How to Win Lotto America According to Math

Winning the Lotto America jackpot might seem like pure luck, but what if math could give you an edge? While every combination technically is equally likely, our research reveals a fascinating twist: only four groups of combinations tend to appear more often than others. And according to the law of large numbers, these same groups will continue to dominate over time. It’s mathematics in action.

In this article, we’ll explore how combinatorial group behavior works and how it can help you make smarter choices, giving you the best shot possible within the bounds of probability. On this page, we’ll briefly cover how the game works, but our main focus is on the math and strategies for improving your odds. Let’s begin.

What Is Lotto America?

Lotto America is a multi-state lottery game played in several jurisdictions across the United States. To participate, players select five main numbers from a pool of 52 and one additional number, known as the Star Ball, from a separate pool of 10. The game offers nine prize tiers, with a starting jackpot of $2 million that increases if there is no winner. Drawings are held every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.

Lotto America also features an optional add-on called the All-Star Bonus. For an extra fee, this feature can multiply non-jackpot winnings by 2, 3, 4, or 5 times, as determined by random selection before the drawing.

The Odds of Winning Lotto America

There’s an old saying that you’re more likely to be killed by a shark than win the jackpot.¹ While it’s true that if you avoid the ocean, the odds of a shark attack drop to zero, the same principle applies here: you must play to enter into the probability of winning.

In Lotto America, the probability of winning the jackpot is 1 in 25,989,600. On average, that’s how many tickets it would take to win. If you buy 100 tickets per week, winning the jackpot takes 259,896 weeks, or more than 4,998 years.

Of course, buying more tickets improves your odds. For example, buying two tickets improves your odds to 1 in 12,994,800. But make no mistake—those odds are still steep.

The good news? You can also win other prizes, ranging from $20,000 to $2. Overall, you have a 1 in 9.63 chance of winning any prize. Therefore, the probability of a ticket not winning any prize is 0.8962. So, the chance of losing twice in a row is roughly 80%.

P(losing twice) = 0.8962² = 0.8031

To achieve a 50/50 shot of winning any prize, you’d need to purchase about 6 tickets. To reach a 99.99% chance of winning something, you’d need about 84 tickets:

P(winning any prize) = 1 – 0.8962⁸⁴ = 0.9999

Understanding the Probability Curve

The graph below illustrates the probability of winning and losing any prize in Lotto America. The intersection point (around 6 tickets) represents a 50/50 probability. Beyond that point, your chances improve as you buy more tickets.

However, it’s important to remember: the odds are heavily weighted toward winning the lowest-tier prize. A 99.99% probability might mean matching only the Star Ball and walking away with $2.

So don’t fall for the myth that you can win small prizes more frequently. It doesn’t work that way in a game with negative expected value.

How to Use Math to Win Lotto America

The only way to improve your odds is to buy more tickets. But randomly buying tickets isn’t a smart move. Use math to make informed choices and win. Read Lotto Secret: The Math of Winning.

Combinations have different compositions with varying frequency ratios, and those frequency ratios determine how often certain groups appear. That’s your strategic window.

Even though you can’t outsmart the fundamental probability, you can choose the groups that historically appear more often. It’s about giving yourself the best shot possible.

For example, in a truly random game, probability is evenly spread across the number field (1–52). This makes it rare to see a winning combo like 47-48-49-50-51 in Lotto America. Most winning combinations are more balanced, containing both low and high numbers.

In short, just because all combinations are equally likely doesn’t mean all hope is lost. Hope, in lottery terms, is best measured using the odds formula, not probability. While related, odds and probability express likelihood differently. Odds focus on the favorable-to-unfavorable ratio, a valuable concept especially helpful for players. In Lotterycodex, we refer to this concept as frequency ratio. Read How to Win the Lottery According to Math.

For example, a 1:39 ratio means 1 favorable outcome out of 40 tries. Your goal? More favorable shots in fewer attempts. In this case, you should choose 3-low-2-high group which have more favorable frequency ratio.

Lotto America Combinatorial Groups

Lotto America has 56 combinatorial groups, but only four of them exhibit exceptional frequency ratios that give you more favorable shots over time.

You wouldn’t want to waste money on a group expected to occur only twice in 5,000 draws, like those from templates #53 to #56.

Check the table below to see how the dominant templates consistently outperform the others. Based on the law of large numbers, these templates are expected to keep dominating as the number of draws increases.

Lotto Name:	Lotto America
Date range:	December 27, 2017 to November 5, 2025
Total draws:	946 draws
	Lotterycodex prediction
	Observed frequency from Lotto America's actual lottery draws

Template	Predicted vs Actual Frequency
#1	62 54
#2	62 75
#3	62 67
#4	62 66
#5	29 29
#6	29 34
#7	29 23
#8	29 30
#9	29 39
#10	29 21
#11	29 28
#12	29 26
#13	29 30
#14	29 27
#15	29 21
#16	29 26
#17	18 12
#18	18 23
#19	18 17
#20	18 21
#21	18 26
#22	18 23
#23	18 24
#24	18 19
#25	18 17
#26	18 13
#27	18 11
#28	18 25
#29	8 8
#30	8 6
#31	8 8
#32	8 4
#33	8 11
#34	8 4
#35	8 7
#36	8 7
#37	8 7
#38	8 7
#39	8 8
#40	8 3
#41	3 3
#42	3 2
#43	3 6
#44	3 6
#45	3 1
#46	3 1
#47	3 2
#48	3 1
#49	3 2
#50	3 4
#51	3 6
#52	3 4
#53	0 0
#54	0 0
#55	0 0
#56	0 1

To explore the composition of each template and see their appearance dates in Lotto America’s historical results, log in to your calculator. If you don’t have an account yet, consider signing up.

Lotto America Obeys the Law of Large Numbers

According to the law of large numbers, templates #1, #2, #3 and #4 will continue to dominate and that’s a mathematical certainty. As the number of draws gets larger and larger, the mathematical expectations dictates only four templates will prevail over time.

Your job as a player is to choose your numbers based on the prevalent templates to get more favorable shots.

When to Play and When to Skip a Draw

If your favorite template just appeared in yesterday’s draw, it’s possible it could appear again on the next draw (since draws are independent), but probability tells another story.²

For example, Template #1 has a 12.75% chance of occurring twice in a row, which means you might want to skip until the template’s probability reaches around 50%.

Template #1 has 1:14 ratio, meaning it’s expected to occur approximately 7 times in 100 draws. You don’t need to play 100 times to catch 7 favorable shots; the law of large numbers tells us this average is only realized over many draws.³

To win Lotto America, your focus should be on long-term behavior, not short-term outcomes. Use the forecast table below to guide you on your next play based on probability.

Lotto Name:	Lotto America
Date range:	December 27, 2017 to November 5, 2025
Total draws:	946 draws

Template	Frequency Ratio	NODS (Number of Draws Skipped)	Next Draw Forecast (probability of occurring)
#1	1:14	32	89.47% (PLAY)
#2	1:14	34	90.81% (PLAY)
#3	1:14	0	6.59% (SKIP)
#4	1:14	19	74.44% (PLAY)
#5	1:32	29	60.43% (PLAY)
#6	1:32	28	59.19% (PLAY)
#7	1:32	2	8.85% (SKIP)
#8	1:32	20	47.74% (SKIP)
#9	1:32	25	55.23% (PLAY)
#10	1:32	104	96.10% (PLAY)
#11	1:32	10	28.82% (SKIP)
#12	1:32	23	52.37% (PLAY)
#13	1:32	16	40.87% (SKIP)
#14	1:32	8	24.28% (SKIP)
#15	1:32	24	53.82% (PLAY)
#16	1:32	39	70.95% (PLAY)
#17	1:53	72	74.60% (PLAY)
#18	1:53	89	81.54% (PLAY)
#19	1:53	46	58.62% (PLAY)
#20	1:53	50	61.61% (PLAY)
#21	1:53	40	53.68% (PLAY)
#22	1:53	4	8.96% (SKIP)
#23	1:53	76	76.44% (PLAY)
#24	1:53	14	24.54% (SKIP)
#25	1:53	3	7.23% (SKIP)
#26	1:53	17	28.67% (SKIP)
#27	1:53	5	10.65% (SKIP)
#28	1:53	45	57.83% (PLAY)
#29	1:116	12	10.60% (SKIP)
#30	1:116	122	65.37% (PLAY)
#31	1:116	159	74.82% (PLAY)
#32	1:116	379	96.22% (PLAY)
#33	1:116	11	9.83% (SKIP)
#34	1:116	252	88.71% (PLAY)
#35	1:116	59	40.38% (SKIP)
#36	1:116	58	39.87% (SKIP)
#37	1:116	52	36.67% (SKIP)
#38	1:116	85	52.35% (PLAY)
#39	1:116	160	75.04% (PLAY)
#40	1:116	284	91.43% (PLAY)
#41	1:279	79	24.92% (SKIP)
#42	1:279	514	84.20% (PLAY)
#43	1:279	1	0.71% (SKIP)
#44	1:279	63	20.49% (SKIP)
#45	1:279	749	93.19% (PLAY)
#46	1:279	383	74.74% (PLAY)
#47	1:279	150	41.78% (SKIP)
#48	1:279	904	96.09% (PLAY)
#49	1:279	119	34.95% (SKIP)
#50	1:279	15	5.57% (SKIP)
#51	1:279	366	73.15% (PLAY)
#52	1:279	459	80.76% (PLAY)
#53	1:2018	946	37.44% (SKIP)
#54	1:2018	946	37.44% (SKIP)
#55	1:2018	946	37.44% (SKIP)
#56	1:2018	646	27.42% (SKIP)

Hot and Cold Numbers in Lotto America

Hot and cold numbers don’t exist because all balls converge on the same expected value over time. Still, in the short term, some numbers can appear more often than others.

While we recommend focusing on templates over individual numbers, we include hot and cold numbers because strategizing cannot be exciting without some number-related statistics. Use this information for your perusal.

The table below shows the number frequency analysis for the Last 200 Draws as of November 5, 2025

NUMBER	GRAPH
42	34
4	29
8	29
35	27
51	26
10	25
28	25
47	24
52	24
21	23
24	23
1	22
2	22
45	22
50	22
5	21
9	21
12	21
39	21
41	21
13	20
17	20
44	20
15	19
16	19
23	19
25	19
31	19
33	19
20	18
30	18
32	18
11	17
26	17
27	17
37	17
6	16
7	16
19	16
34	16
43	16
3	15
14	15
40	15
29	13
36	13
38	13
49	13
18	12
46	12
22	11
48	10

NODS Monitoring

This table shows how many draws have passed since each ball last appeared. While randomness rules the lottery, you can use this information to complement your existing strategy.

The table below shows the NODS for each ball as of November 5, 2025

NUMBER	GRAPH
18	40
22	40
29	39
30	34
37	25
14	22
16	22
13	20
36	20
41	19
6	18
34	17
38	16
49	16
52	16
44	15
48	15
9	14
45	14
3	13
17	11
5	10
10	10
24	9
46	9
20	7
32	7
43	7
4	6
15	6
28	6
2	5
12	4
27	4
39	4
21	3
33	3
40	3
42	3
8	2
23	2
31	2
47	2
7	1
11	1
19	1
25	1
1	0
26	0
35	0
50	0
51	0

Play Lotto America for Fun and Win the Excitement

Play responsibly. The lottery is entertainment, not a financial tool. Like concert tickets or movie nights, the money you spend is the price of the experience.

To reduce losses, consider joining a lottery syndicate and using a lottery wheel to improve your coverage. Use a Lotterycodex Calculator to bring this strategy on a silver platter.

Please never rely on the lottery to fix your finances—the odds are too monumental.

References

1. 18 Things More Likely to Kill You Than Sharks    [↩]
2. Probability Theory    [↩]
3. Law of Large Numbers / Law of Averages    [↩]