There aren’t that many ways that you can turn $1.30 into a minimum of $2 million and none where it can happen more quickly than via a lottery win.
The OzLotto was introduced as Australia’s first national lottery in 1994 and, thanks to its guaranteed prize funds, remains a popular way for Aussies to get in on the chance to make it rich.
In this guide, we take a look at the chances of winning the OzLotto as well as compare these odds to other Australian lotteries.
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The Oz Lotto: Chances of Winning
The largest OzLotto jackpot was in 2013 when a main prize of $100,000,000 was put up for the taking. At the time of the draw it was estimated that one in three adult Australians had purchased a ticket to be in with a chance.
If you want to win big, you need to take part but what are the chances of a win? Image via MaxPixel.
But what kind of chance did any of them have at scooping that enormous jackpot?
We take a look at the odds of winning below.
Draw Date | Every Tuesday |
Estimated Prize Jackpot | $2 million (more as jackpots roll over up to $50 million+ |
Minimum Game Play | One |
Price | $1.30 |
9 random numbers are drawn from a barrel of 45; the first seven are the main draw numbers with two further numbers being supplementary.
Division | Winning Combination | Odds of Winning |
1 | 7 Matching main numbers | 1 in 45,379,620 |
2 | 6 Matching main numbers plus 1 supplementary | 1 in 3,241,401 |
3 | 6 Matching main numbers | 1 in 180,078 |
4 | 5 Matching main numbers plus 1 supplementary | 1 in 29,602 |
5 | 5 Matching main numbers | 1 in 3,430 |
6 | 4 Matching main numbers | 1 in 154 |
7 | 3 Matching main numbers plus 1 supplementary | 1 in 87 |
To put the odds of winning the Oz Lotto jackpot into perspective, we take a look at some other improbable sounding possibilities and their odds:
- Chances of being related to Royalty? Almost 100% according to leading geneticist, Adam Rutherford. At a recent history festival, he proved that almost every Briton was related to King Edward III. In fact, his team calculated that the chance of anyone born in Europe after 1970 not being related to the 14th century monarch was just 0.0000000000000000000000000001.
- Chance of being struck by lightning? According to David Hand, author of The Improbability Principle, your chances of being struck by lightning are around 1 in 300,000 which makes the likelihood of winning that jackpot seem pretty slim.
- Chances of having quadruplets? The seemingly rare phenomenon of giving birth to five babies is a one in 800,000 chance.
- Chance of being attacked and killed by a shark? Yes, this is also more likely than matching all seven main numbers. The chances of this occurring are 1 in 3,748,067
You might have more chance of being related to Prince William than winning big on the OzLotto but the chance of big bucks keeps us playing. Image via Flickr.
Of course, your odds of having five babies are greatly reduced if you aren’t a woman just as anyone who never goes into the sea will probably report better chances of shuffling off this mortal coil any other way than at the hands of a shark. This just proves that odds can be favourably improved just as your chances of winning that OzLotto jackpot are increased if you are actually in the draw!
Oz Lotto Odds Compared
Monday Lotto
Draw Date | Every Monday |
Estimated Prize Jackpot | $1 million |
Minimum Game Play | Four |
Price | $2.40 |
8 random numbers are drawn from a barrel of 45; the first six are the main draw numbers with two further numbers being supplementary.
Division | Winning Combination | Odds of Winning |
1 | 6 Matching main numbers | 1 in 8,145,060 |
2 | 5 Matching main numbers plus 1 supplementary | 1 in 678,755 |
3 | 5 Matching main numbers | 1 in 36,690 |
4 | 4 Matching main numbers | 1 in 733 |
5 | 3 Matching main numbers plus 1 supplementary | 1 in 298 |
6 | 1 or 2 Matching main numbers plus 2 supplementary | 1 in 144 |
Wednesday Lotto
Draw Date | Every Wednesday |
Estimated Prize Jackpot | 14 million |
Minimum Game Play | Four |
Price | $2.40 |
8 random numbers are drawn from a barrel of 45; the first six are the main draw numbers with two further numbers being supplementary.
Division | Winning Combination | Odds of Winning |
1 | 6 Matching main numbers | 1 in 8,145,060 |
2 | 5 Matching main numbers plus 1 supplementary | 1 in 678,755 |
3 | 5 Matching main numbers | 1 in 36,690 |
4 | 4 Matching main numbers | 1 in 733 |
5 | 3 Matching main numbers plus 1 supplementary | 1 in 298 |
6 | 1 or 2 Matching main numbers plus 2 supplementary | 1 in 144 |
Playing the lotto is easy. Licensed retailers are on the high streets and you can play online. Image via Flickr.
Saturday Lotto
Draw Date | Every Saturday |
Estimated Prize Jackpot | $4 million (more on special event draws) |
Minimum Game Play | Four |
Price | $2.40 |
8 random numbers are drawn from a barrel of 45; the first six are the main draw numbers with two further numbers being supplementary.
Division | Winning Combination | Odds of Winning |
1 | 6 Matching main numbers | 1 in 8,145,060 |
2 | 5 Matching main numbers plus 1 supplementary | 1 in 678,755 |
3 | 5 Matching main numbers | 1 in 36,690 |
4 | 4 Matching main numbers | 1 in 733 |
5 | 3 Matching main numbers plus 1 supplementary | 1 in 298 |
6 | 1 or 2 Matching main numbers plus 2 supplementary | 1 in 144 |
Powerball
Draw Date | Every Thursday |
Estimated Prize Jackpot | $3 million (jackpot increases and can be over $50 million) |
Minimum Game Play | Two |
Price | $1.85 |
6 random numbers are drawn from a main barrel of 40 with a second ‘powerball’ drawn from a second barrel of 20 numbers.
Division | Winning Combination | Odds of Winning |
1 | 6 Matching main numbers plus the power ball | 1 in 76,767,600 |
2 | 6 Matching main numbers | 1 in 4,040,400 |
3 | 5 Matching main numbers plus the power ball | 1 in 376,312 |
4 | 5 Matching main numbers | 1 in 19,806 |
5 | 4 Matching main numbers plus the power ball | 1 in 9,123 |
6 | 3 Matching main numbers plus the power ball | 1 in 641 |
7 | 4 Matching main numbers | 1 in 480 |
8 | 2 Matching main numbers plus the power ball | 1 in 110 |
Set for Life
Draw Date | Every day |
Estimated Prize Jackpot | $20k per month for twenty years |
Minimum Game Play | Two sets |
Price | $8.40 |
Ten numbers are drawn from a barrel of 37 with the first eight being the main draw numbers and the final two being bonus balls.
Division | Winning Combination | Odds of Winning |
1 | 8 Matching main numbers | 1 in 38,608,020 |
2 | 7 Matching main numbers plus 1 bonus ball | 1 in 2,413,001 |
3 | 7 Matching main numbers | 1 in 178,741 |
4 | 6 Matching main numbers plus 1 or 2 bonus balls | 1 in 25,070 |
5 | 6 Matching main numbers | 1 in 3,928 |
6 | 5 Matching main numbers plus 1 or 2 bonus balls | 1 in 946 |
7 | 5 Matching main numbers | 1 in 236 |
8 | 4 Matching main numbers plus 1 or 2 bonus balls | 1 in 89 |
Though the prize is smaller than a jackpot win, the ‘Set for Life’ draw is popular. Who wouldn’t fancy never having to work again with a guaranteed income of $240k a year?! Image via Pixabay.
Cash 3
Draw Date | Every day |
Estimated Prize Jackpot | $500 |
Minimum Game Play | One |
Price | $0.50-$1.00 |
3 random numbers are drawn from 1-9, match them in order and you win the jackpot. Match all three, but in a different order and you can still win.
Division | Winning Combination | Odds of Winning |
1 | Exact order of all three balls | 1 in 1000 |
2 | Any order (2 numbers are in a different position) | 1 in 333.33 |
3 | Any order (all 3 numbers are in a different position) | 1 in 167.67 |
Super 66
Draw Date | Every Saturday |
Estimated Prize Jackpot | Minimum jackpot of $16,666 |
Minimum Game Play | One |
Price | $1.00 |
6 random numbers from 1-9 are drawn, winning numbers must be in the order drawn.
Division | Winning Combination | Odds of Winning |
1 | 6 winning numbers in order | 1 in 1,000,000 |
2 | 5 winning numbers in order | 1 in 55,556 |
3 | 4 winning numbers in order | 1 in 5,556 |
4 | 3 winning numbers in order | 1 in 556 |
5 | 2 winning numbers in order | 1 in 56 |
OzLotto Odds: Conclusion
Whilst the odds of winning the jackpot in the OzLotto remain pretty high, the overall chance of winning remains one of the better likelihoods of scooping a prize when it comes to playing Australian lotteries. With a chance of at least 1 in 87 of winning, you’ve got to be in it to win it.
Featured image by The Lott.
