Publishers Clearing House

Publishers Clearing House Reviews

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Overall Rating
1.1 out of 5
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About Publishers Clearing House

Publishers Clearing House is a direct marketing company that markets magazine subscriptions and some merchandise, including kitchen gadgets, with sweepstakes and prize-based games. Its casino-style games include slots, keno, quizzes, scratch-offs, solitaire and others.

Pros & Cons

Pros

  • Daily sweepstakes
  • Friendly service
  • Free to enter

Cons

  • Marketing overload
  • Slim odds

Bottom Line

Publishers Clearing House is a company that offers low-stakes daily sweepstakes prizes. There’s no purchase necessary to win, but the odds of winning are small and playing results in frequent email and mail offers.

Featured Reviews

Verified
Lake George, NY

I have been the top token earner on the KENO contest held every day several times… since then I have won $400 three times, $500 twice and $10 because I hit a cash prize instead of...

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Verified
Port Orange, FL

We play for the dreams, for the hopes, for the chances to change our lives and the people we hold dear. But it's still never promised to us. I'm shocked and blessed that I won 10....

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What is Publishers Clearing House?

Publishers Clearing House is a sweepstakes and marketing company. Since it was founded, Publishers Clearing House has awarded more than $483 million in prizes.

The company awards between $3 million to more than $13 million in prizes annually, and at least $10,000 in major prizes are awarded each month. The SuperPrizes that range from $1 million to $10 million are awarded at least three times per year. In addition to cash prizes, the company awards winning entrants with cars, computers, gift cards and more.

How does Publishers Clearing House work?

You can enter to win Publishers Clearing House contests online, by phone and by mail. You can play games and enter the sweepstakes online through mobile devices, tablets or desktop computers. The company’s suite of digital properties receives more than 5 million daily visits and around 2 billion monthly page views. According to the company, someone wins a prize every 10 minutes, and you can enter to win daily.

Entrants must be 18 years or older, and no purchase is necessary to enter or win a prize in any amount. Players who choose to purchase magazine subscriptions or merchandise do not receive an advantage over those who do not make a purchase. Shopper benefits include installment pricing, special offers, frequent discounts and a 100% satisfaction guaranteed policy.

Is Publishers Clearing House free?

Publishers Clearing House does not charge its players to enter sweepstakes or play games, and there is no fee to collect a prize. You can purchase a variety of products and merchandise that range in price, however.

If a company contacts you claiming to be Publishers Clearing House and requesting money to claim a prize, it is most likely a scam.

Publishers Clearing House FAQ

How does Publishers Clearing House notify winners?
Publishers Clearing House awards prizes throughout the year. Major prize award winners and SuperPrize winners are notified in person by the company’s Prize Patrol, while runner-up winners are notified by overnight express carrier or email.
What happens if you win Publishers Clearing House and you’re not home?
The Prize Patrol will locate its winners at home, at the office or even on vacation. The team once waited for an entire weekend for a winner to return home.
Where does Publishers Clearing House money come from?
Prizes awarded by Publishers Clearing House are funded by company revenue earned from merchandise and magazine offers. No purchase is necessary to enter to win.
Does anybody really win Publishers Clearing House?
Yes. The sweepstakes is legitimate, but the big prizes are sought by so many people that the odds of winning are slim. According to its website, there is a prize awarded about every 10 minutes.

Is Publishers Clearing House real?

It’s rare to be able to enter to win cash prizes with no purchase necessary, but Publishers Clearing House offers that opportunity. The company does have some merchandise and magazine subscription offers with customer perks, but buying products does not increase your chances of winning. While Publishers Clearing House is legitimate, it does send its subscribers lots of marketing communication, and the overall odds of winning large prizes are small.

Publishers Clearing House Reviews

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Page 1 Reviews 0 - 10
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Reviewed Nov. 25, 2023

Been foolishly playing and entering for decades. Recently, one survey required for an entry seemed normal, until they wanted complete demographic information, including exact date of birth. I would have given a false date, but then just exited. That's phishing and dishonest, as far as I am concerned.

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Reviewed Nov. 11, 2023

So, I have played Publishers Clearing House for years, since 2016. Never won a single penny and never will. This is a waste of time and frankly they should be ashamed. I will never mess with this again. You can spend all day playing their games and so on and it will be for naught. They also push that you make a purchase. They claim that making that purchase does not affect if you win or not. But I can tell you the emails they send are all about buying their products. This is a long time running marketing scheme and not even a very good one. Don't waste your time on this bull, I know I won't.

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    Reviewed Oct. 25, 2023

    I've been playing PCH well before the 90s, I've bought numerous magazines and have submitted millions upon millions of tokens, and have never won a single penny. BE AWARE! Just in the past years (you can guess the years, ha) The PCH surveys you get to gain more tokens is a scam. Why would every single survey need to know your political affiliation? Does 1 party buy more than the other party? Maybe it's to get a count so they know who you're voting for. As I've always known that it's not anyone's business what political party you're on. It's also funny that you can prefer not to answer on race, color, religion or what you identify as, but you can't when asked your political party. At the end of the surveys, if you don't answer the political question then it says you did not qualify for this survey...why? Yes I tried both ways and it works if you answer the political part. This should be investigated! But why should they. It's not a real game anyway.

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    Reviewed July 1, 2023

    For nearly 2 years I have been playing the back and forth emails from PCH always telling me I have one more thing to do to enter. They tell you that you can enter without a purchase but that is not what they push. I have never won and never will because apparently, you have to make a purchase. Don’t get hooked into the lies they tell you…all they want is you to buy from them... and they swindle you into purchasing with dangling the 7k a week for life crap. Don’t be sucked in to believing for a second that you could actually win. This is nothing more than a scam to build business.

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    Verified purchase

    Reviewed March 11, 2023

    So we have been playing the PCH games sending back all correspondence they send and occasionally buying products. Last month I received a coupon with my envelope for $30 of "free" merchandise. It says I can select items from the included merchandise advertisements. So I did place an order, ordered slippers for my wife and 2 bathroom bath rugs. Well, when I received to merch it included a bill and no credit for the $30 coupon. I made sure I did everything right to include the coupon and everything needed with this order. So I called PCH and they said that I didn't include the coupon! I have the stub but not the coupon, so I KNOW I sent it. They will not honor this and said I will have to pay for the cheap merch they sent. I said I will only pay for the amount over $30, she said they will send the other amount to collections then.

    The slippers are dollar store quality and the bath rugs won't lay flat, slip on floor and smell like chemicals. This cost almost $40, which I refuse to pay anything over $30!!! Also they "backordered" the bath rugs and sent in separate box. They are also charging for 2 S/H charges. This is total ** and a scam! I am done with shady, dishonest business. I am also filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. Also I am NOT paying, if they wanna threaten me with sending the <$10 to collections, let them. They think they can scare people and bully them, not me. This is a dishonest business, beware and don't spend any of your hard earned money with them, disgusting...

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    Reviewed Feb. 3, 2023

    I placed an order with a $30.00 coupon offered. What a scam, they send a FREE item of their choice and charged me shipping $6.99 for the $30.00 coupon FREE item. It cannot be more deceiving than that. I have no use for this item and the $30.00 coupon was actually not honored on my order, WHAT A SCAM.

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    Reviewed Sept. 15, 2022

    You Can Win: 400,006,535 tokens spent, thousands of other entries, Winnings $10. I have purchased a few times, interesting products but tend to be low cost and cheaply made. Good website that loads quickly. Kind of fun at times bu

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    Reviewed Sept. 8, 2022

    Play same games daily, once a month all my earned points are removed and my Elite VIP status is removed. When I contact PCH they give a boiler plate response to clear cookies or use different browser, but never address the issue! Been playing for 35 years, did win $100. but nothing else. So every month I contact PCH with no fix in sight, they open and close tickets when it doesn't go along with their boiler plated response. Sad, thought they legit!

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    Reviewed Sept. 5, 2022

    I've been playing PCH a few years now. I have reached Red Diamond status and have put over 350 million in tokens for chances to win various prizes. I've played the slots many times it's fun and just a dream of winning. I know the odds are great and have never won a prize of any kind but I play every day before and after work sometimes in the hopes of winning someday!

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    Reviewed Aug. 28, 2022

    They're full of crap! I entered it for years and nothing comes to my door. They're a scam and a pieces of crap. I don't believe in them and all they want you for some reason and possibly they want your information.

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    Publishers Clearing House Company Information

    Company Name:
    Publishers Clearing House
    Website:
    www.pch.com