The Illinois Lottery sells Bonus Word Crossword at $3 a ticket. Its published overall odds are 1 in 3.49. Its current expected value works out to $0.69 on the dollar, an average return. The top prize is $50,000. Across every tier, 82% of prizes are still out there: most prizes are still available. Its ValueScore is 60/100 (Good). Against the rest of the state it is 19th out of 58 Illinois scratch-offs. At its own price point it is the strongest of Illinois's 4 $3 tickets.
Overall Odds
1 in 3.49
Exp. Value
$0.69
per $1 spent
Top Prize
$50,000
Top Prizes Left
8
Prizes Remaining
82%
ValueScore™
60 / 100
Good
Should I Buy This Ticket?
Expected value per $1 spent:
$0.69→
AVERAGE
A typical $3 ticket, ranked #19 of the 58 active games we track in Illinois.
Why
→Expected value lands near the pack at $0.69 per $1 spent.
- The bigger prize tiers here have plenty left to win.
- Winning tickets come up at a 29% clip (1 in 3.49), above the norm.
Current Prize Odds
ScratchCheck estimate$50,000
8 of 8 left
launch odds 1 in 1.2M
now ~1 in 988K
$2,000
70 of 80 left
launch odds 1 in 120K
now ~1 in 113K
$1,000
70 of 77 left
launch odds 1 in 125K
now ~1 in 113K
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | 1 in 1,199,488 | 8 | 8 | 100% |
| $2,000 | 1 in 119,949 | 80 | 70 | 88% |
| $1,000 | 1 in 124,622 | 77 | 70 | 91% |
| $200 | 1 in 4,776 | 2,009 | 1,644 | 82% |
| $100 | 1 in 1,711 | 5,607 | 4,595 | 82% |
| $50 | 1 in 325 | 29,543 | 24,326 | 82% |
| $30 | 1 in 200 | 48,032 | 39,428 | 82% |
| $25 | 1 in 100 | 95,955 | 78,421 | 82% |
| $20 | 1 in 133 | 71,944 | 59,151 | 82% |
| $10 | 1 in 50 | 191,940 | 157,762 | 82% |
| $8 | 1 in 100 | 95,959 | 78,432 | 82% |
| $6 | 1 in 33 | 287,877 | 236,084 | 82% |
| $5 | 1 in 14 | 671,770 | 552,340 | 82% |
| $3 | 1 in 8 | 1,247,467 | 1,032,935 | 83% |
Prize Pool Analysis
Total Payout at Launch
$19,870,950
Current Prize Pool
$16,423,070
Payout Percentage
82.6%
Total Prizes Remaining
2,265,266
Ticket Statistics
Total Tickets Printed
9,591,455
Estimated Remaining
7,905,778
% Remaining
82.4%
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
60
VALUESCORE
Good
60
out of 100
Expected Value
6/40
Prize Quality
21/25
Win Frequency
17/20
Inventory Health
15/15
Updated: 9/4/2026
Game Details
- State
- Illinois
- Game Number
- 7662
- Ticket Price
- $3
- Start Date
- 7/7/2026
- Payout %
- 69.0%
- Data Source
- Official
- Last Updated
- 9/4/2026
Compare
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Image Credit: Illinois Lottery
$3.00 per ticket · 1 in 3.49 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 Bonus Word Crossword scratch-off a good buy?
Bonus Word Crossword is a solid choice. Its ValueScore of 60/100 is above average, indicating good expected value and a healthy prize pool. It performs better than most $3 tickets in Illinois.
How much does Bonus Word Crossword cost?
Bonus Word Crossword costs $3 per ticket in Illinois. All ScratchCheck figures for this game (expected value, ValueScore, and top prize analysis) are calculated against this $3 ticket price.
What are the odds of winning the Bonus Word Crossword scratch-off?
The overall odds of winning any prize with Bonus Word Crossword are 1 in 3.49. This means roughly 1 in every 3 tickets wins a prize of any amount.
What is the top prize for Bonus Word Crossword?
The top prize for Bonus Word Crossword is $50,000. As of our latest update, 8 top prizes remain unclaimed.
What are the prizes for Bonus Word Crossword?
Bonus Word Crossword offers 14 distinct prize levels: $50,000 (8 total), $2,000 (80 total), $1,000 (77 total), $200 (2,009 total), $100 (5,607 total), $50 (29,543 total), $30 (48,032 total), $25 (95,955 total), $20 (71,944 total), $10 (191,940 total), $8 (95,959 total), $6 (287,877 total), $5 (671,770 total), and $3 (1,247,467 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 Bonus Word Crossword?
Based on our latest data, 82% of all prize tickets remain (approximately 2,265,266 out of 2,748,268 total). The game is early in its run, with most prizes still on the market.
How is Bonus Word Crossword rated by ScratchCheck?
ScratchCheck rates Bonus Word Crossword at 60 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 Bonus Word Crossword released?
Bonus Word Crossword was released by the Illinois Lottery on July 7, 2026. It has been on sale for about 2 months.
How often is Bonus Word Crossword data updated on ScratchCheck?
Bonus Word Crossword data comes directly from the official Illinois Lottery and is refreshed daily, so the odds and remaining prize counts you see match the lottery's latest published figures.