WHEN The National Lottery launched in 1994, it promised players hoping to become overnight millionaires that “it could be you”.
But, what are your odds of winning a lottery jackpot and are you more likely to win big by playing the National Lottery games, or other, more recent launches?
Any lottery is, of course, a game of chance, with winning numbers selected randomly.
But the odds of winning the jackpot vary massively from game to game.
The National Lottery has greatly expanded the number of games it runs since 1994, and the list now includes the original Lotto as well as EuroMillions, Set For Life and Thunderball.
Each game has different rules, a different top prize and different odds.
Other lotteries have also launched including the Health Lottery and Postcode Lottery.
A lotto ticket costs £2 (up from £1 when the game launched) and sees players select six numbers between one and 59 as well as a bonus ball.
Customers have the choice of selecting a lucky dip to determine their pick or choosing their own numbers, with some sticking loyal to the same selection every week.
To win the Lotto jackpot players must match the six main numbers in the draw.
The next prize, for those who match five numbers and the bonus ball is £1million, if you match five main numbers without the bonus ball you win £1,750.
The odds of winning the Lotto jackpot are currently around 45million to one.
But, your odds of winning any prize, the lowest being a free lucky dip for matching two main numbers, are a just over one in nine.
Lotto games are drawn on Wednesdays and Saturdays every week.
The largest Lotto jackpot ever won was £22.5million, scooped by a couple of work colleagues from Hastings in 1995.
A ticket for the EuroMillions will cost you £2.50, with players selecting five main numbers between one and 50 as well as two lucky stars, between one and 12.
The draw is open to players across Europe and has a huge jackpot prize.
Accordingly, the odds of winning the EuroMillions, which is drawn every Tuesday and Friday, are much lower than Lotto at one in 139million.
To win the jackpot players must match the five main numbers and the two lucky stars.
However other prizes range from £130,554.30 for five main numbers and one lucky star, to £2.50 for two main numbers.
The biggest ever EuroMillions jackpot was £195million, which was won by a UK ticket holder on July 19 2022.
The Thunderball game is drawn four times a week and has a jackpot of £500,000.
To win the jackpot players need to match five numbers and the Thunderball.
The odds of doing so are one in 8,060,598.
Your odds of bagging the next highest prize of £5,000 for matching five balls is currently one in 620,046, while the chances of winning £250 for four balls plus the Thunderball is one in 47,416.
You have the best chance of winning £3 for matching the Thunderball, with odds of one in 29.
Thunderball costs £1 to play.
Set For Life gives players the chance to win £10,000 a month for 30 years.
Players choose five numbers between one and 47 as well as a Life Ball between one and 10.
To win the jackpot players must match all numbers.
The odds of doing so are one in 15.3million.
The second prize is £10,000 every month for a year and the odds of winning this are one in 1.7million.
Cash prizes for matching four numbers and the Life Ball or less range from £250 to £5.
The odds of winning any prize are one in 12.4.
The People’s Postcode Lottery launched in 2005 and gives players 20 chances to win a month, for a subscription fee of £12 a month.
Rather than picking a series of numbers as players do in the National Lottery games the draw selects a postcode and all players with that postcode share the prize.
Every Saturday, £1million is shared between all winners in one postcode area.
While, every Sunday £30,000 is shared between those living in another postcode.
Draws are also held every day between Monday and Friday with 20 £1,000 jackpots handed out.
In 2024 87% of People’s Postcode Lottery players won a prize.
The biggest prize pot offered was £17.5million, shared between 561 people in a Rotherham postcode area.
As jackpots are shared the People’s Postcode Lottery doesn’t guarantee to make winners millionaires but two people claimed the title after winning in 2024.
The Health Lottery launched in 2011 and raises money for health causes.
It holds seven Big Win draws a week, five with a jackpot of £25,000 as well as two £100,000 superdraws on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
It costs £1 to play the £25,000 draws, which will also automatically enrol players into one of the additional £100,000 draws.
The odds of winning the Health Lottery are one in 2.1million.
Crucially, you should always gamble responsibly and never bet more money than you can afford to lose.
If you’re worried about gambling and need to talk to someone you can contact organisations including the NHS, GamCare, and BeGambleAware.
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.
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