Ranked 23rd of 53 Tickets in Illinois
Winter WordsIllinois Scratch-Off Odds & Prizes Remaining
Image Credit: Illinois Lottery
57
VALUESCORE
Fair
At a glance
Winter Words costs $3 a ticket from the Illinois Lottery. With a ValueScore of 57/100 (Fair), it is the strongest of Illinois's 3 $3 tickets. At 1 in 4.09, its overall odds are the longest of Illinois's 3 $3 games. It went on sale on November 3, 2026, so 95% of its prizes are still unclaimed.
Overall Odds
1 in 4.09
Exp. Value
$0.69
per $1 spent
Top Prize
$70,000
Top Prizes Left
3
Prizes Remaining
95%
ValueScore™
57 / 100
Fair
Should I Buy This Ticket?
Expected value per $1 spent:
$0.69→
AVERAGE
Middle of the pack: #23 of the 53 active games we track in Illinois.
Why
→You get back about $0.69 per $1 on average, which is normal for this price.
- Average win frequency: about a 24% chance to win something per ticket (1 in 4.09).
- The bigger prize tiers here have plenty left to win.
Current Prize Odds
ScratchCheck estimate · Updated November 7$70,000
3 of 3 left
launch odds 1 in 1.1M
now ~1 in 1.0M
$7,000
6 of 6 left
launch odds 1 in 539K
now ~1 in 513K
$700
60 of 60 left
launch odds 1 in 54K
now ~1 in 51K
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $70,000 | 1 in 1,077,767 | 3 | 3 | 100% |
| $7,000 | 1 in 538,883 | 6 | 6 | 100% |
| $700 | 1 in 53,888 | 60 | 60 | 100% |
| $500 | 1 in 11,931 | 271 | 257 | 95% |
| $200 | 1 in 12,110 | 267 | 253 | 95% |
| $120 | 1 in 12,294 | 263 | 248 | 94% |
| $100 | 1 in 2,418 | 1,337 | 1,282 | 96% |
| $75 | 1 in 2,988 | 1,082 | 1,028 | 95% |
| $72 | 1 in 6,021 | 537 | 512 | 95% |
| $70 | 1 in 4,037 | 801 | 758 | 95% |
| $60 | 1 in 3,008 | 1,075 | 1,023 | 95% |
| $50 | 1 in 602 | 5,369 | 5,103 | 95% |
| $42 | 1 in 2,391 | 1,352 | 1,267 | 94% |
| $36 | 1 in 1,206 | 2,680 | 2,545 | 95% |
| $35 | 1 in 2,402 | 1,346 | 1,288 | 96% |
| $30 | 1 in 480 | 6,742 | 6,411 | 95% |
| $25 | 1 in 399 | 8,095 | 7,698 | 95% |
| $21 | 1 in 300 | 10,790 | 10,292 | 95% |
| $20 | 1 in 301 | 10,752 | 10,210 | 95% |
| $18 | 1 in 182 | 17,789 | 16,901 | 95% |
| $15 | 1 in 133 | 24,290 | 23,140 | 95% |
| $12 | 1 in 100 | 32,333 | 30,783 | 95% |
| $10 | 1 in 80 | 40,376 | 38,481 | 95% |
| $9 | 1 in 50 | 64,666 | 61,521 | 95% |
| $6 | 1 in 20 | 161,665 | 154,081 | 95% |
| $5 | 1 in 24 | 137,375 | 130,989 | 95% |
| $3 | 1 in 13 | 258,664 | 246,894 | 95% |
Prize Pool Analysis
Total Payout at Launch
$6,694,792
Current Prize Pool
$6,388,966
Payout Percentage
95.4%
Total Prizes Remaining
753,034
Ticket Statistics
Total Tickets Printed
3,231,043
Estimated Remaining
3,079,909
% Remaining
95.3%
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.
Prize History
Top prizes left
All 3 $70,000 top prizes left on October 27, when our records for it began, are still unclaimed.
| Date | What happened | Top prizes left |
|---|---|---|
| October 27 | Our records begin | 3 |
| November 7 | Latest count, none claimed | 3 |
From ScratchCheck's daily record of the lottery's published prize counts. Dates are when a claim first appeared in those counts, and small prizes are often cashed days after purchase, so claims trail actual sales.
ValueScore™ Breakdown
57
VALUESCORE
Fair
57
out of 100
Expected Value
8/40
Prize Quality
25/25
Win Frequency
9/20
Inventory Health
15/15
Updated: 11/7/2026
Game Details
- State
- Illinois
- Game Number
- 7680
- Ticket Price
- $3
- Start Date
- 11/3/2026
- Payout %
- 69.0%
- Data Source
- Official
- Last Updated
- 11/7/2026
Compare
Compare this game with another →Official Source
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Run a virtual scratch-off using this game's real odds.
Image Credit: Illinois Lottery
$3.00 per ticket · 1 in 4.09 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 Winter Words scratch-off a good buy?
It is about average. Winter Words scores 57/100 (Fair) and is the best $3 game on sale in Illinois. It pays back about $0.69 for every $1 spent.
What are the odds of winning the Winter Words scratch-off?
The overall odds of winning any prize with Winter Words are 1 in 4.09. This means roughly 1 in every 4 tickets wins a prize of any amount.
What is the top prize for Winter Words?
The top prize for Winter Words is $70,000. As of our latest update, 3 top prizes remain unclaimed.
How many prizes are left in Winter Words?
Based on our latest data, 95% of all prize tickets remain (approximately 753,034 out of 789,986 total). The game is early in its run, with most prizes still on the market.
When was Winter Words released?
Winter Words was released by the Illinois Lottery on November 3, 2026. It is newly released, so the prize pool is essentially intact.
Every $3 ticket in Illinois
| Game | ValueScore | Odds | Payout | Top prize · left |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter Words (this game) | 57 | 1 in 4.09 | 69.0% | $70K · 3 |
| Bonus Word Crossword | 54 | 1 in 3.49 | 69.0% | $50K · 6 |
| Loteria™ | 31 | 1 in 3.85 | 68.9% | $80K · 0 |