Weighed as a choice, "What is lottery odds?" comes down to a few levers. A player who wants better lottery odds has only a few real levers: how many tickets to buy, which game to play and how to choose the numbers. Two of those change something and one changes nothing at all. Sorting the levers that move the odds from the habits that only feel like control saves money, and it shows what a ticket actually buys ahead of the draw.
Lottery odds for the jackpot are set by the pool alone, and the prize size follows from sales. A game that rolls its jackpot for weeks grows the prize and leaves the odds untouched, so a record jackpot is just as hard to hit as an ordinary one. The only change a larger jackpot brings is more players, and with them a higher chance of sharing the top prize with another ticket.
Can you increase your odds of winning the lottery by choosing the game? That is the lever that works best. Odds of winning each lottery game differ widely: a draw of five numbers from thirty five is far kinder than six from fifty nine, and a small pool with a small jackpot pays more often. What lottery has the best odds is usually the one with the smallest pool and the smallest top prize, since the two travel together.
No. The cost rises in the same proportion as the chances, so the expected return per ticket stays unchanged however many are bought.
The pool alone sets jackpot odds, so a record rollover is just as hard to hit; the only change is more players and a greater chance of splitting the prize.
No. The draw treats every combination alike, so random quick pick lines and numbers a player chooses have exactly the same odds.
Yes, in exact proportion: twenty tickets with different combinations give twenty chances, while buying the same combination twice adds nothing.
Birthdays and patterns are picked by many players, so a winning ticket built from them is more likely to share the prize with others.