How many $2,000 prizes are left in Hot $2,000?

442 of 2048 as of September 9, 2026. The chance that a ticket bought today is a top-prize winner is about 1 in 2,907.

What are the odds of winning anything on Hot $2,000?

1 in 3.71 today, compared with 1 in 3.80 printed at launch. Cash-only odds are 1 in 3.71, and the odds of winning more than the $10 ticket price are 1 in 6.13.

Is Hot $2,000 worth buying?

Its current payout is 72.8% ($7.28 back per $10 ticket), rank #31 of 58 in North Carolina. The best $10 alternative today is $1,000,000 Bonus Match (#11, $10) at 84.7%. No scratcher has a positive expected value; this is about losing less over time.

How many Hot $2,000 tickets are left?

We estimate 1,284,991 of roughly 6,139,410 printed tickets are unsold (79.1% sold), derived from the prizes claimed at each tier and their published odds.

When did Hot $2,000 launch and is it still on sale?

We first saw it on July 1, 2025. It is still on sale.

Hot $2,000 — $10 North Carolina Scratch-Off #3

Data captured September 9, 2026

Hot $2,000 North Carolina scratch-off ticket

Official North Carolina Lottery page →

Hot $2,000 (#3) is a $10 North Carolina scratch-off. As of September 9, 2026 it ranks #31 of 58 active games on current payout (72.8%, $7.28 expected back per ticket) and #10 of 12 $10 games, #17 on any-prize odds (1 in 3.71) and #5 on top-prize odds (1 in 2,907). Since launch the payout has risen 0.3 points (72.5% at launch) and the any-prize odds have improved 2.4% (1 in 3.80 at launch). 442 of 2048 top prizes of $2,000 remain, and we estimate 1,284,991 tickets are still unsold (79.1% sold). That is below average for North Carolina; the North Carolina ranking lists show better payouts, including at $10.

Current payout

72.8%

72.5% at launch

Expected value

$7.28

per $10 ticket

Any-prize odds

1 in 3.71

1 in 3.80 at launch

Cash odds

1 in 3.71

excludes free tickets

Profit odds

1 in 6.13

win more than $10

$600+ odds

1 in 2,907

claim-at-lottery prizes

Top prizes left

442 of 2,048

$2,000 each

Tickets remaining

20.9%

≈ 1,284,991 tickets

Prizes remaining

Every prize level in Hot $2,000, with the odds printed at launch, the odds today given what is left, and how much of each tier is still unclaimed. Across all tiers, 346,558 of 1,616,620 prizes (21.4%) are still out there.

Prize	Odds at launch	Odds now	Total	Claimed	Remaining	% left
$2,000	1 in 2,998	1 in 2,907	2,048	1,606	442	21.6%
$500	1 in 11,785	1 in 12,238	521	416	105	20.2%
$200	1 in 5,898	1 in 5,949	1,041	825	216	20.7%
$100	1 in 99.9	1 in 102.4	61,445	48,899	12,546	20.4%
$50	1 in 25.0	1 in 25.6	245,412	195,224	50,188	20.5%
$40	1 in 78.5	1 in 79.8	78,199	62,094	16,105	20.6%
$20	1 in 10.0	1 in 9.89	614,013	484,073	129,940	21.2%
$10	1 in 10.0	1 in 9.38	613,941	476,925	137,016	22.3%
All prizes	1 in 3.80	1 in 3.71	1,616,620	1,270,062	346,558	21.4%

How Hot $2,000 has moved

Current payout (solid) and any-prize odds (dashed, inverted so up is better) since we began tracking Hot $2,000. 89 daily readings.

Recent claims of $1,000 and up

September 9, 2026: 2 $2,000 prizes were claimed; 442 remain.
September 27, 2025: 8 $2,000 prizes were claimed; 1,208 remain.
September 26, 2025: 8 $2,000 prizes were claimed; 1,216 remain.
September 25, 2025: 4 $2,000 prizes were claimed; 1,224 remain.
September 24, 2025: 8 $2,000 prizes were claimed; 1,228 remain.
September 23, 2025: 11 $2,000 prizes were claimed; 1,236 remain.
September 20, 2025: 8 $2,000 prizes were claimed; 1,247 remain.
September 19, 2025: one $2,000 prize was claimed; 1,255 remain.
September 18, 2025: 9 $2,000 prizes were claimed; 1,256 remain.
September 17, 2025: 6 $2,000 prizes were claimed; 1,265 remain.
September 16, 2025: 13 $2,000 prizes were claimed; 1,271 remain.
September 13, 2025: 9 $2,000 prizes were claimed; 1,284 remain.

Derived from day-to-day changes in the official remaining-prize counts, so the date is when the lottery published the change.

Hot $2,000: common questions

How many $2,000 prizes are left in Hot $2,000?: 442 of 2048 as of September 9, 2026. The chance that a ticket bought today is a top-prize winner is about 1 in 2,907.
What are the odds of winning anything on Hot $2,000?: 1 in 3.71 today, compared with 1 in 3.80 printed at launch. Cash-only odds are 1 in 3.71, and the odds of winning more than the $10 ticket price are 1 in 6.13.
Is Hot $2,000 worth buying?: Its current payout is 72.8% ($7.28 back per $10 ticket), rank #31 of 58 in North Carolina. The best $10 alternative today is $1,000,000 Bonus Match (#11, $10) at 84.7%. No scratcher has a positive expected value; this is about losing less over time.
How many Hot $2,000 tickets are left?: We estimate 1,284,991 of roughly 6,139,410 printed tickets are unsold (79.1% sold), derived from the prizes claimed at each tier and their published odds.
When did Hot $2,000 launch and is it still on sale?: We first saw it on July 1, 2025. It is still on sale.

Other $10 North Carolina scratch-offs

$1,000,000 Bonus Match — 84.7% payout, 1 in 4.19 any prize
Cashword King — 81.6% payout, 1 in 3.27 any prize
$10 MONOPOLY® — 79.0% payout, 1 in 3.70 any prize
Triple Red 777 Jackpot — 76.9% payout, 1 in 3.56 any prize
$1,000,000 Triple Play — 75.2% payout, 1 in 4.09 any prize

North Carolina hub All $10 games #5 on Current Top Prize Odds Methodology