Guides and Investigations

The arithmetic behind the rankings, written out. Every claim here is one you can check against the official state numbers we publish on each game's page — nothing is paywalled and nothing is a system.

Scratch-off guides

• Claiming a Scratch-Off Prize, and the Tax That Comes With It

  Where to claim by prize size, what deadlines apply, what gets withheld, and what you still owe afterwards. General information, not tax advice.

• How Scratch-Off Odds Change After a Game Goes on Sale

  The odds printed on a scratch-off ticket are fixed for the life of the game. The odds you actually face are not. This explains the difference and how to measure it.

• How to Read a Scratch-Off Remaining-Prize Table

  Every state publishes a table of prizes still unclaimed for each game. It is the most useful public document in the lottery, and it is not hard to read once you know what the columns mean.

• Making a Scratch-Off Budget Last

  If you are going to spend $20 on scratch-offs, the arithmetic of how you spend it is not neutral. Here is what the numbers say about price tiers, splitting, and chasing.

• New Game or Old Game: Which Scratch-Off Is the Better Buy?

  New games have every prize intact and no information. Old games have fewer prizes and a full history. Neither is automatically better, and the reason is worth understanding.

• Why Payout Percentage Beats Overall Odds

  Overall odds tell you how often you win something. Payout percentage tells you how much comes back. They frequently disagree, and one of them is the better guide.

Investigations

What we found when we checked the official feeds against each other. These are about the data itself rather than about how to play, and each one carries the steps to reproduce it.

• New York's Open Lottery Data Was Missing the $2.04 Billion Powerball Draw

  New York's free lottery feed lacked the record $2.04 billion Powerball draw until 30 September 2026. What we found, what New York fixed, and what is still wrong.

Then look at today's numbers

Arizona · California · Connecticut · District of Columbia · Florida · Georgia · Louisiana · Maryland · Massachusetts · Michigan · Mississippi · Missouri · New Hampshire · New Jersey · New Mexico · New York · North Carolina · Ohio · Oklahoma · Rhode Island · South Carolina · South Dakota · Texas · Virginia · Washington · West Virginia

See also how we calculate every metric, where the data comes from and the glossary.