Everyone wants to know how to beat the odds and win the lottery. But unfortunately, the lottery is a game of luck and there are no tips or tricks that can guarantee you'll take home a top prize.
Millions of people play the lottery every year
The odds show how likely you are to win any particular prize – the lower the number, the better the odds. For example, odds of 1 in 10 are better than odds of 1 in 100 or 1 in 1,000.
There are several major lottery games in the UK including Lotto by the National Lottery, Camelot's EuroMillions and Thunderball.
Millions of people also play scratchcard games, which you can buy behind the counter at corner shops and some supermarkets.
Here, we explain what your odds actually are of scooping the jackpot for each game, as well as bagging one of the smaller prizes.
Chances of winning the Lotto
Lotto by the National Lottery is a game where you pick six numbers from 1 to 59. You can play up to seven lines of numbers on each slip.
The game costs £2 to play per slip.
The odds of winning any prize on the Lotto are 1 in 9.3.
But to win the jackpot on the Lotto, the odds are considerably slimmer.
To bag the top prize, you need to have six matching balls. The odds of doing this and scooping the jackpot are currently 1 in 45,057,474.
The next highest prize of £1,000,000 is for getting five main matching balls plus the bonus ball.
The odds of taking home the million pound prize are 1 in 7,509,579 – far higher than the jackpot, but still unlikely.
The odds of taking home £1,750 for getting five main numbers without the bonus ball are 1 in 2,180, while you have a 1 in 97 chance of bagging £140 for getting four main numbers.
Your chances of taking home £30 for getting 3 main numbers are much better at 1 in 97. And you have a roughly 1 in 10 chance of getting a free lucky dip for 2 matching numbers.
Full list of odds:
Six numbers: 1 in 45,057,474
Five numbers + bonus ball: 1 in 7,509,579
Five numbers: 1 in 144,415
Four numbers: 1 in 2,180
Three numbers: 1 in 97
Two numbers: 1 in 10.3
Chances of winning the EuroMillions
The EuroMillions costs £2.50 to play and is open on Tuesdays and Fridays.
To play, you must pick five numbers from 1-50 and two "Lucky Stars" from 1-12. Players with the most matching numbers win the top prizes.
Your chance of bagging the EuroMillions jackpot is even slimmer than winning the top Lotto prize. This is because it generally has higher jackpots on offer, meaning it attracts more attention.
Currently, the odds of matching five numbers and two lucky stars – the top win – stand at 1 in 139,838,160.
The average jackpot prize is £57,923,499, according to EuroMillions.
The odds of winning the second top prize for matching 5 balls and a lucky star, which is typically around £262,346, are 1 in 6,991,908.
The chances of taking home the third prize for five matching balls, with an average payout of £26,277, are 1 in 3,107,515.
For four matching balls with two lucky stars, it's 1 in 621,503, and for four balls with one lucky star, it's 1 in 31,076. These come with an average prize of £1,489 and £95, respectively.
Full list of odds:
Five balls + two lucky stars: 1 in 139,838,160
Five balls + one lucky star: 1 in 6,991,908
Five balls: 1 in 3,107,515
Four balls + two lucky stars: 1 in 621,503
Four balls + one lucky star: 1 in 31,076
Three balls + two lucky stars: 1 in 14,126
Four balls: 1 in 13,812
Two balls + two lucky stars: 1 in 986
Three balls + one lucky star: 1 in 707
Three balls: 1 in 314
One ball + two lucky stars: 1 in 188
Two balls + one lucky star: 1 in 50
Two balls: 1 in 22
Chances of winning the Thunderball
Thunderball is another game run by National Lottery where you pick five numbers and one "Thunderball". It costs just £1 to play and you can enter up to four times a week.
The jackpot of £500,000 for matching five balls plus the Thunderball is 1 in 8,060,598.
Your odds of bagging the next highest prize of £5,000 for matching five balls is currently 1 in 620,046, while the chances of winning £250 for four balls plus the Thunderball is 1 in 47,416.
You have the best chance of winning £3 for matching the Thunderball, with odds of 1 in 29.
Full list of odds:
Five balls + Thunderball: 1 in 8,060,598
Five balls: 1 in 620,046
Four balls + Thunderball: 1 in 47,416
Four balls: 1 in 3,648
Three balls + Thunderball: 1 in 1,437
Three balls: 1 in 111
Two balls + Thunderball: 1 in 135
One ball + Thunderball: 1 in 35
Thunderball: 1 in 29
Chances of winning on scratchcards
The odds of winning on paper scratchcards are a bit harder to pin down, but you generally have a one in four chance of winning something, according to gambling experts Lemon and Sevens.
According to National Lottery, you can buy paper scratchcards at over 40,000 shops around the UK including Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury's and Morrisons.
While the exact odds aren't revealed, you can take a look at how many top prizes are left for each type of paper scratchcard by visiting national lottery.co.uk/games/gamestore/scratchcards.
This is useful to know before you buy as entering a game with no or few big prizes left means you're less likely to win big.
You have a far better chance of scooping a jackpot on games with a large number of top prizes left.
National Lottery does reveal the odds for winning a prize on its online scratchcards, but this is for winning any prize as opposed to the jackpot.
Full list of online scratchcard odds:
£100,000 Jackpot Teal: 1 in 2.62
£250,000 Jackpot Multiplier Red: 1 in 2.82
£100 Bonus: 1 in 3.21
£300,000 Triple Cashword Pink: 1
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