Is Omaze Legit? How Its Prize Draws Really Work

Is Omaze legit? Yes — Omaze is a real, operating for-profit company that has run prize draws since 2012 and has publicly named winners of houses, cars, and celebrity experiences. There is no public record of a US or UK regulator shutting Omaze down for running a fake giveaway, and when illegal-lottery claims were brought against the company in federal court in California, the judge dismissed that claim because Omaze offered a genuine free entry route.

That said, “legit” is not the same as “a good deal.” Omaze is a business, not a charity. It keeps a share of what you spend, the charity gets a disclosed slice, and the odds of winning a house are long. Those are the honest trade-offs, and they are separate from the question of whether the company actually exists and actually pays out.

The bigger real-world danger is the second half of this story. Scammers copy the Omaze name, logo, and winner photos to run fake giveaways on social media and email. So the practical question is not only is Omaze legit, but whether the specific message in front of you actually came from Omaze. This guide covers both.

What Omaze Is and Who Runs It

Omaze was founded in 2012 in the United States by Matt Pohlson and Ryan Cummins, who met at Stanford. The original model sold entries to celebrity experiences and prizes, with a percentage of sales going to a charity partner. In 2020 the company added luxury house draws in the United Kingdom, and that format became its main business.

Omaze paused its US operations in early 2023 and moved its headquarters to London, continuing house draws in the UK and later Germany. Bloomberg reported in June 2026 that the company plans to bring the model back to the United States. Omaze says it has raised more than $250 million for charities overall.

Two things follow from that history. First, if you saw Omaze ads years ago and then stopped seeing them, that was a real business change, not a disappearance. Second, US-facing offers during the pause period deserve extra scrutiny, because a lot of them were not from the company at all.

Is Omaze Legit Under Prize-Draw Law?

The legal question behind “is omaze legit” comes down to one concept: consideration. A promotion that requires payment, awards prizes, and picks winners by chance can be an illegal private lottery. Remove any one of those three and it is generally a lawful sweepstakes instead.

Omaze removes payment by publishing a free alternative means of entry — commonly a mail-in or online free-entry route described in each draw’s official rules. Its US rules pages state that no purchase or payment is necessary to enter or win, and that a purchase or donation does not improve your odds.

In Knuttel v. Omaze, filed in the Central District of California, the court dismissed illegal-lottery claims in 2022, reasoning that the availability of a free entry route for every entrant satisfied California lottery law. Other claims in that litigation were contested, and consumer groups and journalists have publicly disputed how clearly the charity split was communicated. That criticism is a matter of debate, not a finding of fraud.

How Omaze Makes Money — and Why That Means It Can Be Real

A giveaway that hands out multimillion-dollar houses has to be paid for somehow. Understanding the revenue model is the clearest way to answer is omaze legit, because a business with a working economic engine has no reason to fake a winner.

Entry sales fund three things: the prize itself, the cost of marketing and running the draw, and the charity payment. In the UK, Omaze states that it gives 17% of total sales to the charity partner, with a guaranteed minimum of £1 million per campaign. In Germany, the guaranteed minimum to charity is €500,000.

Read that carefully. A guaranteed minimum means the charity gets paid even if sales are soft — but it also means most of your money is not going to the cause. Omaze does not hide the split; it publishes it. Whether that split feels fair to you is a personal judgment call.

What Winners and Users Publicly Report

Omaze publishes a winners section listing closed draws and the people who won them, and UK house winners have appeared in mainstream news coverage with named properties and locations. Winner announcement videos and follow-up interviews are widely available, and Omaze says its staff cannot see the winning entry number before the draw is run.

Complaints exist too, and they are mostly mundane. BBB records for the company include disputes over billing, missing donation confirmations, and unclear subscription charges, with at least one complaint the business did not answer. Reviews commonly flag recurring entry subscriptions people forgot they signed up for.

Online you will also find accusations that winners are actors or that draws are rigged. Those claims circulate widely on social platforms but have not been substantiated by any regulator, court, or news investigation on the public record. Treat them as unproven allegations.

Is Omaze Legit or an Imposter? Spotting Fakes That Use the Name

Here is where most actual money gets lost. Scammers do not need Omaze to be fake — they just borrow the brand. The most common version is a direct message or comment on social media telling you that you won an Omaze prize, followed by a request for a fee or your personal information.

Omaze’s own support materials say the company does not contact winners through social media, that potential winners are first notified by email, and that its official accounts carry verification badges. It also asks people who suspect impersonation to report it to its support address rather than reply to the message.

The FTC’s guidance is blunt and applies to every brand, not just this one: real prizes are free. Anyone who tells you to pay taxes, shipping, processing, or handling charges to release a prize is a scammer. Legitimate sweepstakes sponsors do not collect money from winners to hand over a prize.

Real vs. Fake: A Side-by-Side Check

One more distinction worth holding onto: a company can be entirely genuine while the offer in your inbox is entirely fake. Answering is omaze legit in the affirmative does not vouch for any particular message claiming to be from them.

Verify Any Omaze Offer in Five Minutes

You do not need special tools to check this. Work through these steps before you spend a dollar or share a detail.

1. Type omaze.com into your browser yourself. Do not tap the link you were sent. If the draw is real, it will be listed on the official site.
2. Open the draw’s official rules and find the free entry method, the end date, and the sponsor’s legal name and address. Missing rules is a stop sign.
3. Check the winners page for past draws and cross-check a recent winner’s name against news coverage.
4. Confirm any social account is the verified one, and remember the company says it does not notify winners through social media.
5. If anyone asks for a payment, gift card, crypto, or your Social Security number to release a prize, stop. Report it to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov and to Omaze support.

If you do decide to enter, check whether you are buying a one-time entry or starting a recurring subscription, and read what the campaign discloses about the charity amount. Prize winnings can carry tax reporting consequences in the US, so a winner’s best move is to talk to a qualified tax professional about their own situation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Omaze legit or a scam?

Omaze is a legitimate registered company with publicly named winners and published official rules. It is a for-profit business, not a charity, and only a disclosed share of sales reaches the charity partner. Separately, scammers impersonate the brand, so verify any message independently.

Can you really win without paying?

Omaze’s official rules state that no purchase or payment is necessary and that donating does not increase your odds. Each draw publishes a free entry method with its own instructions and deadlines. Follow the rules for that specific campaign exactly.

How will a real Omaze winner be contacted?

Omaze says potential winners are notified first by email and that it does not contact winners through social media. Any DM, text, or comment announcing a win — especially one asking for money — should be treated as an imposter attempt.

Is Omaze legit for people in the United States right now?

Omaze paused US operations in early 2023 and moved to London, with reporting in June 2026 indicating plans to return to the US market. Because availability has changed, check omaze.com directly for which draws are currently open to US residents rather than trusting a forwarded offer.

Know the Rules Where You Live

Sweepstakes and prize rules change from state to state — what a sponsor can offer, how prizes are handled, and what protections you have. Pick your state to see the exact rules that apply where you live.

See Sweepstakes Laws in All 50 States →

Sources & How to Verify

The facts on this page are drawn from official government and primary sources. Rules and figures change, so always confirm the current details with the official agency or the promotion’s own published rules.

• FTC Consumer Advice: consumer.ftc.gov — prize, sweepstakes, and lottery scam guidance
• IRS: irs.gov — how prizes and winnings are treated as income
• Social Security Administration: ssa.gov — what SSI recipients must report
• The promotion’s official rules: every legitimate sweepstakes publishes them — the rules page is always the final word

Content last reviewed August 2026. If you notice outdated information, please contact us.

Related Guides

• Sweepstakes Laws by State (50-State Guide)
• More in This Category
• Sweepstakes Resources
• Scam Checks
• Sweepstakes Tax Calculator
• All Active Sweepstakes

Informational only — not legal, tax, or financial advice. Win Big Daily is an independent educational resource. Prize rules, tax treatment, and benefit-program requirements vary by state and program and change over time, so always verify the current details with the official agency, the promotion’s published rules, or a qualified professional before acting. If a topic involves government benefits, contact the program office about your specific situation.