Lottery Odds of Winning

The odds at a glance: which game is hardest to win

Put the region's big games side by side and the differences are striking. The hardest jackpot to crack among the games on this page is Japan's MEGA BIG, a football pool where you must call 11 matches correctly: 1 in 16,777,216. The easiest top prize is mini BIG, where the first prize odds are 1 in 19,683, though the reward is a comparatively modest theoretical JPY 1,000,000⁶.

Country: Japan

⁶

The number-picking games sit in a similar band. Loto 7 asks for 7 numbers and gives jackpot odds of 1 in 10,295,472¹. Singapore TOTO asks for 6 numbers plus an additional number from a pool of 49⁴. Vietnam's Power 6/55 asks for 6 numbers from 01 to 55⁵, and China's Super Lotto offers a floating first prize where a basic 2 yuan bet can win at most 10,000,000 yuan⁷.

The reason bigger pools mean longer odds is arithmetic, not design choice. Every extra number you must predict multiplies the possible combinations. BIG and 100円BIG each have 4,782,969 possible combinations per set, MEGA BIG has 16,777,216, BIG1000 has 177,147 and mini BIG has 19,683⁶. That is why the 14-match BIG is roughly 243 times harder to win at the top tier than the 9-match mini BIG.

For contrast, not every lottery product is a long shot. Instant scratch-off tickets in the United States have relatively high odds of winning something, on the order of 1 in 4, though the prizes are mostly small⁸. The trade-off is the same everywhere: the bigger the prize, the longer the odds. If you want a fuller picture of how draws and prize pools work, see how lotteries work.

Loto 7: 1 in 10,295,472 for the jackpot

Loto 7 is Japan's flagship number-draw lottery. The draw decides 7 main numbers and 2 bonus numbers, and your entry wins by matching main numbers, with the bonus numbers helping at some tiers¹.

The full prize ladder, with the published theoretical odds:

¹

The second prize is worth about JPY 6,100,000 as a theoretical value, and actual amounts vary with sales and the number of winning entries¹. Notice how quickly the odds soften as you move down the ladder: the jump from first to third prize is nearly 200-fold, and by the sixth prize you have about a 1 in 42 chance. Most Loto 7 players who win anything at all win at the bottom tiers.

Japan's football pools: toto and BIG odds and prize tiers

Alongside its number lotteries, Japan runs a family of sports promotion lotteries: toto, BIG, WINNER and DUNK. In all of them you predict the results of multiple designated football matches, and the more matches you call correctly, the bigger the prize⁹.

The two headline games work differently:

• toto asks you to pick the outcome (home win, draw or away win) of 13 designated matches yourself.
• BIG assigns your numbers randomly by computer, so it plays like a conventional lottery with football results standing in for drawn balls.

That difference matters for odds. In toto, your chance depends on how likely your picks are, and the operator publishes a single theoretical figure. In BIG, the odds are fixed by the number of possible result combinations, which is why BIG's odds are quoted as exact fractions⁶.

Both games share a prize structure where the money paid out is a fixed share of sales, divided among the winners at each tier. The next two sections look at each game in detail.

toto: about 1 in 1,600,000, with carryovers up to JPY 500,000,000

toto is the 13-match game, and its published first-prize odds are 1 in 1,594,323, usually rounded to about 1 in 1,600,000. The second prize is about 1 in 61,320 and the third about 1 in 5,110, all theoretical values².

The prize money is 50 percent of sales, split 70 percent to first prize, 15 percent to second and 15 percent to third². Because the payout depends on sales and the number of winning tickets, actual prize amounts vary from round to round².

The first prize is capped at JPY 100,000,000 normally, rising to JPY 500,000,000 when a carryover occurs¹⁰. The cap works per winner, not per round, which produces striking results when the pool is large. For example, if the first-prize pool reaches JPY 1,500,000,000, up to 3 people could win JPY 500,000,000 each¹¹.

A useful way to think about toto's odds: the third prize, at about 1 in 5,110, is roughly as hard as matching 4 main numbers on Loto 7 (about 1 in 1,127) times a small factor. The gap between the tiers is what makes football pools feel different from number lotteries: there are only three ways to win, but the third prize is genuinely reachable.

BIG: 1 in 4,782,969 and six prize tiers

BIG is the 14-match random-assignment game, and it is the one most first-timers try because you do not need to know anything about football. The computer picks for you, and the draw results decide whether your set of numbers matches.

The six prize tiers and their theoretical odds:

³

An entry costs JPY 300, with cheaper variants at JPY 100 and JPY 200⁶. The first prize is normally capped at JPY 300,000,000, rising to as much as JPY 600,000,000 when a carryover occurs, with special editions excluded¹². Like toto, prize amounts are theoretical values that vary with sales and the number of winning tickets³.

The first-prize pool has a precise formula: the previous round's carryover plus 40 percent of the current round's BIG sales equals the first-prize dividend pool¹³. So a big sales week plus an unwon carryover is what pushes the headline prize up.

The BIG family also includes the variants in the comparison table above. MEGA BIG covers 11 matches with first-prize odds of 1 in 16,777,216 and a top prize of up to JPY 1,200,000,000 with carryover, while mini BIG covers 9 matches at 1 in 19,683 with a first prize of about JPY 1,000,000¹⁴. The 100-yen BIG has five prize tiers with a prize fund split of 76 percent to first, 10 to second, 4 to third, 4 to fourth and 6 to fifth¹⁴.

Singapore TOTO: pick 6 from 49, Group 1 prize share

Singapore TOTO is a pick-6 game: you choose 6 numbers plus 1 additional number out of 49⁴. It is the region's best-known number lottery, and its prize structure is built on shares rather than fixed amounts.

The prize pool for each draw is 54 percent of total sales, divided across prize Groups 1 to 6. If any of Groups 1 to 4 has multiple winners, the group's prize is divided equally among every winner¹⁵. Group 6, the smallest prize, is fixed at $25 per winning share¹⁶.

Real draws show how the sharing works. In draw 4220, the Group 1 prize was $5,743,824 and there was exactly 1 winning share, so one ticket took the whole amount. The same draw paid $25 each to 18,680 Group 6 winners¹⁶. A week of draws shows the same pattern at the bottom: Group 6 paid $25 to anywhere from 6,461 to 18,680 winning shares per draw¹⁶.

TOTO offers a wide range of bet types: Ordinary, System 7 through System 12, System Roll, iTOTO, Group TOTO and TOTO MATCH¹⁷. The system entries are multiple bets on one ticket, which improves your chance of winning but costs more; see lottery system bets for how they work.

Draws are held in the evening, with the next draw listed at 6.30pm, and the estimated next jackpot is around $1,000,000¹⁷. Sales for each draw, including TOTO MATCH bets, close at 6pm on draw day, or 9pm on draw day if the current draw is a cascade draw¹⁸.

TOTO also has a cascade rule for its top prize: if Group 1 has no winner for three consecutive draws, a cascade prize occurs in the fourth draw. If there is still no Group 1 winner, all the accumulated money, 38 percent of the fourth draw's pool plus the amounts built up over the previous three draws, is divided equally among the winners of the next winning group¹⁵. Group 1 can cascade for at most four draws, while Groups 2, 3 and 4 cascade until there is a winner¹⁵.

Power 6/55 in Vietnam: 10,000 đồng an entry, five prize tiers

Vietnam's Power 6/55, run by Vietlott, costs 10,000 đồng for an entry where you choose 6 numbers from 01 to 55⁵. The game also has a bonus number, which comes into play for the second jackpot and some of the lower payouts⁵.

The game has two jackpots. JACKPOT 1 goes to tickets matching all 6 winning numbers, and JACKPOT 2 goes to tickets matching 5 winning numbers plus the bonus number⁵. Payouts below the jackpots vary depending on how many numbers you match and whether the bonus number is included⁵.

Because the jackpots accumulate after each draw with no winner, the prizes can grow far larger than their base amounts¹⁹. Vietlott illustrates this with the BAO system bets, where you cover multiple combinations on one ticket. A BAO 10 entry that matches 6 numbers plus the bonus number has won JACKPOT 1 plus JACKPOT 2 plus 769 triệu đồng on top, while a BAO 15 entry hitting the same combination has taken both jackpots plus 2,27 tỷ đồng⁵.

For comparison, matching 6 numbers without the bonus on a BAO 10 entry paid JACKPOT 1 plus 1,00 tỷ đồng, and a BAO 15 hitting the same tier paid JACKPOT 1 plus 2,51 tỷ đồng⁵. The larger the BAO, the more combinations it covers and the bigger the add-on amounts, which is the same logic behind system bets elsewhere in the region.

China's Super Lotto: a floating first prize

China's 大乐透 (Super Lotto) is the mainland's flagship draw game. Its first prize is a floating amount rather than a fixed one, and a basic bet of 2 yuan can win at most 10,000,000 yuan⁷. Because the prize floats with sales and rollovers, the headline amount varies from draw to draw, much like the carryover-driven prizes in Japan and Vietnam.

Super Lotto is sold by provincial sports lottery agencies in physical stores within their own regions, using a computer network system, so you buy it at authorized lottery shops rather than online from unofficial channels²⁰. For more on how the region's games stack up on price and top prize, see Asia's lotteries compared.

Carryovers and prize pools: how jackpots grow past the base amount

Most lottery jackpots are progressive, which means jackpots that are not won roll over between successive draws and get larger²¹. That single mechanic explains why the same game can advertise a modest prize one week and a headline-grabbing one the next.

Each game handles it slightly differently:

• Loto 6 (Japan): the total prize pool of any grade with no winners, plus any amount exceeding the preset maximum, is carried over to the next draw's first prize²². The first prize can reach JPY 600,000,000 when a carryover occurs²³.
• BIG (Japan): the first-prize pool equals the previous round's carryover plus 40 percent of the current round's BIG sales¹³.
• DUNK (Japan): if there is no first-prize winner, or dividend money is left over even with a winner, the first-prize pool carries over to the next round²⁴.
• WINNER (Japan): no carryover occurs at all, so its prizes stay tied to each round's sales⁶.
• Volley Toto (South Korea): if a round has no first-prize winner, the prize rolls over to the next round²⁵.
• TOTO (Singapore): unwon Group 1 money cascades for up to four draws before being shared with the next winning group, as described above¹⁵.

The practical takeaway for a player: a carryover round is when the same odds buy you a bigger prize. The odds do not change when the jackpot grows, only the payout. For a deeper look, see jackpot rollovers, snowballs and cascades.

Where and when you can buy: sales channels and cutoff times

Japan's sports lottery (toto and BIG) is sold three ways: at lottery booths, generally from 8:00 to 23:00 with hours varying by store; at convenience store multimedia terminals and copiers for toto and BIG only; and on the official website, which sells 24 hours a day during each round's sales period⁶.

Cutoff times matter. BIG sales at booths end at 12:00 noon on the final sales day, and 11:30 at convenience store terminals⁶. The sales periods and cutoff times can change, so check the information for each round before you go²⁶. The purchase deadline for each round and product is displayed in its sales schedule²⁷.

Japan's number lotteries have their own channels. Loto 6 can be bought at lottery booths, online, at ATMs of some banks, and at some convenience stores²³. Internet banking lottery sales sites allow purchases 24 hours a day²⁸. The football pools are likewise sold over the internet, at lottery stands, on the mobile site and at convenience stores²⁹.

In Singapore, TOTO sales close at 6pm on draw day, or 9pm if it is a cascade draw¹⁸. The Singapore Sweep, a separate 7-digit sweepstakes game, sells tickets from the end of the previous draw until half an hour before the draw, with each draw taking place on the first Wednesday of the month³⁰.

In Vietnam, Vietlott tickets including Power 6/55 are sold through its official channels, and the operator stresses buying only through them so your ticket can be validated and paid¹⁹. For a full regional rundown, see where to buy lottery tickets in Asia.

Checking your ticket after the draw

For BIG, the official website offers a step-by-step check: click the winning-confirmation button on the top page, select the lottery type and the draw number, enter your ticket's reference number, and click to display the result³¹. The same check works whether or not you are a Club toto member³².

If you bought online with net or convenience store payment, log in to Club toto, click the purchase-history and winning-confirmation link on the top page, then select detailed confirmation. You can filter by product, purchase period and result³¹. Away from a screen, winning results can be checked at lottery counters and 7-Eleven stores³¹.

For Singapore TOTO, the official results pages list every draw's winning shares group by group, so you can see not just the numbers drawn but how many tickets won at each level and what each share paid¹⁶. For claiming a prize once you have checked, see how to claim a lottery prize in Asia.

Who is allowed to play: age and eligibility rules

In Japan, persons under 19 may not buy or receive sports promotion lottery tickets, which covers toto and BIG³³. The rule applies to everyone, resident or visitor.

In Vietnam, Power 6/55 is open to Vietnamese citizens, Vietnamese people settled abroad, and foreigners who enter Vietnam legally³⁴. Bets and prizes are both in Vietnamese dong³⁴. If you are visiting and buying in person, the practical requirement is simply a ticket bought from an official Vietlott point of sale.

Singapore's lottery products are sold through Singapore Pools outlets to anyone eligible to buy there, with sales closing at the cutoff times listed above¹⁸. For the age rules on Vietlott games specifically, see the minimum age to play Vietlott.