Cowboys is one of the Texas Lottery's $5 scratch-off games. About 1 ticket in every 4 wins something, per the published overall odds of 1 in 3.80. The expected value is $0.60 per $1 spent, which is a below-average return compared to other scratch-offs. The top prize is $100,000. Prize inventory sits at 97%: most prizes are still available. On our 0-100 ValueScore scale (expected value, prize quality, win frequency, and inventory health) it earns a 53 (Fair). Against the rest of the state it is 35th out of 77 Texas scratch-offs. At its own price point it is 4th among the 19 $5 games Texas sells.
Overall Odds
1 in 3.80
Exp. Value
$0.60
per $1 spent
Top Prize
$100,000
Top Prizes Left
4
Prizes Remaining
97%
ValueScore™
53 / 100
Fair
Should I Buy This Ticket?
Expected value per $1 spent:
$0.60→
AVERAGE
At 35th out of 77 Texas scratch-offs, it neither stands out nor falls behind.
Why
→Expected value of $0.60 per $1 is below average. Less comes back per dollar than most games.
- You win something fairly often here, about 26% per ticket (1 in 3.80).
- Strong prize quality: a healthy share of the bigger top and mid-tier prizes are still unclaimed.
Current Prize Odds
ScratchCheck estimate$100,000
4 of 4 left
launch odds 1 in 2.5M
now ~1 in 2.4M
$5,000
11 of 12 left
launch odds 1 in 826K
now ~1 in 873K
$500
275 of 280 left
launch odds 1 in 35K
now ~1 in 35K
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $100,000 | 1 in 2,430,000 | 4 | 4 | 100% |
| $5,000 | 1 in 810,000 | 12 | 11 | 92% |
| $500 | 1 in 36,000 | 280 | 275 | 98% |
| $100 | 1 in 1,500 | 6,632 | 6,416 | 97% |
| $50 | 1 in 144 | 68,821 | 66,476 | 97% |
| $20 | 1 in 25 | 396,370 | 383,443 | 97% |
| $15 | 1 in 25 | 396,330 | 383,427 | 97% |
| $10 | 1 in 20 | 506,378 | 490,302 | 97% |
| $5 | 1 in 8 | 1,232,988 | 1,195,556 | 97% |
Prize Pool Analysis
Total Payout at Launch
$29,805,320
Current Prize Pool
$28,858,965
Payout Percentage
96.8%
Total Prizes Remaining
2,525,910
Ticket Statistics
Total Tickets Printed
9,909,697
Estimated Remaining
9,598,458
% Remaining
96.9%
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
53
VALUESCORE
Fair
53
out of 100
Expected Value
2/40
Prize Quality
25/25
Win Frequency
12/20
Inventory Health
15/15
Updated: 8/27/2026
Game Details
- State
- Texas
- Game Number
- 2754
- Ticket Price
- $5
- Start Date
- 8/17/2026
- Payout %
- 60.2%
- Data Source
- Official
- Last Updated
- 8/27/2026
Compare
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Image Credit: Texas Lottery
$5.00 per ticket · 1 in 3.80 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 Cowboys scratch-off a good buy?
Cowboys is a middling ticket with a ValueScore of 53/100. It is roughly average compared to other scratch-offs in Texas. If you are looking for the best value at this price point, check the Texas rankings page for higher-rated alternatives.
How much does Cowboys cost?
Cowboys costs $5 per ticket in Texas. 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 Cowboys scratch-off?
The overall odds of winning any prize with Cowboys are 1 in 3.80. This means roughly 1 in every 4 tickets wins a prize of any amount.
What is the top prize for Cowboys?
The top prize for Cowboys is $100,000. As of our latest update, 4 top prizes remain unclaimed.
What are the prizes for Cowboys?
Cowboys offers 9 distinct prize levels: $100,000 (4 total), $5,000 (12 total), $500 (280 total), $100 (6,632 total), $50 (68,821 total), $20 (396,370 total), $15 (396,330 total), $10 (506,378 total), and $5 (1,232,988 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 Cowboys?
Based on our latest data, 97% of all prize tickets remain (approximately 2,525,910 out of 2,607,815 total). The game is early in its run, with most prizes still on the market.
How is Cowboys rated by ScratchCheck?
ScratchCheck rates Cowboys at 53 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 Cowboys released?
Cowboys was released by the Texas Lottery on August 17, 2026. This is a newly released game, so the full prize pool is effectively intact.
How often is Cowboys data updated on ScratchCheck?
Cowboys data comes directly from the official Texas Lottery and is refreshed daily, so the odds and remaining prize counts you see match the lottery's latest published figures.