Illinois Lottery hits a record $3.87 billion in sales

The Illinois Lottery sold a record $3.87 billion in tickets in the fiscal year that ended June 30, up about 3% from $3.76 billion the year before, the lottery said Monday. Four of the past five years have set sales records. The lottery generated $804 million for the state, its fourth-best year, including $792 million for the Common School Fund, which supports K-12 public education, and $12 million for other causes. That figure has not yet been audited.

Online play is growing faster than the rest. Sales through the lottery's iLottery site and app reached a record $757 million, about 20% of all sales, run by Allwyn North America, the lottery's private operator. Players won more than $2.7 billion in prizes on nearly 107.5 million winning tickets, about 70% of sales, and 147 won $1 million or more. The biggest was a $536 million Mega Millions jackpot won by an iLottery player. Retailers earned $176.5 million in commissions and bonuses. The fiscal 2026 numbers do not include the $1.04 billion Powerball jackpot won in Illinois in August, part of the new fiscal year.

Illinois is growing while many lotteries are not. Of 10 large state lotteries with audited fiscal 2025 reports we track, 7 sold less than the year before, and the two that grew most, North Carolina and Virginia, also sell online. Last year's Illinois release described a general slowing of lottery sales across the country in fiscal 2025, tied mainly to a lack of $1 billion-plus Powerball and Mega Millions jackpots. Illinois' 55 scratch-offs on sale return an average of 74.7% of sales as prizes, well above the national average of about 70%; they are listed on the Illinois scratch-offs page.

Sources

Illinois Lottery: Illinois Lottery achieves record sales, generates funding for K-12 education

Illinois Lottery via GlobeNewswire: Illinois Lottery generates essential funding for K-12 education (fiscal 2025)