To ask if you have the full holding in premium bonds, have you ever won anything big?

DH and I have the full allowance each. The highest payout we’ve had is £10k, a few years back. Generally seem to get a win each month.
A friend has also got the full allowance and won £50k a couple of months back. So it can happen.

Had £30k moved it to savings account after using some for renovations most I got was £350 in a month some nothing. DH had same amount in an interest account and I only beat him by £100. Now moved to savings account as better return 5.5% all in my name as I am not a high tax payer. Going to put against mortgage later this year just before interest rate goes up. Loads of people got full amount and getting less than normal savings account.

I put £1150 into mine in November and won £100 this month! I like a risk so just going to keep putting in the odd £50-100 every month and keep any winnings in bonds.

Have full holdings, won £1600 a few months ago, but that's the most at one time. Generally get approx £100 every month or two.

DH and I had max holding for a year or two as did DS2 and we pooledwinnings. None of us won more than peanuts. It's all been moved now.

No, but we regularly get £100/£50. We win some pretty much every month.

We both have FH and over the past couple of years we seem to have been beating the average.👍
That said, this month for the first time in a couple of years I had zero☹️while my OH won £350😆.

TBH if it was a choice of mortgage or PB's, it would be mortgage.

Iirc it was a £100 investment made in march (or may) 2023 and won £100k.
Assuming that was a birth gift for a baby, some 1yr old kid just got set up for life pretty much.

Most months I win anything from £25 to £250 and maybe two or three months in the year win nothing. Considering it's instant access, I quite like owning premium bonds. I'd recommend them to anyone with spare money laying around. Always pay your debts first though.

I won £1,000 the second month I was in the draw but I use mine as a saving account and withdraw into ISA / bonds etc then build up again

I won £5000 once when my holding was around £30k. Now DH and I have around £40k each in our accounts and whilst we win most months it's generally in the region of £50-£150 each.

Plus what you have to balance PBs against is guaranteed interest in a savings account - eg if you have £50k in a savings account earning 5%, you'll earn over £200 pm in interest. But some of it will be taxable if not in a cash ISA, so that's another consideration

In PBs you might get around £150-200 pm in prizes, but it could be more, or less. You're basically gambling guaranteed interest for a small chance of a big prize.

YABU to base financial decisions on a snapshot of experiences on this thread.

If your mortgage rate is below about 3 or 4% you can probably get more interest or PB payout by saving the money instead. Look at the full statistical analysis on MSE to determine the odds of beating your mortgage rate with PBs.

When we had a mortgage, the rate was under 1% for years, so we just offset it with money in savings, PBs, even current accounts that paid interest - the payout was much higher than the mortgage rate.

My best PB prize was £1k on a holding of around £20k, so that prize alone paid about 2 years' worth of mortgage interest.

Dh and I both used to have £50K in premium bonds for a few years. It was money for a house deposit that we had all ready to go and then the sellers pulled out just before exchange and we just wanted to put it in something where it was easy to withdraw again as we were still trying to buy. Most either of us ever won was £100! One or both of us would usually win every month, but it was like £25-75. £100 was as exciting as it got.

DH and I each held the full holding for a year and never won big.

DP has full holdings and got a £10k prize last year.

Due to a mathematical / statistical phenomenon which I do not understand, you do stand to win more per investment the higher your holding.

I have full holding. Since the rate went up I have generally beaten the publicised interest rate. Once I won £1,400. Generally get £125, £175 or similar.

Completely depends on your mortgage interest rate; if it’s above 2% then pay it down.

I use PBs to park money once I’ve maxed out ISA allowance as dh and I pay tax on interest over £500 as higher rate taxpayers. This way I don’t need to worry about tax return etc.

I have a full holding, usually win most months, largest win was £250 I think

Tell a lie - it was £50k she won!
Thread here; there's a new one every month under Money Matters:
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/money-matters/5066675-premium-bonds-may-2024?latest=1

We both have full holdings and win average of £500 month between us - no big ones yet

Check the Premium Bonds thread - a mumsnetter won £25k this month!

This month I won 3 bonds, £50,£50 and £500! I have never had £500 before, in Jan I only £25, other months usually £100-300 but also had 0.

Yes. I recall one of us won £500 in that month and the other £100.

When I got my inheritance I maxed out on premium bonds and most I've ever won is £200, some months nothing at all.

Nope, I've never had a return better than my standard short term savings account.

My stocks and shares ISA however is awesome and (if you're a tedious bastard like me) great fun logging in at the end of the day to see the gains and losses. Risky though compared to other methods of saving.

I haven't, but someone I know won 50K, 30 years ago.