It’s nice to imagine winning the lottery. A big payout from Powerball or even a minor windfall from a scratch-off ticket can make a big difference to most people. But buying a ticket might seem like throwing money to the wind given the odds.
US News states, “The odds of winning a Powerball jackpot—no matter the size—stand near 1 in 292.2 million. Chances of taking home Mega Millions’ top prize are even lower, at about 1 in 302.6 million.”
Are the odds on the smaller stakes scratch-off tickets any better? Plenty of social media accounts on sites such as YouTube and TikTok suggest there are ways to up your odds of catching a win.
One recent TikTok video suggesting seven ways to improve your scratch-off odds has gone viral. Since it was first posted five days ago, the video has picked up over 1.2 million views and counting—but do the tips in the video hold water?
The video was posted by LotteryVlogs.US (@lotteryvlogs.us) which appears to be an aggregator account dedicated to TikToks featuring lottery tips and wins. In the video, an unidentified person begins tossing a variety of scratch-off tickets at a doorway that is surrounded by stapled-up sets of already scratched tickets.
@lotteryvlogs.us My personal opinion on tickets. #fyp #foryou #roborockrun #lottery #christmas ♬ original sound – LotteryVlogs.US
The video lists the following tips.
“Buy the same [type of] ticket instead of mismatching.”
According to Casino.org “some scratch card players swear by … buying their scratch cards in bulk.” The site claims “if you bulk buy scratch cards in one purchase, the chance of hitting one of those planted winning scratch cards is going to be higher than if you bought the same number of scratch cards over a period of several purchases.”
“Crossword puzzles are a butch [sic] to scratch but have good winners.”
According to The US Sun, lottery expert unclebillyjohnjr, “said one of the best games to play is the Crossword puzzles. These have great winnings and some of the best odds for players. The Instant Prize Crossword from the California Lottery has a fairly high probability of winning up to $2,000.”
“Holiday tickets suck and only win in the middle of the month.”
According to The US Sun, self-proclaimed lottery expert Kier Stone says “Seasonal games may look tempting, they actually offer just a small chance of scooping the jackpot.” She adds that Christmas-themed scratch-offs “have the worst odds.”
“Multiplier tickets i.e. x50 are the best tickets”
Per The US Sun, Uncle Billy John claims “Multiplier tickets are another great game to play as your odds of winning are much higher. This is because players have more chances to win multiple prizes.
“‘Win This or That’ have horrible odds and never win.”
Uncle Billy John also told The US Sun, “The game Win This or That tickets is one to avoid as they have terrible odds. The lottery expert said it’s best to stay away as players most likely lose.”
“$30 tickets have the best odds and are my friend.”
According to The Baltimore Sun, these pricey tickets grant the buyer “better odds and higher payouts” than the cheaper scratch-offs available. The US Sun states, “Not all states offer these, but if yours does, you are in luck as the lottery expert finds these to be the best game to play.”
“Tickets that have the number 7 in it means avoid [sic] it like your ex”
Uncle Billy agreed with the video’s anonymous poster, telling The US Sun that seven “is the worst number to see on a scratcher.” According to The Texas Lottery website, have a 1 in 4.10 chance of hitting and a 1 in 1,440,000 chance of winning a Top Prize of $100K.
In the comments section of the video, Char55788 (@Char55788) claims, “I won 125k on a 7x.”
In general, it looks like the online lotto experts agreed with the tips in the video — although anyone playing the lotto should do so at their own risk and never gamble with money they cannot afford to lose.
Many viewers offered their own “tips” such as jameshoward6307 aka Skeeet (@skeeet333) who claimed “You can buy the whole roll there’s only half the money back on a roll there’s a potential to win get online and see if the big winners have paid out.”
Another viewer advised, “check online n see what has big winners left yet thats how i know what to play.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to the LotteryVlogs.US account via TikTok messenger for further comment.
If you or a loved one is struggling with problem gambling or gambling addiction you may contact the National Problem Gambling Helpline (1-800-GAMBLER) operated by the National Council on Problem Gambling.