TL;DR
The NS&I Premium Bonds prize fund rate rises to 3.80 percent from the July 2026 draw, reversing three consecutive cuts. The June 2026 draw results are available at nsandi.com/prize-checker. Over 21 million people hold Premium Bonds, with the minimum holding of 25 pounds and a maximum of 50,000 pounds. Prizes range from 25 pounds to 1 million pounds and are tax-free.
Last reviewed: June 2026
Premium Bonds are a savings product issued by NS&I (National Savings and Investments), a UK government-backed savings bank. Instead of paying interest, Premium Bonds enter bondholders into a monthly prize draw. Prizes are tax-free and range from 25 pounds to two jackpots of 1 million pounds each month. The effective rate of return depends on the prize fund rate and the luck of the draw; most bondholders receive fewer prizes than the headline rate suggests on average.
KEY FACTS — JUNE 2026
- Prize fund rate: 4.40% (June 2026 draw); rising to 3.80% from July 2026.
- Two jackpot prizes of 1 million pounds per month.
- Minimum holding: 25 pounds. Maximum holding: 50,000 pounds.
- All prizes are free from UK income tax and capital gains tax.
- Bonds must be held for a full calendar month before entering the draw.
- NS&I is backed by HM Treasury; all holdings are 100 percent government-guaranteed with no FSCS limit cap.
How to check June 2026 Premium Bonds results
NS&I publishes draw results on the first working day of each month. The June 2026 draw results are available at nsandi.com/prize-checker. You can check using your holder's number (found on your bond record or online account), by logging into your NS&I online account at nsandi.com, or via the NS&I mobile app on iOS or Android.
If you have never registered for online access, you can set up an NS&I online account using your holder's number and personal details. Once registered, you receive automatic prize notifications by email when you win, so you do not need to check manually each month.
Unclaimed prizes are held by NS&I for 18 months. If you think you may have unclaimed prizes from previous draws, use the prize checker at nsandi.com/unclaimed-prizes, which allows you to search by holder's number across all draws.
The prize fund rate: what it means and what it does not mean
The prize fund rate is expressed as an annual equivalent rate (AER) but it does not mean every bondholder receives that rate. It represents the total value of prizes paid out in a year as a proportion of the total bonds eligible. In practice, prizes are distributed by a random number generator called ERNIE (Electronic Random Number Indicator Equipment), and many bondholders receive nothing in any given month.
The median outcome for most bondholders over a year is below the headline prize fund rate. A holder with 1,000 pounds in Premium Bonds at a 3.80 percent prize fund rate has a theoretical expected annual prize value of 38 pounds, but the actual amount received could be zero, 25 pounds, 50 pounds or anything else depending on luck. The headline rate is most reliably achieved by holders with the maximum 50,000 pounds, where the law of large numbers brings actual outcomes closer to the theoretical expectation.
For tax purposes, Premium Bonds are particularly valuable to higher-rate and additional-rate taxpayers who have exhausted their personal savings allowance (PSA). Basic-rate taxpayers have a PSA of 1,000 pounds per year; higher-rate taxpayers have 500 pounds; additional-rate taxpayers have zero. Because Premium Bond prizes are outside the PSA entirely and completely tax-free, they are effectively more valuable than an equivalent interest rate from a conventional savings account for taxpayers in higher bands.
The July 2026 prize rate increase
NS&I announced in June 2026 that the premium bonds prize fund rate would increase to 3.80 percent from the July 2026 draw, reversing a series of three consecutive rate cuts that had reduced the rate from 4.65 percent in August 2024 to 4.40 percent in early 2026. The increase reflects NS&I's mandate to balance its financing needs with fair value for savers, set within parameters agreed with HM Treasury.
The July draw will take place on 1 July 2026 (or the first working day thereafter). Bonds purchased in May 2026 or earlier are eligible for the July draw, as bonds require one complete calendar month before entering the prize pool. Bonds purchased in June 2026 first become eligible for the August 2026 draw.
How Premium Bonds compare to easy-access savings
Whether Premium Bonds are better than easy-access savings depends on your tax position, your holding size and your attitude to variability. At 3.80 percent, the prize fund rate is below the best easy-access savings rates available from challenger banks and building societies as of June 2026, where rates of 4.5 to 5.0 percent AER are available.
However, for a higher-rate taxpayer with a depleted PSA, the tax-free nature of Premium Bond prizes means the effective after-tax yield is higher than its face value. A higher-rate taxpayer receiving 38 pounds in prizes on 1,000 pounds of bonds effectively keeps all 38 pounds. The same taxpayer earning 50 pounds in interest on a conventional savings account keeps only 30 pounds after 40 percent tax. The break-even point varies by tax rate and prize fund rate.
For basic-rate taxpayers with savings well below the PSA threshold, a conventional savings account with a higher gross rate is generally the better choice, as the variability of Premium Bond returns adds risk without a sufficient tax benefit to compensate.
Buying, selling and transferring Premium Bonds
Premium Bonds can be bought online at nsandi.com, by phone on 08085 007 007, or by post. The minimum purchase is 25 pounds and bonds must be bought in whole pounds. The maximum holding per person is 50,000 pounds. You can hold Premium Bonds on behalf of a child under 16, up to the same 50,000 pound limit per child.
Premium Bonds can be cashed in at any time with no penalty. The cash value is returned within three working days (for online transactions) or eight working days (for postal requests). There is no notice period and no exit charge. This makes Premium Bonds highly liquid compared to fixed-rate bonds, though the trade-off is the variability of returns from the prize draw.
Premium Bonds cannot be transferred between people. If a bondholder dies, their bonds do not transfer to a beneficiary; the estate must cash them in. Bonds are eligible for the prize draw for up to twelve months after the holder's death, after which they are cashed in automatically.
NS&I security and government backing
NS&I is a government department and executive agency of HM Treasury. All NS&I savings, including Premium Bonds, are backed 100 percent by the UK government. This means there is no limit on the protection, unlike the 85,000 pound FSCS cap that applies to bank and building society deposits. For savers with holdings above 85,000 pounds, NS&I products including Premium Bonds can therefore offer a higher level of security than a single bank account.
Frequently asked questions
How do I check if I won in the June 2026 draw?
Go to nsandi.com/prize-checker and enter your holder's number. You can also check via the NS&I app or your NS&I online account. If you have email notifications enabled, you will have received an email automatically if you won.
What is the Premium Bonds prize rate in 2026?
The prize fund rate for the June 2026 draw is 4.40 percent. From the July 2026 draw, it rises to 3.80 percent following NS&I's June 2026 announcement. Rates are subject to change each draw and NS&I announces changes in advance.
Are Premium Bond prizes taxable?
No. All Premium Bond prizes are completely free from UK income tax and capital gains tax. They do not use up your personal savings allowance and do not need to be declared on a self-assessment tax return. This is one of the main advantages of Premium Bonds over conventional interest-bearing savings accounts.
What is the maximum I can hold in Premium Bonds?
The maximum holding per person is 50,000 pounds. You can also hold up to 50,000 pounds on behalf of each child under 16. There is no household limit on combined holdings across multiple family members.
