UK National Lottery

Lotto is drawn twice a week: Wednesday at around 8:30pm and Saturday at around 7:45pm (UK time). Ticket sales for that evening’s draw close at 7:30pm in stores and online (online sales reopen at 9pm for the next draw). Saturday draws are broadcast on ITV1, and all draws are streamed on the National Lottery’s YouTube channel.

The other National Lottery games run on their own nights: EuroMillions on Tuesday and Friday, Set For Life on Monday and Thursday, and Thunderball four times a week (Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday).

How the game works

To play Lotto, you choose 6 numbers from 1 to 59. Each line costs £2 (about US$2.60). You can pick your own numbers or take a Lucky Dip for a random selection, and you can play up to seven lines on a single slip.

On draw night, six main numbers are drawn plus a seventh Bonus Ball. You don’t pick the Bonus Ball as it only matters for the second prize tier (5 numbers + Bonus). Match all six main numbers and you win (or share) the jackpot. There are six prize tiers in total, and matching just two numbers wins a free Lucky Dip for the next draw.

A few things worth knowing:

• Fixed lower prizes — unlike the shared jackpot, the lower Lotto tiers pay fixed cash amounts (for example, £30 for matching three numbers).
• Must Be Won draws — if the jackpot rolls over to a cap without being won, the next draw is a “Must Be Won” draw where the jackpot rolls down to lower tiers.
• Other games — EuroMillions offers Europe-wide mega-jackpots, Set For Life pays a monthly income for 30 years, and Thunderball has a fixed £500,000 top prize.

Odds and prizes

Lotto’s jackpot rolls over until it’s won and is shared among all tickets that match all six numbers. The overall chance of winning any Lotto prize is about 1 in 9.3. Here’s the full breakdown per line played:

The biggest National Lottery win of all came from EuroMillions (a National Lottery game): in July 2022, Joe and Jess Thwaite from Gloucester won £195 million (about US$250 million), the largest prize in UK lottery history. Earlier that same year, an anonymous UK ticket-holder banked £184 million.

For the flagship Lotto game itself, the record jackpot was £66 million (about US$85 million), drawn on 9 January 2016 in a “Must Be Won” draw and split between two ticket-holders. Among these winners were David and Carol Martin of Hawick, Scotland, who each took around £33 million.

Because UK winners can choose to stay anonymous, many of the biggest wins are never linked to a name. The publicised winners are simply those who chose to go public.

The National Lottery launched on 14 November 1994, with the first Lotto-style draw held on 19 November 1994. It was run by Camelot under a series of licences for its first three decades. The main game was originally called “The National Lottery” and later simply “Lotto,” and its format has evolved over the years, most recently moving to a 6-from-59 number field, up from 6-from-49.

In 2021 the minimum age to play was raised from 16 to 18. After a competitive process, the fourth licence to run the National Lottery was awarded to Allwyn Entertainment, which took over operations in February 2024. Throughout, the Lottery’s dual purpose has stayed the same: paying out prizes while raising billions of pounds for good causes.

You can play the National Lottery in several ways:

• In-store — at tens of thousands of authorised retailers across the UK displaying the National Lottery logo. Fill in a playslip or ask for a Lucky Dip.
• Online & app — at the official website and National Lottery app, where you can also set up a Direct Debit to enter draws automatically and never miss one.

You must be 18 or over and physically in the UK or Isle of Man to play.

How you claim depends on the amount and how you played:

• Online play: smaller prizes are paid automatically into your National Lottery account; larger amounts are arranged by phone or bank transfer.
• Up to £500: collect in cash or by voucher at any National Lottery retailer.
• £500.01 to £50,000: claim by post or at selected Post Office branches, or via the National Lottery.
• Over £50,000 (including jackpots): phone the National Lottery to arrange to claim in person, with your winning ticket and ID.

Keep your ticket safe and note that National Lottery prizes must be claimed within 180 days of the draw date.

Taxes on winnings

Good news for UK players: National Lottery winnings are completely tax-free. Prizes are paid as a single lump sum with no tax deducted, whether you win £30 or £30 million. The UK does not treat lottery prizes as taxable income.

The usual caveat applies to what comes after the win: any interest, dividends or rental income you earn from investing your winnings can be taxable in the normal way, and large gifts to others may have inheritance tax implications down the line. For anything substantial, it’s worth taking professional financial advice.

Can you stay anonymous?

Yes. UK National Lottery winners can choose to remain completely anonymous. The operator will not publish or confirm a winner’s identity without their consent. Winners are offered publicity if they want it, but there is absolutely no obligation to go public, which is why so many of Britain’s biggest wins are officially credited only to “an anonymous ticket-holder.”

Winners who do go public are given support and advice on managing sudden wealth and media attention, but the choice always rests with the winner.