Everyone wants to win the lottery. Keep an eye out for these common lottery numbers if you want to up your chances of hitting it big.
The chances of winning the lottery are about one in 300 million, but the unlikely odds don’t mean you can’t do more to up your chances of winning, like buying multiple tickets, playing every draw, or living in the state with the most lottery winners. Lucky lottery numbers are also a way to increase your chances. Here’s how to win the lottery (or at least boost your chances) by picking the most common lottery numbers (just one of the things lottery winners won’t tell you.)
How to pick lottery numbers
Instead of picking a meaningful date, like a birthday or anniversary, it’s a no-brainer to select the most common lottery numbers to boost your odds. And, yes, there is a way to find out lucky lottery numbers! There are a few websites that track the lottery numbers that are pulled the most; keeping track of them is a good method for how to pick lottery numbers. The most common Mega Ball number is 22. Meanwhile, stay clear of 21, 45, 50, 55, and 51 when choosing your first five numbers. (But keep in mind that the unlucky and lucky lottery numbers and their exact number of calls are always changing!)
ZikG/Shutterstock
Most winning lottery numbers: Mega Millions
According to USA Mega, here are the most common Mega Millions numbers drawn since October 31, 2017:
22 was drawn 26 times and 11 was drawn 24 times. Several other of the most common Mega Millions numbers were drawn 18 times; these numbers are 13, 14, 17, 18, 24, and 25.
ZikG/Shutterstock
Most winning lottery numbers: Powerball
As for the most common Powerball numbers, you can check those out online as well, but here are a few:
According to CNBC, the Powerball and Mega Millions jackpots have both been on the rise. The Mega Millions jackpot is a hefty $244 million, but the Powerball jackpot is tipping the scale at $540 million!
There might not be a better time to buy a ticket, cross your fingers, and select these lucky numbers. Of course, there’s no guarantee that choosing these digits will win you the lotto, since past frequency doesn’t determine what numbers come next. Read up on this lottery ticket dispute in which a couple agreed to split the earnings if they won, but one left with everything.
Sources:
- USAMega.com: “Mega Millions Statistics”
- LottoNumbers.com: “Most Common Powerball Numbers”
- CNBC: “Powerball’s jackpot surges to $540 million — yet doesn’t even crack the list of 10 largest lottery wins”
FAQs
With odds that slim, Glickman said it's best to focus on picking numbers that are completely random. That will help ensure you're not making the same picks as someone else — and that you won't have to split the prize money with anyone, should you win.
Is there a trick to winning the lottery? ›
Aside from purchasing multiple lottery tickets with different number combinations, there is no way to increase your chance of winning the lottery with one ticket, Clotfelter said. However, it can help to let the computer pick your numbers instead of choosing them yourself.
What are the 6 luckiest numbers in Lotto? ›
The most frequently drawn winning numbers from the main barrel are 17, 7, 11, 2, 3 and 9, while the least frequently drawn are 33, 15, 34, 31, 26 and 1. The most frequently drawn Powerball numbers are 19 and 2, while the least frequently drawn Powerball numbers are 14 and 16.
How do most lottery winners pick their numbers? ›
Numerous winners have opted for completely random number combinations, either using Quick Picks or generating them through random number generators.
Is there any pattern to lottery numbers? ›
Patterns in lottery results have been observed in several studies. One study found that winning combinations in a lottery game tended to resemble geometric forms, suggesting that players often use conscious strategic choices when selecting their numbers.
What is the formula for the lottery algorithm? ›
Understand the calculations involved.
To find the odds of winning any lottery, divide the number of winning lottery numbers by the total number of possible lottery numbers. If the numbers are chosen from a set and the order of the numbers doesn't matter, use the formula. r ! ( n − r ) !
How can I increase my chances of winning the lottery? ›
So how can you increase your odds? To better your chances of winning any lottery, you have to buy more tickets, he said. The more tickets, the more chances of choosing the right combination of numbers.
What is the secret to win Powerball? ›
Buying more than one ticket is the easiest way to increase your odds, and the most common sense way. The trick to this one is to make sure that you don't repeat your picks on any tickets. if you buy enough tickets to cover each of the bonus numbers, that will also increase your odds of winning something.
Who won the lottery 14 times? ›
The question is, how on earth did he do it? Well, according to Stefan Mandel, it wasn't even that hard - the Romanian-Australian economist putting it down to 'simple math'. With the help of a group of investors and a syndicate called the International Lotto Fund, Mandel targeted 14 lotteries around the world.
What is the luckiest lottery numbers ever? ›
What are the luckiest Powerball numbers?
- 61 - Drawn 83 times.
- 32 - Drawn 82 times.
- 63 - Drawn 75 times.
- 23 - Drawn 74 times.
- 69 - Drawn 74 times.
- 36 - Drawn 74 times.
- 21 - Drawn 74 times.
- 59 - Drawn 73 times.
The five most frequent numbers are 17, 31, 10, 46, and 20 — all five have been drawn at least once since the last Mega Millions jackpot was won in December.
Has a quick pick ever won? ›
In general, most jackpot winners come from quick picks, in which players opt to have the machine choose their numbers randomly rather than picking numbers themselves. For example, there have been a dozen winning Powerball tickets sold in Florida since 2009.
Has a quick pick ever won the Powerball? ›
Picking Your Powerball Numbers. When it comes to quick pick tickets, or the machine picking your numbers, the Multi-State Lottery Association said: “With the data available, roughly 80% of Powerball jackpot-winning tickets are quick picks.
What is the best time to buy lottery tickets? ›
Is there a better day of the week or time of day that increases the probability of winning? Because the lottery is a game of chance, every ticket has an equal opportunity to be the winning ticket. This means there really isn't a luckiest time to buy lottery tickets.
Is it better to pick your own lottery numbers or let the computer pick them? ›
The short answer– no. Math experts and lotto officials will tell you there's a common misconception that the odds of winning are different if you go with your own numbers, like a combination important to you personally, birthdays, anniversaries, etc… versus taking a random line spit out from the computer.
Is it statistically better to pick your own lottery numbers? ›
The winning numbers are randomly drawn, meaning that ANY set of numbers has EXACTLY the same chance of winning as any other. There exists no advantage either way. It is true that most winners used quick picks, but this is because the vast majority of tickets sold are quick picks.
Has anyone ever won Mega Millions with quick pick? ›
$361 million, Mega Millions, Oct. 6
Blue Yucca Trust of Rapid City, S.D. won the jackpot with a quick pick ticket that was purchased in San Angelo, Texas. Blue Yucca selected the cash option in November and collected $157,367,045 before taxes, making it the largest prize ever paid to a single Texas Lottery player.
Is there a strategy to picking Mega Millions numbers? ›
To win the jackpot, you must hit all five numbers plus the Mega Ball. The probability of this happening is extremely low: 1 in more than 300 million. While some people recommend mixing odd and even numbers when buying a ticket, as well as high and low numbers, statistically, some numbers do appear more than others.
