ScratchCheck Blog
Analysis, strategy, and stories from the editorial team.
Latest articles
How much lottery money goes unclaimed each year?
The $2 billion figure everyone quotes came from a 2018 interview. Using Census data and the rates states actually disclose, the real range is $1.05bn to $1.68bn.
by Jessie Jurado
Father’s Day scratch-off gift wins Michigan family a record $8 million
The Lucky Dogz club won $8 million on a $50 ticket bought as a Father’s Day gift, a Michigan record. Two more $8 million prizes are still unclaimed on the game.
by Jessie Jurado
Expensive scratch-offs usually have better payouts than cheap tickets
Scratch-offs run from $1 to $50, and the price is not just the stake. The more a ticket costs, the more of every dollar it returns and the bigger the top prize.
by Phil Nageotte
Louisiana launched 3 new scratch-offs, with one game featuring the New Orleans Saints
Louisiana put three new scratch-offs on sale August 17, priced $1 to $3. Lucky 13 Crossword rates 75.8, and none of them touches the Fire/Ice ticket that launched two weeks earlier at 98.4.
by Jessie Jurado
An Ohio teen bought his first lottery ticket minutes after turning 18 and won $10,000
Austin of Lewis Center turned 18 and bought a ticket just after midnight, winning $10,000 on a $20 Diamond Dazzler. A few hours earlier it would have been worthless.
by Jessie Jurado
What happens to lottery winnings when the winner dies?
Annuity payments do not vanish when a winner dies. They go to the estate, and so does an unclaimed winning ticket, with deadlines that do not pause for probate.
by Jessie Jurado
Maryland launched 4 new scratch-offs in August 2026
Maryland put four new scratch-offs on sale August 21. Two $10 games launched together show the crossword trade exactly: better odds, lower payout.
by Jessie Jurado
What happens if a minor buys a winning lottery ticket? The time California refused to pay a $5 million lottery ticket
A 16-year-old bought a $5 million California Scratchers ticket and the lottery refused to pay. A judge agreed. What happens when a minor holds a winning ticket.
by Jessie Jurado
We tested the most common lottery superstitions against 2,315 drawings
Lucky numbers, birthday picks and lucky socks, tested against 2,315 Powerball and Mega Millions drawings. One superstition turns out to cost real money.
by Phil Nageotte
A Chicago mom won $400,000 on a $5 ticket, and it was the last top prize in the game
A Chicago mother of three won $400,000 on a $5 In the Money ticket in Gage Park. Our data shows it was the last of the game’s three top prizes, and it is still on sale.
by Jessie Jurado
Do licensed scratch-offs like Monopoly and NFL teams pay worse? We reviewed the data
Licensed scratch-offs average 68.6% payout against 70.0% for everything else. Compare them at the same ticket price and that gap disappears entirely.
by Phil Nageotte
Is it true that you're likelier to be struck by lightning twice than to win the Powerball or Mega Millions jackpot?
Two lifetime lightning strikes work out at about 1 in 234 million against 1 in 292 million for a Powerball ticket. The claim holds, and the comparison is still rigged.
by Phil Nageotte
A Charlotte woman won $1 million on the best-rated $30 ticket in North Carolina
Stephenie Cunningham of Charlotte won $1 million on a $30 Max-A-Million ticket and took the $600,000 lump sum. The game rates 84.3, the best $30 ticket in the state.
by Jessie Jurado
Texas scratch-offs with the most top prizes still unclaimed
The active Texas scratch-offs with the most top prizes waiting, from a $5 game with 29 unclaimed six-figure prizes to a brand-new $20 ticket holding ten $1 million prizes.
by Jessie Jurado
What happens if you lose a winning lottery ticket?
A lottery ticket is a bearer instrument: whoever holds it can claim it. What losing one means, what signing the back changes, and the narrow paths to recovery.
by Jessie Jurado
Indiana Lottery expects to send nearly $350 million back to the state
The Hoosier Lottery will send almost $350 million to the state after nearly $1.7 billion in sales. The money funds pensions and a vehicle tax break rather than schools.
by Jessie Jurado
Denton resident claims $1 million Texas scratch-off prize, leaving one top prize on a game Texas has already replaced
A Denton resident claimed the ninth of ten $1 million prizes on Million Dollar Loteria and stayed anonymous. One is left, and Texas launched a fresh edition two days earlier with all ten intact.
by Jessie Jurado
Where a $1 million lottery win goes furthest: every state's tax rate compared
The same $1 million scratch-off win keeps about $630,000 in Texas and closer to $482,000 in New York City. The gap is entirely state and local tax.
by Phil Nageotte
Georgia launched 2 new scratch-offs on August 18, and one features the Georgia Bulldogs
Georgia put two new scratch-offs on sale August 18. $600 Cash In Hand rates 86.0 despite a $600 top prize, while the $300,000 Bulldog Bucks rates 67.0.
by Jessie Jurado
Texas launched 4 new scratch-off tickets for August 2026
Texas put four new scratch-offs on sale August 17. Million Dollar Loteria rates 90.6, and the $5 Houston Texans ticket pays back more than the identically priced Cowboys ticket.
by Jessie Jurado
How much do state lotteries actually give schools?
US lotteries sent about $28.4 billion to beneficiary programs in fiscal 2025, down from almost $30.6 billion. Georgia and Idaho set records anyway, and Tennessee went the other way.
by Jessie Jurado
An unclaimed $1 million Powerball ticket sold in New York is expiring soon
A Powerball ticket worth $1 million, sold at Village Grocery in Port Jefferson, expires September 1, 2026. It matched five numbers from the Labor Day 2025 drawing.
by Jessie Jurado
What the three-letter codes on Massachusetts scratch tickets mean
Codes like TYH and OHR are not in any official list, because Massachusetts does not publish one. What the three-letter codes are actually for, and why the barcode is the only answer that counts.
by Jessie Jurado
Oregon launched 3 new scratch-offs, and one ranks as the 7th best in the country
Oregon put three new scratch-offs on sale August 11, and One Word Crossword rates 97.0, seventh among the 2,833 active US games we score.
by Jessie Jurado
How often do new scratch-offs come out?
New scratch-offs launch far more often than most players notice. Across the US, states put out roughly 160 new games a month, most on a monthly or twice-monthly cycle.
by Jessie Jurado
A $3 million scratch-off sold in Erie County, Pennsylvania
A $3,000,000 Golden Ticket sold at a Country Fair in Union City won $3 million, and the store earns a $10,000 bonus. Pennsylvania winners have no legal right to anonymity.
by Jessie Jurado
A family trip to Massachusetts turned into a $1 million lottery win
Cory Choquette of Maryland won $1 million on a $10 Massachusetts 100X ticket while visiting family, and took the $650,000 cash option. The store earns a $10,000 bonus.
by Jessie Jurado
Why are people buying losing lottery tickets on eBay?
Some buyers pay real money for stacks of worthless lottery tickets on eBay, using them to fake gambling-loss deductions. A tax professor calls it clearly fraud, and the tickets do not even work.
by Jessie Jurado
Which Florida scratch-offs win the most? The answer is about payout, not luck
The Florida scratch-offs that "win the most" are the ones that pay back the most of every dollar. Several return close to 80%, and the $50 tickets lead.
by Phil Nageotte
How lottery winners lose it all, and the people who prove it happens
The "70% of winners go broke" stat is a myth, but real research shows big winners were more likely to go bankrupt within five years. How the money disappears, and the people who prove it.
by Jessie Jurado
Tennessee's lottery no longer fully covers the scholarships it funds, a new report finds
A ThinkTennessee report finds the state spent more on lottery scholarships than the lottery earned for the first time, with proceeds down about 22% since 2022. Scholarships are not at immediate risk.
by Jessie Jurado
There is $2.8 billion in unclaimed scratch-off grand prizes sitting on shelves right now
Across the US, 458 scratch-off games still have a million-dollar top prize unclaimed, worth $2.84 billion combined. Here is where the biggest ones are.
by Phil Nageotte
The manager of the store that sold the $1.04 billion ticket bought a Powerball ticket too but says he's not the winner
The Quincy Hy-Vee that sold the $1.04 billion Powerball ticket earns a $500,000 bonus. Its manager bought a ticket too, checked it, and joked "sadly, it wasn't me."
by Jessie Jurado
Oklahoma’s 5 new scratch-offs ranked from best to worst
Oklahoma launched five new scratch-offs on August 13, led by the $10 24K Gold at 89.3. Across the Gold series, value climbs cleanly with the price.
by Jessie Jurado
Why Mark Cuban tells lottery winners to skip the cash option and take the annuity instead
Mark Cuban tells lottery winners to take the annuity, hire a tax attorney first, and never start investing. It cuts against what most winners do, and the reasoning holds up.
by Jessie Jurado
Which Tennessee scratch-offs win the most?
The Tennessee scratch-offs that win most often, by overall odds, led by Mega Play Jumbo Bucks Crossword at 1 in 2.57. $3,000 Loaded pairs great odds with the top ValueScore.
by Phil Nageotte
Scratch-offs, pull-tabs, and Fast Play: the instant lottery games explained
Scratch-offs are not the only way to win instantly. Pull-tabs at the bar and Fast Play tickets from the lottery terminal are close cousins that work in very different ways. Here is how each one plays.
by Phil Nageotte
The best $10 scratch-off in every state right now
The single best $10 scratch-off in all 44 lottery states, ranked by ValueScore. New Hampshire, Iowa and West Virginia top the list.
by Phil Nageotte
One Illinois player just won the $1.04 billion Powerball jackpot, the 8th largest ever
A single Illinois ticket won the $1.04 billion Powerball jackpot, the 8th largest ever. The cash option is $450.5 million, leaving about $261.5 million after tax.
by Jessie Jurado
Massachusetts launched 5 new scratch-offs, led by a $10 game rating 87.9
Massachusetts put five new scratch-offs on sale on August 11, from $1 to $10. Decade of Dollars leads at 87.9 with an 83.3% payout.
by Jessie Jurado
Florida launched 3 new scratch-offs, led by a $50 game with 60 top prizes of $500,000
Florida put three new scratch-offs on sale on August 10, at $5, $10 and $50. The $50 Cash Blitz rates 85.5 and still has 60 top prizes.
by Jessie Jurado
Powerball just hit $1 Billion. Here is how much you actually get after the cash option and taxes
The $1 billion Powerball jackpot has a cash value of $433.1 million. After federal tax a winner keeps about $272.9 million, or $208.9 million in New York City.
by Phil Nageotte
Georgia scratch-offs still have nearly $186 million in top prizes unclaimed
Across 77 Georgia scratch-offs, 180 top prizes worth $185.9 million are still unclaimed. Another 36 games are on sale with every top prize already gone.
by Phil Nageotte
Powerball jackpot reaches near $1 Billion, the biggest of 2026
Wednesday's Powerball jackpot is an estimated $975 million with a $422.3 million cash option. That would make it the 8th largest in the game's history.
by Phil Nageotte
How long does it take to actually get your money from a scratch-off?
Small scratch-off prizes are cash in your hand in a minute. Bigger ones move to a claim center or the mail, where the wait runs from days to about six weeks.
by Jessie Jurado
A Thomaston player won $3 million on a Georgia scratch-off that launched in 2018
A Thomaston resident claimed $3 million on 100X THE MONEY, a $20 Georgia game that launched in 2018. Three of its 21 top prizes are still unclaimed.
by Jessie Jurado
Has anyone won a Powerball or Mega Millions jackpot online from a mobile app?
The largest online lottery prize in US history is a $552 million Mega Millions jackpot bought on the Illinois iLottery. A Jackpocket user won $250.8 million on Powerball in 2026.
by Jessie Jurado
Do you need ID and a Social Security number to claim a lottery prize?
Small prizes are paid at the counter with no questions. Bigger ones require photo ID and a taxpayer number, and missing paperwork raises the withholding rather than blocking the prize.
by Jessie Jurado