New York Lotto is one of the biggest single-state lotteries, with a jackpot that regularly grows into tens of millions of dollars. It has even gone as high as $90 million! Draws take place every Wednesday and Saturday night at 8:15 PM ET and it’s really easy to play.
You can buy tickets from any lottery retailer in the Empire State or even use a lottery courier to take part online. Find out everything you need to know about NY Lotto.
There are five ways to win NY Lotto prizes. If you match all six main numbers, you will win the jackpot. The top prize starts at $2 million and can quickly go much higher, with no cap on how much it can reach.
Other prizes are awarded for matching five main numbers and the Bonus, five main numbers on their own, and also for matching four or three numbers.
The table below shows all the different prize levels, along with the odds of winning. In each draw, 40 percent of the money raised from ticket sales is allocated to the prize fund. The table also tells you how much of the prize fund is set aside for each category.
| Numbers Matched | Prize Pool Percentage | Odds of Winning | Average Prize | No. Winners in Last Draw | Average No. Winners |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Match 6 |
75% of prize fund or 30% of sales |
1 in 45,057,474 | 7,740,239 | 0 | 0 |
Match 5 plus Bonus |
7.25% of prize fund or 2.0% of sales |
1 in 7,509,579 | 121,077.3 | 0 | 0.2 |
Match 5 |
5.5% of prize fund or 2.2% of sales |
1 in 144,414.98 | 1,887.7 | 9 | 9.9 |
Match 4 |
6.25% of prize fund or 2.5% of sales |
1 in 2,179.85 | 26.3 | 462 | 657.2 |
Match 3 |
6% of prize fund or 2.4% of sales |
1 in 96.17 | 1 | 11,015 | 14,912 |
Choose six numbers from 1 to 59. If you pick your own numbers, you can either hand your completed playslip straight to the retailer or slot it into an NYL vending machine. Alternatively, ask the retailer for a Quick Pick and you'll receive a random set of numbers.
Decide how many draws to enter. It is possible to enter the same set of numbers for up to 26 consecutive drawings.
If you've got a ticket from the last 30 days, you can also just 'Play It Again' by taking it to a retailer. You will be given an identical ticket for the next drawing.
Lotto has been creating big winners for the last 50 years. Here are three of the most extraordinary success stories from the Empire State’s flagship game.
NY Lotto’s record jackpot dates back more than 30 years and ended up being split nine ways. The big win came in a special ‘Super Lotto’ event when the jackpot was boosted to $90 million, sparking excitement across the state and strong ticket sales. The winners came from Manhattan (2), Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens, Yonkers, Rockland County (2) and Suffolk County. Each slice of the prize was worth $10 million before taxes, and was paid out in 21 installments over 20 years.
The largest Lotto win on a single ticket belongs to Degli Martinez, a maintenance man from Woodside in Queens. The remarkable – and nerve-wracking – part of his story came after he had been told by a store clerk that he was the winner of the $65 million jackpot. He lost his ticket before he got chance to take it to an NY Lottery office! Martinez still had the receipt, but due to the circumstances he had to wait a full year to be paid out in case someone else came forward within the claim period.
This colossal prize remained unclaimed almost a year on from the draw date, leading to a late publicity push before the ticket expired and the winner missed out on their cash. Luckily for Jimmie Smith of East Orange, he was watching a segment of the evening news when he was reminded to check a stack of tickets that he had stashed in a shirt pocket. He found one with the matching numbers and came forward in time to claim the money.
NY Lotto began with its first draw on November 11, 1978. It aired on WNEW-TV and offered a first prize of $250,000. The game started with a 6/44 format, drawn once a week on a Saturday. A Wednesday draw was added to the NY Lotto schedule in November 2023, while the matrix has evolved over time to its current format of 6/59.
The Lotto jackpot starts at $2 million and keeps rolling until it is won. The current jackpot is worth $7.7 Million.
Ticket sales close at 8:00 PM ET on draw days (Wednesdays and Saturday). It may be earlier if you use a lottery courier.
You can play up to 26 consecutive drawings.
It costs $1 for the minimum two plays in Lotto – great value compared to multi-state lotteries and considering the prizes you can win.
You have to be at least 18 years old to buy a lottery ticket or claim a prize in New York.
Your NY Lotto ticket will have six numbers for each play. A seventh number - the Bonus - is also drawn from the remaining 53 balls after the first six have been selected. The Bonus Number is part of the game as it helps to create more winning opportunities and boosts the value of certain payouts. However, you do not pick a Bonus Number when you play so there is not one shown on your ticket.
See jackpot amounts for every New York Lotto draw that has taken place in the last six months below. Separately, you can scroll back and see the percentage and value increase/decrease of each draw compared to the previous one.
