Holiday Cashword
Image Credit: North Carolina Lottery
49
VALUESCORE
Fair
Holiday Cashword is a $5 scratch-off lottery ticket from the North Carolina Lottery. It has overall odds of 1 in 3.93, meaning roughly 1 in every 4 tickets wins a prize. The expected value is $0.69 per $1 spent, which is an average return compared to other scratch-offs. The top prize is $150,000. About half the prizes remain (49% remaining). ScratchCheck rates this ticket 49/100 (Fair) based on expected value, prize quality, win frequency, and inventory health.
Overall Odds
1 in 3.93
Exp. Value
$0.69
per $1 spent
Top Prize
$150,000
Top Prizes Left
1
Prizes Remaining
49%
ValueScore™
49 / 100
Fair
Should I Buy This Ticket?
Expected value per $1 spent:
$0.69→
AVERAGE
Middle-of-the-pack value for a ticket at this price point.
Why
→Middling prize quality: a fair number of the bigger prizes are still in play.
- Expected value lands near the pack at $0.69 per $1 spent.
- This game is partway played through, with a fair share of prizes remaining.
Current Prize Odds
ScratchCheck estimate$150,000
1 of 3 left
launch odds 1 in 1.2M
now ~1 in 1.8M
$5,000
5 of 12 left
launch odds 1 in 309K
now ~1 in 364K
$1,000
27 of 62 left
launch odds 1 in 60K
now ~1 in 67K
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $150,000 | 1 in 1,235,420 | 3 | 1 | 33% |
| $5,000 | 1 in 308,855 | 12 | 5 | 42% |
| $1,000 | 1 in 59,778 | 62 | 27 | 44% |
| $500 | 1 in 12,073 | 307 | 153 | 50% |
| $250 | 1 in 10,017 | 370 | 172 | 46% |
| $200 | 1 in 8,540 | 434 | 207 | 48% |
| $100 | 1 in 690 | 5,369 | 2,560 | 48% |
| $75 | 1 in 536 | 6,910 | 3,333 | 48% |
| $50 | 1 in 200 | 18,520 | 9,106 | 49% |
| $25 | 1 in 60 | 61,771 | 31,608 | 51% |
| $20 | 1 in 22 | 169,889 | 80,644 | 47% |
| $10 | 1 in 12 | 308,853 | 149,075 | 48% |
| $5 | 1 in 10 | 370,600 | 185,868 | 50% |
Prize Pool Analysis
Total Payout at Launch
$12,769,535
Current Prize Pool
$6,147,345
Payout Percentage
48.1%
Total Prizes Remaining
462,759
Ticket Statistics
Total Tickets Printed
3,706,383
Estimated Remaining
1,818,643
% Remaining
49.1%
Prize pool figures use advertised prize values. Tickets printed and remaining are estimated from overall odds and the share of prizes still unclaimed.
ValueScore™ Breakdown
49
VALUESCORE
Fair
49
out of 100
Expected Value
Prize Quality
Win Frequency
Inventory Health
Updated: 7/19/2026
Game Details
- State
- North Carolina
- Game Number
- 19
- Ticket Price
- $5
- Start Date
- 11/4/2025
- Payout %
- 68.9%
- Data Source
- Official
- Last Updated
- 7/19/2026
Compare
Compare this game with another →Official Source
View on North Carolina Lottery ↗Simulate This Game
Run a virtual scratch-off using this game's real odds.
Image Credit: North Carolina Lottery
$5.00 per ticket · 1 in 3.93 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 Holiday Cashword scratch-off a good buy?
Holiday Cashword is a middling ticket with a ValueScore of 49/100. It is roughly average compared to other scratch-offs in North Carolina. If you are looking for the best value at this price point, check the North Carolina rankings page for higher-rated alternatives.
How much does Holiday Cashword cost?
Holiday Cashword costs $5 per ticket in North Carolina. 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 Holiday Cashword scratch-off?
The overall odds of winning any prize with Holiday Cashword are 1 in 3.93. This means roughly 1 in every 4 tickets wins a prize of any amount.
What is the top prize for Holiday Cashword?
The top prize for Holiday Cashword is $150,000. As of our latest update, 1 top prize remains unclaimed.
What are the prizes for Holiday Cashword?
Holiday Cashword offers 13 distinct prize levels: $150,000 (3 total), $5,000 (12 total), $1,000 (62 total), $500 (307 total), $250 (370 total), $200 (434 total), $100 (5,369 total), $75 (6,910 total), $50 (18,520 total), $25 (61,771 total), $20 (169,889 total), $10 (308,853 total), and $5 (370,600 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 Holiday Cashword?
Based on our latest data, 49% of all prize tickets remain (approximately 462,759 out of 943,100 total). Roughly half the prizes remain, which is typical for an active game.
How is Holiday Cashword rated by ScratchCheck?
ScratchCheck rates Holiday Cashword at 49 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 Holiday Cashword released?
Holiday Cashword was released by the North Carolina Lottery on November 4, 2025. It has been on sale for roughly 9 months, so a meaningful portion of prizes has likely been claimed.
How often is Holiday Cashword data updated on ScratchCheck?
Holiday Cashword data comes directly from the official North Carolina Lottery and is refreshed daily, so the odds and remaining prize counts you see match the lottery's latest published figures.