MEGA Crossword
Image Credit: California Lottery
46
VALUESCORE
Fair
At $5 a ticket, MEGA Crossword comes from the California Lottery. Published overall odds: 1 in 3.82. Dollar for dollar, it pays back around $0.69 per $1, an average return for a scratch-off. The top prize is $75,000. By our count about half the prizes remain, with 52% of all prizes unclaimed. On ScratchCheck's 0-100 ValueScore it earns a 46 (Fair). Today it stands at 28th out of 52 California scratch-offs; among $5 tickets it is in the top third of California's 11 $5 tickets, at 4th.
Overall Odds
1 in 3.82
Exp. Value
$0.69
per $1 spent
Top Prize
$75,000
Top Prizes Left
17
Prizes Remaining
52%
ValueScore™
46 / 100
Fair
Should I Buy This Ticket?
Expected value per $1 spent:
$0.69→
AVERAGE
Nothing wrong with it, but nothing special either; it is 4th of the 11 active $5 games in California.
Why
→$0.69 returned per dollar is roughly what most scratch-offs pay right now.
- At 1 in 3.82, winning tickets turn up less often than usual.
- A reasonable chunk of the top and mid-tier prizes are still available, though not the majority.
Current Prize Odds
ScratchCheck estimate$75,000
17 of 35 left
launch odds 1 in 1.2M
now ~1 in 1.3M
$5,000
299 of 528 left
launch odds 1 in 81K
now ~1 in 75K
$1,000
574 of 1,082 left
launch odds 1 in 39K
now ~1 in 39K
ScratchCheck estimate. Current odds are derived from the prizes still unclaimed and our estimate of tickets remaining, shown next to the lottery’s printed launch odds. Actual odds vary as tickets are sold and prizes claimed.
Prize Breakdown
| Prize | Odds | Total | Left | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $75,000 | 1 in 1,218,848 | 35 | 17 | 49% |
| $5,000 | 1 in 80,795 | 528 | 299 | 57% |
| $1,000 | 1 in 39,427 | 1,082 | 574 | 53% |
| $500 | 1 in 3,077 | 13,862 | 7,084 | 51% |
| $100 | 1 in 600 | 71,150 | 36,489 | 51% |
| $50 | 1 in 315 | 135,546 | 69,702 | 51% |
| $30 | 1 in 200 | 213,342 | 110,039 | 52% |
| $25 | 1 in 160 | 266,915 | 137,221 | 51% |
| $20 | 1 in 40 | 1,066,570 | 551,620 | 52% |
| $15 | 1 in 21 | 2,025,976 | 1,046,388 | 52% |
| $10 | 1 in 12 | 3,626,455 | 1,888,289 | 52% |
| $5 | 1 in 11 | 3,732,722 | 2,003,998 | 54% |
Prize Pool Analysis
Total Payout at Launch
$146,892,635
Current Prize Pool
$76,382,795
Payout Percentage
52.0%
Total Prizes Remaining
5,851,720
Ticket Statistics
Total Tickets Printed
42,608,979
Estimated Remaining
22,353,570
% Remaining
52.5%
Prize pool figures use advertised prize values. Tickets printed is estimated from overall odds. Tickets remaining is estimated from the share of prizes still unclaimed.
ValueScore™ Breakdown
46
VALUESCORE
Fair
46
out of 100
Expected Value
13/40
Prize Quality
14/25
Win Frequency
7/20
Inventory Health
12/15
Updated: 9/4/2026
Game Details
- State
- California
- Game Number
- 1717
- Ticket Price
- $5
- Start Date
- 2/16/2026
- Payout %
- 68.9%
- Data Source
- Official
- Last Updated
- 9/4/2026
Compare
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Run a virtual scratch-off using this game's real odds.
Image Credit: California Lottery
$5.00 per ticket · 1 in 3.82 overall odds
✓ Accounts for prizes already claimed
Entertainment only. Outcomes are random and won't match a real session. Current-odds mode scales each tier by remaining prizes and tickets.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the MEGA Crossword scratch-off a good buy?
MEGA Crossword is a middling ticket with a ValueScore of 46/100. It is roughly average compared to other scratch-offs in California. If you are looking for the best value at this price point, check the California rankings page for higher-rated alternatives.
How much does MEGA Crossword cost?
MEGA Crossword costs $5 per ticket in California. All ScratchCheck figures for this game (expected value, ValueScore, and top prize analysis) are calculated against this $5 ticket price.
What are the odds of winning the MEGA Crossword scratch-off?
The overall odds of winning any prize with MEGA Crossword are 1 in 3.82. This means roughly 1 in every 4 tickets wins a prize of any amount.
What is the top prize for MEGA Crossword?
The top prize for MEGA Crossword is $75,000. As of our latest update, 17 top prizes remain unclaimed.
What are the prizes for MEGA Crossword?
MEGA Crossword offers 12 distinct prize levels: $75,000 (35 total), $5,000 (528 total), $1,000 (1,082 total), $500 (13,862 total), $100 (71,150 total), $50 (135,546 total), $30 (213,342 total), $25 (266,915 total), $20 (1,066,570 total), $15 (2,025,976 total), $10 (3,626,455 total), and $5 (3,732,722 total). The full prize breakdown with odds and remaining counts is listed in the prize table on this page.
How many prizes are left in MEGA Crossword?
Based on our latest data, 52% of all prize tickets remain (approximately 5,851,720 out of 11,154,183 total). Roughly half the prizes remain, which is typical for an active game.
How is MEGA Crossword rated by ScratchCheck?
ScratchCheck rates MEGA Crossword at 46 out of 100 using ValueScore™, a composite rating built from four factors: Expected Value, Prize Quality, Win Frequency, and Inventory Health. Scores of 80 or above are Excellent, 60 to 79 Good, 40 to 59 Fair, 20 to 39 Below Average, and below 20 is Poor. The score updates automatically as prizes are claimed and data refreshes.
When was MEGA Crossword released?
MEGA Crossword was released by the California Lottery on February 16, 2026. It has been on sale for roughly 7 months, so a meaningful portion of prizes has likely been claimed.
How often is MEGA Crossword data updated on ScratchCheck?
MEGA Crossword data comes directly from the official California Lottery and is refreshed daily, so the odds and remaining prize counts you see match the lottery's latest published figures.