Free Contest Entry Form Template (+ How to Add Paid Entries)

What a contest entry form needs

Whether you are running a photo contest, a giveaway, a raffle, or a "caption this" promotion, a good entry form does four things: identifies the entrant, captures the entry itself, records that they agreed to the rules, and (optionally) collects an entry fee. Here is a template that covers all four.

The free contest entry form template

Add these fields in the form builder — or paste this prompt into the AI builder: "Contest entry form with entrant name, email, entry submission, and rules acceptance."

Field	Type	Required	Notes
Full name	Short Text	Yes	Winner announcement and prize delivery
Email address	Email	Yes	How you notify the winner
Phone number	Phone	No	Backup contact for prize fulfilment
Your entry	Long Text or File Upload	Yes	Text caption, link, or an uploaded photo/video
Age confirmation	Checkbox	Yes	"I am 18 or older" — adjust for your rules
Rules acceptance	Checkbox	Yes	"I have read and accept the official contest rules"
How did you hear about us?	Dropdown	No	Attribution for your marketing

Publish this on the Free tier and it will handle up to 100 entries at no cost. For a bigger promotion, Basic ($1 per form) raises that to 1,000.

Contest rules the form should reference

• Eligibility — age, location, and any "no employees" clause
• Entry period — exact start and end date/time with time zone
• How winners are chosen — random draw, judging criteria, or public vote
• Prize details — value, and whether a cash alternative exists
• Rights — that you may display submitted entries

Link the full rules page next to the "Rules acceptance" checkbox so entrants can actually read them.

Adding a paid entry fee

Paid entries (common for raffles, film festivals, and art contests) are a one-field change. Drag in the Payment field and add your entry tiers, for example:

• Single entry — $5
• Bundle of 3 entries — $12

Set the field required if every entry must be paid, or optional if you offer a free entry route alongside paid ones. Paid contest forms publish on the Pro tier ($3 per form) and require a connected Stripe account.

Because ZenForms uses a bring-your-own-Stripe model with a 0% platform fee, the entry fees land in your own Stripe balance — ZenForms does not take a cut of the pool. Entrants pick a tier, the button reads "Pay $5", and the entry only counts once Stripe confirms the payment.

After the contest closes

Every entry — and its payment status — is in your dashboard. Export to CSV for judging, filter to paid entries only, and use the email field to notify winners. Set an access end date on the form so it stops accepting entries automatically at your deadline.

Build your contest entry form free — add the Payment field only if you are charging.