EuroMillions or Lotto?
Lots of National Lottery players participate in both the UK Lotto and EuroMillions games, but if we had to choose between the two, which would be the best option? It sounds like a simple enough question, but comparing any two lottery games that are played according to different rules is a lot more challenging than you might think.
Comparing two lotteries that work on the same basis is relatively easy. For example, if one 6 from 49 lottery routinely pays jackpots of £5 million and another 6 from 49 lottery pays jackpots of £2 million, the former would offer better value for money if both games cost the same to play and had the same overall prize structure.
But things aren’t so easy when you compare two lotteries that work differently, and EuroMillions and the Lotto do exactly that. EuroMillions requires players to select 5 main numbers from 1 to 50 and 2 Lucky Star numbers from 1 to 9. The Lotto requires players to select 6 numbers from 1 to 49. The odds of winning the top prize in EuroMillions are therefore 1 in 76,275,360, whilst the odds of scooping the jackpot in the Lotto are 1 in 13,983,816. Add to this the fact that EuroMillions costs more to play, but offers a much higher minimum jackpot and making a direct comparison just isn’t possible.
So what do we do if we want to choose between one and the other? The answer is that we must decide what aspect of the game is the most important to us personally. Do we want to play the cheapest lottery, or the one that gives us the best chance of winning the top prize? If this is the case, we should choose to play the Lotto. But if we want to play for the biggest possible amount of money, irrespective of the odds, we should normally choose to play EuroMillions and play the Lotto only when the jackpot has rolled over enough to exceed the EuroMillions offering.
Although I have talked here about EuroMillions and the UK Lotto, similar difficulties arise when comparing state lotteries and multi-state lottery games in the USA, or national lottery games and EuroMillions in other participating European countries. Again, the answer here – or at least the best answer I have come up with – is to choose between the games available on the basis of one or two particular factors that are most important to the player.
Of course, there are alternatives to having to make a choice. You could play one lottery game one week and a different game the next, alternating back and forth between the two. Or, if you are forced to choose between games because of financial considerations, you could get together with a friend or two, pool your resources and play both games, agreeing to share whatever winnings you receive as a syndicate.
The fact that choosing between EuroMillions and the Lotto is so difficult just shows how good both games really are. Personally, I’d have no problem not playing Dream Number because I don’t believe it’s a very interesting or rewarding game, but EuroMillions and the Lotto are a different matter altogether. If I ever had to choose between them because my budget demanded it, my honest response would be to start a syndicate, play both games with a view to sharing the winning, and avoid the issue altogether.
Article Last Updated: 29/05/2008 11:39:35
