get people onto their websites, through paid social, influencers and prize announcements. What happens next depends almost entirely on design. More than 70% of entries on a typical UK competition site come from a phone, and most of the revenue arrives in the final hours before a draw closes. A design that is slow, confusing or untrustworthy on a small screen loses entries at the exact moment they matter most.
Competition website design also carries constraints that ordinary ecommerce does not. Every paid entry has to pass a skill question, and a free entry route has to sit alongside the paid route with equal visual weight, as required under Section 14 of the Gambling Act 2005. Countdown timers and scarcity messaging are regulated by the CAP Code, and the DCMS Voluntary Code of Good Practice expects published draw dates and transparent odds. Good design has to convert within those rules.
These seven UK agencies have experience designing for this sector.
1. Nera Marketing
Nera Marketing competition website design takes the top spot because the agency designs only for UK competition and raffle operators, so the compliance elements are part of the layout from the first wireframe. The skill question, free entry route, ticket selector, progress bars and countdowns are designed to work together on a 390-pixel screen rather than being squeezed in after the visual design is signed off.
Their builds put Apple Pay and Google Pay first at checkout, include designed screens for every competition state (open, sold out, closed, drawing and drawn) and treat the winners page as a conversion asset rather than an archive. Nera has delivered more than 50 competition platforms, with packages from £2,995 and merchant approval handled alongside the build. Their rebuild of LR Luxe Comps from Shopify to a bespoke WooCommerce platform generated £30,000 in its first month.
Best for: operators who want design, compliance and conversion handled as one piece of work.
2. Design Hero
Design Hero position themselves as a marketing agency first, arguing that the site is only half of the job and converting traffic is the harder half. Their design work leans towards acquisition and conversion, which suits operators whose platform works but whose entry rates have plateaued.
Best for: operators focused on conversion rate and campaign performance.
3. Design for Online
This Suffolk-based studio designs fully custom competition sites with features such as live odds calculators, refer-a-friend systems and points-based rewards. Those features give designers more to work with when building engagement into the page, and the agency offers them at a competitive price point.
Best for: operators who want loyalty and referral features designed into the experience.
4. RaffleLabs
RaffleLabs build custom-coded platforms without WordPress, which gives designers full control over layout and performance without being tied to a theme. They have more than six years in the niche, with responsible-play features built in.
Best for: operators who want a fully bespoke design with no framework limits.
5. Zap Competitions (Think Zap)
Zap Competitions have served the competition and raffle niche exclusively since 2009 and run their own Competition Suite platform. Their design work sits within that suite, so operators get proven layouts and ongoing support, though with less freedom than a fully custom build.
Best for: operators who value proven templates and long-term support over a unique design.
6. Weptile and ShopApper
Weptile design and build on WooCommerce or custom PHP and Laravel, and pair websites with native apps through ShopApper. Designing the site and app together keeps the experience consistent across both, which matters for operators who rely on repeat entrants.
Best for: operators planning a website and mobile app together.
7. Raffle Web Design
A smaller agency offering bespoke raffle designs with core mechanics including lucky dip, number picker and winner management. It is a practical option for operators who need a clean, functional design without a large budget.
Best for: new operators who need the essentials done well.
What good competition design looks like
Whichever agency you speak to, ask to see how they handle these elements on mobile:
- A competition card that shows prize, price, tickets sold and time remaining at a glance.
- A free entry route presented with the same prominence as the paid route.
- Countdowns and stock counts that reflect real deadlines and real ticket numbers.
- Wallet payments ahead of the card form at checkout.
- Designed screens for sold out, closed, drawing and drawn states.
- A winners page that is easy to find and links back into live competitions.
An agency that can show you all of these, working on a phone, understands the sector. One that shows you a desktop homepage mockup probably doesn’t.
