Comparison
The problem with Discord giveaway bots — and what to use instead
Bots are good at what they were built for. A paid raffle is not that thing.
Credit where due
What bots do well
They are free, instant, and live where your community already is. Reaction-entry, role-gating, scheduled ends — for a giveaway with no money changing hands, a bot is the right tool and this page will not pretend otherwise.
What they cannot do
Three absences, each structural — not a missing feature, but the shape of the tool.
- They cannot hold money. A bot has no escrow. The moment entries cost something, the pot sits in the organiser’s wallet on the organiser’s word — which is exactly the arrangement that ends in an accusation thread.
- They cannot prove the draw. The winner is computed on a server nobody can inspect and announced by an account everybody has to trust. A screenshot of the result is a picture of a claim, not evidence of one.
- They cannot refund. If a paid raffle undersells, refunds are a manual promise. On chain, a raffle that misses its minimum lets every entrant claim a full refund from the contract — the failure mode is money back, not money gone.
— a bot picks names. A contract settles money.
The comparison, plainly
| Giveaway bot | Trust-based raffle site | ProtocolX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who holds the pot | The organiser | The site operator | The contract, in escrow |
| Winner selection | Off-chain, unverifiable | Off-chain, unverifiable | On-chain, re-derivable by anyone |
| Undersold raffle | Manual promise | Operator policy | Every entrant can claim a full refund from the contract |
| Ticket currency | None — no payments | Whatever the site accepts | Any Sui coin type |
| Free promo entries | Yes | Sometimes | Yes — same weight as paid, enforced |
| Cost | Free | Varies | A single fee on ticket sales, shown live before you sign |
Moving a community raffle on-chain
The migration is one link. Your members buy tickets with a wallet instead of a reaction; everything they would normally have to take your word for, they can check.
Common questions
Can a Discord bot hold ticket money in escrow?
No. Giveaway bots select winners but never custody funds; any paid raffle run through one depends on the organiser holding the pot. On protocolx.io the ticket money sits in the contract until the draw settles or refunds.
Are bot draws verifiable?
A bot draw runs on a server you cannot inspect, announced by an account you have to trust. An on-chain draw is a public transaction: the sealed entrant list and the winning number can be re-derived by anyone, including a year later.
When is a bot still the better tool?
Free giveaways with no money involved, where speed and Discord-native entry matter more than proof. If nothing is escrowed and nothing is sold, a bot is simpler — that is its home ground.