Lotto America: Rules, Price & Odds

How to Play Lotto America

The main thing that you need to do is to buy a Lotto ticket. There are no account registration or KYC requirements that you traditionally find in the best online casinos. You can purchase tickets from any authorized retailer near you. Currently, you’ll discover Lotto retailers in 13 states including Tennessee, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Iowa, Minnesota, and many others.

At the authorized retailer’s store, you’ll be given a payslip. You need to pick at least 5 numbers from 1-52 for the red ball draws and 1 number from 1-10 for the Star Ball draw. As this is a purely luck-based game akin to free online slots, you may not want to spend the time or effort to choose the numbers yourself. Then you can simply allow the computer system to randomly generate numbers for you.

If you wish to buy more than one ticket/entry into the game, you can do so using the same payslip. This process is known as adding multiple lines to your payslip. Moreover, you may even be able to choose to enter multiple draws. This can help you increase your chances of winning but this isn’t always available everywhere.

Finally, you can choose whether you wish to add the All-Star Bonus for one or more of your lines. That can help you increase the dollar value of your winnings in case you do end up winning. Then you need to pay the retailer and then wait. There’s nothing more for you to do. You can simply relax or go about your business until the draw.

Rules of Lotto America

If you’re familiar with other online lotteries, then you’ll not have much trouble understanding Lotto America rules. The game has 2 kinds of balls – ordinary red balls with numbers between 1 and 52, and special Lotto America Star Ball with numbers between 1 and 10.

Draws are organized every Wednesday and Saturday at 11 PM ET where 5 red balls and 1 Star Ball is randomly picked up. If the numbers on your ticket match the numbers drawn, you will win a prize. The prize amount will depend on how many numbers match.

For instance, if the 5 red ball numbers and the 1 Star ball number match exactly with the numbers on your ticket, you will win the jackpot prize. There are 8 other ways to win in Lotto America. For instance, you can win the second-biggest prize if the 5 red ball numbers match but the 1 Star ball number doesn’t. Then you can win $20,000, which can go up to $100,000 if you get the extra Lotto America All Star Bonus.

In the simplest terms, the All-Star Bonus involves an additional payment for each of your lines (choice of numerical combinations) to increase the value of any winnings you end up getting.

Odds to Win the Prizes

As far as Lotto is concerned, there are 9 different ways for you to win with the big grand prize being just one of them. Each prize is valued differently, so naturally, the odds to win each prize are also different.

For instance, the odds of winning the typically multi-million grand prize is 1 in 25,989,600.00. That’s an unlikely eventuality, sure, but if you do hit the mark, you can become a multi-millionaire overnight. That’s why people continue to flock to Lotto retailers despite the statistical improbability of a jackpot win.

Moreover, there are other reasons why people flock to Lotto retailers. They can win substantial prizes other than the grand prize as well.

For instance, you can win between $20,000 and $100,000 if the 5 red ball numbers that are drawn match the numbers on your ticket. The odds of winning this prize are 1 in 2,887,733.33. But odds do not remain so astronomically high. It comes down as you climb down the ladder of the prize levels.

Price of Lotto America Ticket

Lotto tickets are one of the most strategically and reasonably priced among all comparable lottery programs. In fact, you do not even need to buy multiple tickets. You get a single payslip on which you choose your combinations, also known as lines.

The price for each line, the equivalent of a ticket in other lotteries, is $1. That is lower than what many of the other popular lotteries charge. Hence, it’s lighter on your wallet than other comparable options. Moreover, you can add the All-Star Bonus for an additional $1 per line. That would bring the total cost per line to $2, which would still be reasonable.

Lotto America Jackpot

If you’ve been playing lottery games for a while, you might have come across games with a fixed grand or jackpot prize. But there are others whose jackpot prize is not fixed. Lotto America is one of them. The jackpot amount is contingent on how many people enter the draw. The more, the merrier.

The jackpot amount can be anywhere between $2 million to over $20 million. It hardly goes down below 7 figures, so you can almost always expect the jackpot figure to be in the millions. Prior to the draw, you’ll be able to see the estimated jackpot on the Lotto America website.

Biggest Win Made

In the short period of its reincarnation in 2017, the game has produced a number of overnight millionaires. Each of them bought a ticket almost unthinkingly in the course of their day and ended up getting massively lucky. Almost all the grand prizes have involved millions of dollars. The lowest jackpot raised was around $9 million, while the highest so far has been $22 million or so.

A family from Badger, Minnesota won the $22 million prize in 2018. One of them, a woman called Debbie Kujava, bought a ticket on her way back home from work. Only to discover later that they had won the grand colossal prize worth over $22 million.

Results of Lotto America

Lotto America draws take place every Wednesday and Saturday starting from 11 PM ET. During that time, you can get the results of the draw live from the comfort of your home.

You can do so by watching the live animation of the draw from the Lotto America website. The parent organization behind the game doesn’t actually allow live video of the draws. But the animation accurately and truthfully represents the numbers drawn. Furthermore, you can use the online ticket checker to ascertain whether you have won anything or not.

How to Claim Lotto America Prizes

The cardinal rule is that you can only claim a Lotto America prize in the state where you purchase the winning ticket. So, if you win via a ticket that you bought while on holiday, then you need to go back to that state to claim the prize.

The rules and processes around claiming a prize are set at the state level. So, it varies from state to state. That said, generally speaking, you’ll be able to simply get paid at an authorized retailer if you win $600 or less. 

However, if you win more than $600 at this game available in the United State, you’ll need to contact the state lottery to start the process in person.

Taxes on These Prizes

If you win the grand prize in Lotto America, you’ll be taxed at the federal and perhaps even the state and local levels. As far as federal taxes are concerned, you’ll be taxed at the highest federal income tax bracket. That is 37%, and 25% of it will be withheld at the source. Which, in other words, means that it will be deducted before any money reaches your pocket.

State and local taxes can vary based on where you live. So, it’s best to work with a financial advisor to get the best tax solution for you and your family.

Our Opinion on Lotto America

In its reincarnated form, Lotto American has outdone the glorious brand reputation it used to enjoy in the past. That’s why it has been able to capture the hearts of so many people in so many states.

It stands today as one of the most exciting, enjoyable, and potentially life-changing lotteries in America. The amount you can win is simply unbelievable and it can be enchased as a one-time payment or in annuitized instalments.

Lotto America FAQs

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