Illinois Lottery

Can't remember when your favorite game is played? Get the draw days and times for all Illinois lotteries below:

There's more to the Illinois Lottery than just Powerball and Mega Millions - players can buy tickets for home-grown draw games that are as robust as the Illinois prairies.

Illinois Lotto

Lotto is a homegrown favorite with a multi-million dollar jackpot and draws every Monday, Thursday and Saturday night. Add Extra Shot for six more ways to win.

Lucky Day Lotto

Lucky Day Lotto is an Illinois exclusive with a $100,000 starting jackpot, the best chance of winning of all IL draw games, and draws twice every day.

Pick 3

Pick 3 is the Illinois game where players can win up to $500 twice a day with Midday and Evening draws. Add plus Fireball to your ticket for even more ways to win great cash prizes.

Pick 4

Pick 4 is an Illinois-only game where you can score cash prizes up to $5,000 seven days a week in Midday and Evening draws. The plus Fireball add-on option gives you extra ways to win and bigger prizes.

Other Illinois Games

Instant win games are a great option for those who want that thrilling lottery experience right away with no waiting for a draw. Available from authorized retailers, prices for these games start at $1 and can net you a windfall that could rival those offered by Lotto and other Illinois Lottery draw games. Visit your local Illinois Lottery retailer to buy some - who knows, you could snag a prize the first time around with beginner's luck!

Certain instant win games donate a portion of the revenue raised through sales to specific good causes. The Veterans Cash game has raised over $11 million for veterans in the state since 2006, while the Ticket for the Cure has raised over $7.6 million for breast cancer research.

Want to play Illinois Lottery games? You'll need to make a visit to an authorized Illinois Lottery retailer somewhere in the Land of Lincoln.

The claiming period for all Illinois Lottery prizes is one year after the drawing date. However, Powerball, Mega Millions and Lotto winners who choose the cash lump sum payment need to claim their winnings within 60 days. Winners can claim prizes of all values by mail. Most Illinois Lottery retailers will also be able to pay out prizes worth up to $600 depending on their preferences and amount of cash on hand. You can also cash your tickets at dedicated Prize Claim Centers across Illinois.

If you've won between $600 and $25,000 in a drawing, you can visit a Prize Claim Center - take your ticket and supporting evidence of your identity, including photo ID and your Social Security number.

Prizes worth $25,001 to $999,999 can only be claimed by mail.

If you're lucky enough to win over $1 million, you'll need to get in touch with the Illinois Lottery yourself to begin the claims process.

Claim a prize by mail

Prizes of all amounts may be claimed by mail. If you have questions, email the Lottery Claims Department at LOT.Claims@illinois.gov.

Fill in and sign the back of your ticket and send it along with a completed claim form and winner questionnaire to the address below. Make a copy of the documents and send the originals.

If you've won more than $25,000, the lottery can deposit the payout into your bank account. Fill out a direct deposit form and mail it, plus a voided check, to:

Illinois Lottery Claims Department
P.O. Box 19080
Springfield, IL 62794-9912

Claims processing may take 4-6 weeks.

The Illinois Lottery was established on July 1st, 1974 and started selling lottery tickets on July 30th. The first-ever Illinois Lottery drawing took place on August 8th of that same year. The first instant win games were introduced in 1975 and in 1985 the Illinois Lottery began allocating proceeds to the Common School Fund as opposed to the General Revenue Fund for the state. Illinois was the first state in the country to offer online ticket sales to residents.

Today, the Illinois Lottery transfers revenue raised from ticket sales to a number of good causes, including the Common School Fund, the Capital Projects fund and a number of special initiatives. In the 2013 Fiscal Year, the Lottery raised $793 million for these institutions. In addition, four instant win games are specifically dedicated to raising money for veterans, for those living with HIV/AIDS, breast cancer research and multiple sclerosis research.

Biggest Winners

The biggest lottery win in Illinois came on July 29, 2022, when the $1.337 billion Mega Millions jackpot (cash value of $780.5 million) was won by a single ticket holder. The winning ticket was sold at Speedway #4250, 885 E. Touhy Avenue in Des Plaines. The winners came forward two months later and chose the cash option of $780.5 million, while the retailer received a $500,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket.

The previous record holder was a player who won the $552 million jackpot on the June 4, 2024 draw. The winning ticket was sold online. The online player, nicknamed the 'MEGA Millionaire' claimed the prize in less than a week from the winning draw and confessed she was left in 'shock and disbelief' after seeing on her app how much she actually won.

The third-largest prize won in Illinois went to Patricia Busking, a retired healthcare worker from Palos Heights. She won the $393 million Mega Millions jackpot on August 11, 2017 and decided to take the cash option of $246 million.