Need to know
All you need to know after personal finance guru gave advice for people with the popular investments
Martin Lewis has given advice for anyone with Premium Bonds on the chances of winning(Image: MSE)
Martin lewis’s ‘£5,000 rule’ for premium bonds – need to know
- Money-saving expert Martin Lewis has issued a stark warning to Premium Bonds holders about his crucial ‘£5,000 rule’.
- The ITV and BBC star says unless savers have at least £5,000 invested, they’re likely wasting their time due to poor odds of winning anything significant.
- Despite NS&I announcing improved prize rates rising to 4.35% from September 2026 and better odds of 21,000 to 1, Lewis remains sceptical for smaller investors.
- “With less, the odds are you will win little or nothing,” he warned, particularly advising grandparents against gifting Premium Bonds to children.
- “So if you’re thinking of putting £1,000 or less into premium bonds for a child, it’s worth noting that with average luck our premium bonds probability calculator shows they are likely to win nothing over a year.”
- Martin said that premium bonds are typically only worth buying if you have more than £5,000, to give you a chance of winning the prizes. He noted that premium bonds are “best for”: Those with larger savings, say over £5,000, as then you’ve a better chance of earning closer to the published prize fund rate. “With less, the odds are you will win little or nothing”, he said
- Lewis explained that for most people, especially those with smaller savings, traditional cash ISAs offering guaranteed 4.4% returns are far better value than Premium Bonds’ lottery-style system.
- For those seeking thrills, he suggested: “Put your money in top savings and then take a couple of quid out and put it in the National Lottery.”
- NSandI defended their product, saying Premium Bonds remain “one of the nation’s favourite savings products” with over £403 million in recent monthly prizes.
- READ THE FULL STORY: Martin Lewis advice to anyone with £5,000 or less in Premium Bonds