Charity raffle tickets are not tax deductible. The IRS groups them with lottery tickets and bingo and treats the payment as a gambling wager rather than a charitable contribution, even when a qualified 501(c)(3) runs the drawing and every dollar goes to a good cause.1Internal Revenue Service. Publication 526, Charitable Contributions The one silver lining: if you win, the ticket cost can offset the prize as a gambling loss, but only if you itemize.
Why the IRS Calls It Gambling
A charitable contribution has to be a voluntary payment where you don’t get something of equal value back.1Internal Revenue Service. Publication 526, Charitable Contributions Buying a raffle ticket gets you a chance to win a prize, and the IRS views that chance as the thing you received in exchange for your money. The whole payment lands in the non-deductible column.
This trips people up because other charity event payments do split. Pay $300 for a gala seat where the dinner is worth $75, and the $225 difference is deductible.2eCFR. 26 CFR 1.170A-1 – Charitable, etc., Contributions and Gifts; Allowance of Deduction Raffles don’t get that treatment. The full ticket price is a gambling expense, period.1Internal Revenue Service. Publication 526, Charitable Contributions
If You Actually Win
The fair market value of any prize you win in a charity raffle is taxable gambling income, whether it’s cash, a trip, or a vehicle.3Internal Revenue Service. Lotteries and Raffles You report the full value on your federal return for the year you receive it. The charitable setting of the raffle doesn’t shrink the taxable amount.
For non-cash prizes, fair market value is what the item would sell for between a willing buyer and seller on the open market. For vehicles, the IRS accepts the private-party sale price from a used vehicle pricing guide rather than the higher dealer retail figure.4Internal Revenue Service. Publication 561, Determining the Value of Donated Property Winning a car worth $35,000 means owing federal income tax on $35,000, with no cash from the raffle to pay it. Most states also charge sales or use tax when you title a prize vehicle. Run those numbers before you decide to keep a big non-cash prize.
The charity has reporting obligations too. Starting in 2026, the organization must file Form W-2G when your winnings hit $2,000 and the payout is at least 300 times the ticket cost; that threshold now adjusts annually for inflation. Federal withholding of 24% applies when the net prize (after subtracting your wager) tops $5,000 and the payout is at least 300 times the ticket cost. These rules apply to church raffles and charity drawings, not just commercial gambling.5Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Forms W-2G and 5754 – Rev. January 2026
Using the Ticket Cost Against Your Winnings
You can’t deduct the ticket as a charitable contribution, but you can treat it as a gambling loss against gambling winnings. Two conditions: you have to itemize on Schedule A, and your total gambling losses for the year can never exceed your total gambling winnings.6Internal Revenue Service. Publication 529, Miscellaneous Deductions
The mechanics matter. Win a $10,000 prize on a $100 ticket, and you report the full $10,000 as income. The $100 goes on Schedule A as a gambling loss. You don’t net them into $9,900.7Internal Revenue Service. Five Important Tips on Gambling Income and Losses
For most people, this offset never happens because the standard deduction is higher than their itemized total. In 2026 the standard deduction is $16,100 for single filers and $32,200 for joint filers.8Internal Revenue Service. IRS Releases Tax Inflation Adjustments for Tax Year 2026 Giving that up to write off a $100 losing raffle ticket loses money.
Losing tickets also can’t be carried forward. If you spent $500 on tickets this year and won nothing, those losses expire.9Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 419, Gambling Income and Losses
What to Keep, and What the Charity Should Give You
Hold onto ticket stubs, receipts, and bank or card statements showing the purchase. If you do end up with winnings to offset, you’ll need proof of what you paid.9Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 419, Gambling Income and Losses
The charity has its own paperwork duty. Anytime a donor pays more than $75 and gets something in return, the organization must give a written statement explaining what portion, if any, is deductible along with a good-faith estimate of the benefit’s value.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 6115 – Disclosure Related to Quid Pro Quo Contributions For raffle tickets, that statement should say the full amount is non-deductible. If a charity’s receipt suggests otherwise, don’t rely on it.
What Deducting It Anyway Costs You
If you claim a raffle ticket as a charitable contribution and the IRS catches it, expect an accuracy-related penalty. The standard rate is 20% of the underpayment. For overstated charitable contribution deductions specifically, the penalty can climb to 50% of the underpayment.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 6662 – Imposition of Accuracy-Related Penalty on Underpayments Interest compounds daily on the unpaid tax and the penalty itself, at 7% for individual underpayments in the first quarter of 2026.12Internal Revenue Service. Quarterly Interest Rates One $20 ticket won’t sink you. A pattern of deducting raffle tickets across several returns is a different problem.