Montana Lottery

 

Created by public referendum in 1986, the Montana State Lottery was originally backed by nearly 70% of voters. At first, proceeds were earmarked for the state’s public education programs. However, a 1995 senate bill shifted revenues towards the General Fund, making it easier for funds to be appropriated throughout the budget.

 

Today, the law requires 45% of revenues to be returned to Montana Lottery winners. The lotto administration keeps that allocation higher, at 58%. 19% of the proceeds go towards the state coffers. 10% cover ticket costs, 8% go towards administrative fees, and retailers get 6%.

 

In its more than three decades, the lottery in Montana has doled out over $620 million in prizes. Contributions to the MT state budget total over $270 million, with retailers netting some $68 million. Since 2008, the MSL is also in charge of fantasy sports wagering. 74% of the revenues generated by sports bets go towards the winners.

 

The lotto currently runs several in-house and multi-jurisdictional draw games. The Montana Lottery Powerball has been around since the game’s debut in 1992. Almost two decades later, in 2010, the state joined the ranks of Mega Millions participating lotteries.

The largest single prize ever paid out in the history of MT lotto games was a $48.5 million jackpot. The Powerball ticket was purchased by Helena residents Kim Claassen and Joe Lamport Jr.

Curiously, the pair had ripped up the tickets prior to realizing they’d won. Claassen checked the Montana Lottery winning numbers before the website had updated, leading to the mix-up. After double-checking the numbers and noticing her mistake, the ticket was taped back up and redeemed.

Results of Montana Lottery drawings are published by major newspapers and shared by local TV networks. However, the drawings themselves aren’t broadcasted through any channel.

You can also keep up with the Montana Lottery results with the official Montana Lottery app. It’s available for Android and iOS. The latest Montana Lottery numbers are always posted on the app.

The odds are different for every game. On one hand, Montana Lottery scratch tickets have odds to win any prize ranging from 1:5 to 1:10. For top prizes, the odds range between 1:60,000 and 1:120,000, with prizes up to $30,000.

Your chances of winning the Montana Lottery Mega Millions jackpot are 1 in 302,575,350. As for the Montana Cash game, odds of hitting the jackpot are 1 in 610,880. Powerball jackpots have odds of 1 in 292,201,338. Lastly, the Montana Lottery Lucky for Life has jackpot odds of 1 in 30,821,472.

To play the MT lotto, all you have to do is visit your nearest retailer and buy a ticket. Tickets aren’t available for sale online, but you can find nearby retailers through the Montana Lottery app. Once you have your tickets, either peel them to reveal your prizes or wait for the drawing.

The Montana Cash drawings happen every Wednesday and Saturday at 9 PM.

Mega Millions drawings are scheduled every Tuesday and Friday at 11 PM ET.

Many of the scratch tickets are part of Montana Lottery Second Chance offers. When you buy the tickets, you have not one, but two ways to win. Your losing tickets are entered into an entirely new drawing, where you can win exciting prizes. If your scratcher fails to deliver, simply enter it into a Montana Lottery ticket scanner. You’ll need to peel off the special Montana Lottery codes in every ticket and log into the Player’s Club.

Redeeming your winning lotto tickets is fairly easy. For prizes below $600, you can just head over to your local retailer. However, larger prizes require a visit to the lotto claims center. A list of centers can be found at the top of this page.

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