How to Play the Lottery Online in 2023
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Since 2017, it has been possible to play the National Lottery games and participate in multi-state draws online. In addition to buying your tickets online, you can also claim and receive your jackpot and non jackpot prizes without needing to visit a retailer. Keep reading to learn how you can play the lottery online and the benefits of using the official iLottery website.
How to Play Lottery Online in PA
By buying lottery tickets online you can participate in nine different draws. You can buy your first one by following these simple steps:
- Visit the Pennsylvania iLottery website and register your account.
- Provide the necessary government-issued ID to verify your account.
- Use one of the available banking options to fund your account.
- Navigate through the ‘Play Online’ tab and select ‘Draw Games’.
- Choose the game that you wish to play and select ‘Buy Now’.
- Select your numbers as directed on-screen.
- Choose any optional extras and the number of consecutive draws.
- Click on ‘Buy Now’ to purchase your lottery game online ticket.
Which Draws Can You Buy Lottery Game Tickets Online For?
Nine types of online lotto tickets are currently available in Pennsylvania. You can buy tickets for these draws prior to a draw or use the advance play option to play in one or more consecutive draws in advance. These are:
- Powerball
- Mega Millions
- Cash4Life
- Match 6
- Treasure Hunt
- Pick 2
- Pick 3
- Pick 4
- Pick 5
Pennsylvania Powerball
The Pennsylvania Powerball draw is a multi-state one and there are three Powerball drawings happening every week. Each ticket costs $2, but optional betting options are also available. To participate, you need to select five white numbers and one red Powerball jackpot number. There are nine possible jackpot and non jackpot prizes with a standard ticket, with the highest being a jackpot prize with a minimum value of $20 million. You can also avail of Power Play and Double Play betting options if you wish. The former can increase non jackpot prizes while the latter puts automatically in more than one draw happening on the same day.
Mega Millions
You can play Mega Millions in PA for $2 by buying a standard lottery online ticket. Optional betting options are available and draws take place twice a week. To complete a multi-state lottery game ticket, you need to select five white numbers as well as one gold Mega Ball number. This draw has nine winning combinations with a normal ticket and the highest payout is a jackpot prize with a minimum value of $20 million.
Pennsylvania Online Lotto Games
There are several state-based online lottery games on the Pennsylvania iLottery site. Since these games do not pool players from multiple states, their top prize is lower. However, in most cases, the player’s odds of getting a winning ticket with the top prize are better.
Cash4Life
The Cash4Life draw is similar to multi-state lotteries but only pools together players in Pennsylvania. A lottery online ticket costs $2 and you’ll need to select five numbers between 1 and 60 and one green Cash Ball number from 1 to 4. There are nine winning combinations of jackpot and non jackpot prizes. The highest-value prize rewards $1,000 per day for life while the second-highest prize rewards $1,000 per week for life.
Match 6
The Match 6 daily draw game requires you to select six numbers from 1 to 49 and play them using one or more tickets. Guessing a minimum of three correct numbers on a single ticket or four correct numbers across combined tickets will provide you with one of the 11 prizes. The top prize is just the jackpot with a minimum value of $500,000. Unlike with a Powerball ticket and similar draws, there is no Power Play betting option in Match 6.
Treasure Hunt
The Treasure Hunt online lotto tickets cost $1 and require you to choose five numbers from 1 to 30. This daily draw game has four potential prizes that range between $1 and the jackpot. The minimum value of the jackpot is $10,000. This simple lotto game does not offer optional betting options or ticket combinations.
Pick 2-3-4-5
The Pennsylvania iLottery offers four Pick lottery online lotto games that offer a variety of different gameplays and payouts. Each of these games requires you to select a specific group of numbers, such as five for Pick 5 and 3 for Pick 3. Tickets cost $1 each and draws are held twice daily. There are no jackpots in these games, and prizes range between $5 and $50,000.
Can You Buy Lottery Tickets Online?
Yes, you can conveniently play the lottery online in PA using the State’s official iLottery page. To start using this website, you must first register your account and prove your identity. You will then be able to buy tickets using PayPal, Visa, Play+, and a selection of other convenient payment methods. Check out our detailed guide on the Pennsylvania online lottery to learn more about using this platform.
Online Lottery Apps
You can buy lottery game tickets for all nine lotto games from anywhere using the official online lottery apps for Android and iOS devices. Download the apps directly from Google Play or the App Store and either log into your existing account or create a new one.
The Cost of Different Online Lotto Tickets
In the following table, we’ve listed the cost of standard online lottery draws and betting options. Lottery ticket prices for online and in-person purchases are equal in Pennsylvania.
If you’re fortunate enough to win a prize, you will need to pay state and, in some cases, federal tax. To help you calculate taxes due, you can use our lottery winnings calculator.
How to Check Lottery Tickets Online
After you’ve purchased your online lotto tickets, you should try and watch the draw live to find out instantly whether you’ve won. If you need to check the results of the last draw or any other previous draw, you can do so easily using the iLottery page. These are the steps that you need to follow to check lottery tickets online:
- Visit the Pennsylvania iLottery page and select ‘Buy Draw Games’.
- Choose the draw that you wish to search and click on the ‘i’ button.
- A pop-up box will appear, showing you the results of the most recent draw.
- If you need other results, click on ‘Learn How’.
- Select ‘Past Winning Numbers’ from the mid-page navigation menu.
- Scroll through the available draw dates or narrow your search by entering the draw dates.
Play Lottery Online vs Play In Person
There are several advantages to buying lottery tickets online rather than in person. The following table outlines the most significant benefits.
Online Lottery Scratch Offs
The Pennsylvania Lottery offers an extensive collection of scratchcards that you can purchase and play from its authorized retailers. Online, you can try these online lottery scratch-offs for free, but you cannot play them for real money.
eInstants and Other Non-Lottery Games Online
You can play over 100 instant win and arcade games for real money with a Pennsylvania iLottery account. Some of these games resemble online lottery scratch offs while others are similar to video slots that you’d find at PA online casinos. Most games accept minimum wagers of $0.10 and some games feature top prizes of $300,000 or more.
Has Anyone Won the Lottery Online?
Yes, several players from Pennsylvania and around the country have won prizes by playing online lottery games. However, one of the highest and most recent prizes won from the Pennsylvania iLottery platform was not from a draw but an instant win game. In 2022, a lucky player from Centre County won $1.6 million playing PA Big Winner Spectacular.
Tips to Play the Lottery Online
Here are our top tips to help you enjoy a better experience playing online lotto games in Pennsylvania.
- Look at the odds of winning – It’s natural to be tempted by massive jackpots, but as the potential prize grows, the odds of winning get lower. Sometimes, it might be better to play games with lower top prizes but greater odds.
- Consider optional bets – Top lottery games online, including the Powerball Jackpot and Mega Millions, offer optional betting extras such as Power Play or Megaplier for $1 extra. Activating these costs less than buying an extra ticket and can lead to big payouts.
- Play different games – While all online lottery games feature similar gameplay, they offer different ways to play and win. Don’t be afraid to try different games and explore all the available betting options and prize boosts. It’s also important to remember the results of different lotteries are available on different days and times. Powerball drawings, for example, take place every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Use different numbers – Don’t get attached to any particular set of numbers as it’s easy to get frustrated if these don’t win. Instead, pick random numbers with each draw or use the iLottery’s Quick Pick option to have a computer pick them for you.
- Stick to a budget – You should always treat the lottery as a form of entertainment and should never expect a prize. Practice responsible gambling by not overspending and balancing the time you spend gambling with other hobbies and activities.
How to Pay for Online Lottery Games
Just like many other reputable PA online gambling sites, the Pennsylvania iLottery platform accepts deposits and withdrawals through a number of convenient methods. In the following table, we’ve outlined the most popular options and their respective limits.
The Best Online Lottery Site in Pennsylvania
The 2017 laws that permitted online lottery sites only allow the Pennsylvania Lottery to operate such a platform. This means that you need to register an iLottery account to play online lottery games and scratch-offs. It only takes a few minutes to sign up and you can place instant deposits using a variety of secure banking options.
