Scratch-offs dominate the US lottery business, accounting for 65% of sales
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US lotteries sold $96.2 billion of tickets in fiscal 2025. According to the North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries, which collects the figures from the lotteries themselves, instant scratch tickets were $62.8 billion of that, or 65.3%. Draw games came to $32.1 billion, or 33.3%. Digital instant games showed up as $1.3 billion, or 1.4%.
The national breakdown, game by game
| Category | FY2025 sales | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Instant scratch tickets | $62.80 billion | 65.3% |
| Daily numbers games (Pick 3, Pick 4, and similar) | $11.82 billion | 12.3% |
| Monitor keno | $4.62 billion | 4.8% |
| Mega Millions | $4.04 billion | 4.2% |
| Powerball | $3.93 billion | 4.1% |
| State lotto games | $3.53 billion | 3.7% |
| Fast Play terminal instants | $1.63 billion | 1.7% |
| Digital instants (net of prizes) | $1.30 billion | 1.4% |
| Cash Pop | $0.60 billion | 0.6% |
| Lucky for Life and other for-life games | $0.70 billion | 0.7% |
| Everything else | $1.02 billion | 1.1% |
Powerball and Mega Millions are the two games that produce the news headlines, and together they are 8.3% of the lottery business at around $7.97 billion. State daily numbers games are at $11.8 billion. Scratch-offs sold more than all draw games combined by almost double.
Why the digital number has a footnote
NASPL flags the problem in a footnote to its own table. "iLottery eInstant games are standardized across jurisdictions as gross play less prizes won," it says, and adds that "the total 'sales' for some jurisdictions may differ from that reported in annual financial statements." Digital instants pay back around 89 cents on the dollar, so reporting them after prizes shrinks them by a factor of around nine before they reach the table.
North Carolina shows the size of the distortion. NASPL lists its digital instants at $329 million. The North Carolina Education Lottery's own management commentary, filed with the State Auditor, says total fiscal 2025 sales were $6.6 billion and that "it recorded $2.6 billion in Digital Instant sales during the first full year this new lottery product was offered." That's two figures for sources that are eight times apart.
Michigan publishes both halves. Its annual comprehensive financial report puts total ticket sales at $4.57 billion and lists iLottery instants at $168.5 million, or 3.7%. Note 8 of the same report gives the underlying numbers, $1.594 billion in sales against $1.426 billion in prizes.
| Michigan FY2025 | As reported | On a gross-play basis |
|---|---|---|
| Physical scratch-offs | 49.5% | 37.8% |
| Draw and monitor games | 47.1% | 35.9% |
| Digital instants | 3.7% | 26.6% |
| Total handle | $4.57 billion | $6.00 billion |
Pennsylvania reports it the other way around. Its lottery announced $831 million in online eInstant play for fiscal 2025 against $737.1 million in prizes, alongside $2.9 billion in scratch-off sales and $1.1 billion in retail draw games. Those are gross figures, and they are the ones to use when comparing a digital program against a shelf of tickets. Our digital game listings cover the games themselves.
Tennessee at 83%, the District of Columbia at 25%
The scratch-off share of traditional sales varies more by state than the national average suggests.
| Highest scratch-off share | Lowest scratch-off share | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Tennessee | 83.2% | District of Columbia | 25.0% |
| Texas | 81.3% | Montana | 34.1% |
| Arkansas | 81.3% | Oregon | 40.5% |
| Maine | 78.2% | Maryland | 40.8% |
| California | 77.2% | Rhode Island | 41.8% |
| Indiana | 76.6% | Virginia | 46.5% |
| Florida | 74.8% | Michigan | 49.4% |
Tennessee sold $1.52 billion of scratch tickets against $1.83 billion in total lottery sales. Its draw game business is small, and its multi-state games had a poor year, so the scratch-off share is the highest in the country. Texas at $6.43 billion scratch-off sales of $7.91 billion sits in nearly the same position.
The bottom of the list is a different story, because in several of those states the lottery is not only a lottery as some states run sports betting, table games, and more. Rhode Island's scratch tickets are 41.8% of its traditional lottery sales, but the Rhode Island Lottery also books $564 million in video terminal revenue, $127 million from table games, and $38 million from sports betting. Measured against everything the agency takes in, scratch tickets make up just 11.8%.
| State | Scratch-off share of lottery sales | Share of all agency revenue |
|---|---|---|
| Oregon | 40.5% | 10.3% |
| South Dakota | 65.4% | 11.7% |
| Rhode Island | 41.8% | 11.8% |
| Delaware | 49.5% | 14.0% |
| Maryland | 40.8% | 20.3% |
| West Virginia | 68.6% | 9.5% |
West Virginia is the clearest case. Its scratch tickets are 68.6% of lottery sales, above the national average, and 9.5% of what the West Virginia Lottery reports overall, because the agency runs the state's video terminals and casinos.
For the products themselves, why scratch-offs dominate comes down to payout and speed, and how much each state pays back varies by more than ten points. Where the profit goes afterward is covered in how much lotteries actually give schools.
How we did this. Sales by game category are from the North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries' fiscal 2025 sales and revenues table. NASPL describes those figures as preliminary and unaudited, and standardizes digital instant games as gross play less prizes won. Shares are calculated against each lottery's traditional game total, and the agency-revenue column adds the electronic gaming machine, table game, and sports betting revenue NASPL reports for lotteries that operate them. North Dakota and Wyoming report no instant sales and are excluded from the state rankings. Michigan's reported and gross-play figures are calculated from its own annual comprehensive financial report for the year ended September 30, 2025, including Note 8. North Carolina and Pennsylvania figures are from those lotteries' own fiscal 2025 filings and announcements. Fiscal years end at different dates by state.
Sources
NASPL: FY2025 Lottery Sales and Revenues
North Carolina Education Lottery: FY2025 Management Commentary
Bureau of State Lottery, State of Michigan: 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report
Pennsylvania Lottery: FY2024-25 sales and profit announcement
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Frequently Asked Questions
What percentage of lottery revenue comes from scratch-offs?
About 65%. In fiscal 2025, US lotteries reported $96.2 billion in traditional sales, and instant scratch tickets were $62.8 billion of it. Draw games, keno, pull-tabs, Fast Play, and Cash Pop together made up $32.1 billion, or 33.3%. Digital instant games appeared as $1.3 billion, or 1.4%, but that figure is reported after prizes are paid while the others are not.
How much of lottery revenue is Powerball and Mega Millions?
Less than most players assume. Powerball sold $3.93 billion and Mega Millions $4.04 billion in fiscal 2025, so the two jackpot games together were $7.97 billion, or 8.3% of US lottery sales. Daily numbers games sold more, at $11.8 billion, and monitor keno sold $4.6 billion.
Which state gets the largest share of its lottery money from scratch-offs?
Tennessee, at 83.2% of traditional lottery sales. Texas and Arkansas follow at 81.3%, then Maine at 78.2% and California at 77.2%. The District of Columbia is lowest at 25.0%, then Montana at 34.1%, Oregon at 40.5%, and Maryland at 40.8%.
Jessie Jurado is a news writer who covers new scratch-off launches, state lottery guides, taxes on winnings, news, and much more. She joined ScratchCheck in 2026 and writes the site's state-by-state coverage.
