Free Lottery Simulation

Can you guess the Powerball winning combination? Or think the odds for Mega Millions look good? Play with paper money to find out!

Lottery Articles

There are lottery related questions that regularly come up. Which entry types have the best odds? Should you play Superdraws over regular draws? We look at the data to find out!

What if you played the lottery every week of your life?

One game a week from 18 to 80. We simulated 10,000 lifetimes in 11 lotteries to see what you'd spend, what you'd win back, and your chance of ever winning the Jackpot.

What if you played the lottery every week of your life?

Has the same combination ever been drawn twice?

We compared every draw of 11 lotteries with every other draw to see if the same winning numbers have ever come up twice. They have, right here in Australia!

Has the same lottery combination ever been drawn twice?

Which lottery pays back the most?

For every dollar you spend, how much comes back as prizes? We ranked 11 lotteries, from Saturday Lotto to the US Powerball, using a year of real prizes.

Which lottery pays back the most?

We tested 7 lottery strategies

Hot numbers, overdue numbers, birthdays or a Quick Pick? We played 7 popular strategies against every Powerball draw since 2015 to see if any of them really wins more.

We tested 7 lottery strategies against every Powerball draw

Should you pick birthday numbers?

Birthday numbers are just as likely to be drawn as any other, so is there a catch? We used the winners of thousands of draws to find out which numbers people pick, and what it costs them.

Should you pick birthday numbers?

Powerball vs Mega Millions

The two biggest lotteries in the world, side by side. We compare their odds and prices, and use years of draws to find out how often each Jackpot is won and how big it gets.

Powerball vs Mega Millions: which is better?

EuroMillions vs Eurojackpot

Europe's two biggest lotteries draw exactly the same numbers, but they're sold in different countries. We compare their odds, prices and Jackpot caps, and which one you can actually play.

EuroMillions vs Eurojackpot: which is better?

How many Mega Millions tickets are sold?

Mega Millions went from $2 to $5 a ticket in April 2025. We estimated the sales of every draw since 2019 to see what changed, and whether a ticket is ever worth it.

How many Mega Millions tickets are sold

How many US Powerball tickets are sold?

Ticket sales explode as the Jackpot grows. We estimate the sales of every draw, and work out whether a $2 ticket is ever worth buying.

How many Powerball tickets are sold

Is an Australian Powerball ticket ever worth it?

No tax, no cash option and Jackpots up to $200M. We worked out what a Powerball game was really worth in every draw since 2018.

Is an Australian Powerball ticket ever worth it?

Which Australian lottery has the best odds?

Powerball, Oz Lotto, Saturday Lotto or Weekday Windfall? We compare the odds of winning the top prize, the odds of winning anything, and how much each lottery pays back per dollar.

Australian lotteries with the best odds

System and Pick entries guide

In Australia, players have access to a range of entry types. System entries allow to pick more numbers, pick entries allow to pick fewer numbers by guaranteeing some winning numbers, and PowerHit entries automatically give you the winning Powerball. They all have varying prices and odds, so we wrote a detailed on guide them.

System and Pick entry guide

Saturday Lotto Superdraw

Every 5 to 6 weeks, the Jackpot of the regular Saturday Lotto draw gets increased from $5M to $20M. Such events are known as Superdraws and are very popular, with twice as many entries sold on average. Are they worth playing over regular draws? Let's find out!

Saturday Lotto Superdraw - Worth playing?

Playing overseas lotteries

The US Powerball and Mega Millions are known for their massive Jackpots reaching in the Billions, and European lotteries also often top $100M. Can you play them from Australia? Here's what's legal, how prizes and taxes work, and what changes in 2027.

Playing overseas lotteries from Australia

The differences between the US and Australian Powerball

Despite sharing the name, the US and Australian versions of the Powerball are quite different. The barrel sizes, how many balls are drawn etc. all have an effect on the odds. The entry types and prize distribution structure is also different.

The differences between the US and Australian Powerball

How many Australian Powerball entries are sold?

Unsurprisingly, the Jackpot size is the major factor here. Read on to find out just how many tickets are sold each week!

How many Powerball entries are sold

About Lotto Simulation

Lotto simulation started as a simple Australian Powerball simulation app that I added to my personal website.

After sharing it on reddit and getting great feedback, some users suggested more advanced features such as System entries (specific to Australia), more lotteries (Saturday Lotto, Oz Lotto..) which have different rules, have the balls drawn differently etc.

I also decided to add the US Mega Millions, the US Powerball, Euro Millions and Euro Jackpot, as they are amongst the most played lotteries in the world.

Seeing that it was getting a little too much for my personal website, I decided to register lottosimulation.com, which also happens to be a more memorable domain name.

Every now and then I will write a guide answering interesting questions.