We’ve done the research and reviewed the Arizona lottery so that you can find out all the facts about what’s legal, what’s not and how to have fun with the lottery in Arizona! You’ll be happy to know that the lottery is legal and enjoyed by many in the Grand Canyon state. In fact it’s being going strong since the 1st of July 1981! Since then the lottery has been an important source of revenue for services to education, health, the environment and business. Arizona does not have an online lottery just yet, but that’s not to say it won’t come in the future!

Legal Online Lotteries Available in Arizona

Despite the popularity of the Arizona Lottery, the state has no legal online lottery. This is not to say that an online lottery will not be implemented in the future. Currently, there is no news or evidence that this will happen any time soon. No bills on the matter have been put forward to float the idea. On the other hand, it doesn’t seem that state openly against the idea either. The Arizona Lottery is set to continue until at least 2035, when it will be voted on and most likely continued further.

Legal Online Lotteries Available in USA

The lottery has been popular with Arizonans since it was introduced in 1981. As a member of the MUSL, Arizona Lottery offers Multi-State Lottery games to its residents. While there is no online lottery in Arizona yet, here are the most popular lotteries played in the Sunset State. As these are Multi-State Lotteries, many of these games are available online in other states across the US. Find out which dish out the most sought after wins.

Powerball – 12 Lucky Winners in Arizona

The Powerball has been popular with Arizonans since it first became available to play in the state in 1994. In fact it has created 12 lucky jackpot winners in Arizona! It’s available in 21 states as well as Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia and the US Virgin Islands. For $2 players are in with a chance of winning over $40 million. There are 5 white balls and 1 red Powerball. Simply match numbers from 1 to 69 for the white balls and 1 to 26 for the red to win!

Mega Millions – Win Millions or Even Billions

Mega Millions is a multi-state lottery famous for its massive jackpots. Players must match five numbers from 1 to 70 and one number from 1 to 25 – the golden Mega Ball. Simply match all 6 numbers to win a jackpot of $40 million or more. Every time there is a drawing and the jackpot is not won, it rolls over and grows even bigger. This is how Mega Millions made history with the largest prize for one set of numbers – $1.537 billion. Mega Millions tickets sell for just $2, but could turn out to be worth a lot more!

The Pick – Arizona’s Very Own Lottery Draw

The Pick is a jackpot draw game exclusive to Arizona. The jackpot is always at least $1 million and grows until a winner is found. In 2007, the jackpot reached a record $13.5 million! All 6 numbers must be matched to win the jackpot. Smaller cash prizes are on offer for three or more matched numbers. The odds of winning a cash prize are around 1 in 39. With tickets starting at just $1 a pop, there’s little wonder that it’s so popular.

Scratchers – Scratch to Reveal the Winning Numbers

Scratchers have been well loved by Arizonans since the 1st of July 1981 when the very first ticket was sold. This ticket was called ‘Scratch it Rich’. Unlike a lottery draw, a Scratcher is a card that reveals lottery numbers when a layer is scratched away. There have been almost 1,000 different types of Scratchers tickets to date. ‘Bingo’, ‘Red Hot 7’s’ and ‘Crossword’ have remained the most popular. Lucky Arizonans have won holidays and once in a lifetime experiences, as well as cash prizes with Scratchers.

Lottery Regulator in Arizona

The Arizona Lottery Commission is responsible for regulation in the state. The commission is made up of five members appointed by a governor. They are selected from a range of political backgrounds and serve for five years. It has been a record year, thanks to high jackpots. This means the Arizona Lottery is set to give around $220 million to 18 different programs and services. The public will benefit from funding to education, healthcare, local business and environmental services.

Other Lotto Draws You Could Pick

We’ve picked the most popular lotteries available in Arizona, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Lotto fans have many more draw games to choose from. We’ve seen the biggest jackpots, but sometimes you’d like to pick more favorable odds over high stakes prizes. Fantasy 5 draws a jackpot daily and you can enter for just $1. Triple Twist is also a daily draw game, with tickets selling for $2. Pick 3 is another daily draw game with a rolling jackpot. It’s clear that there’s plenty of choice and many ways to play.

History of Arizona Lottery

Since it’s introduction in 1981, many have enjoyed playing and benefitted from the Arizona Lottery. Millionaires have been made and records have been broken again and again. The extra revenue has been a valuable contributor for local services, from caring for under-privileged children to looking after the environment. From scratch cards to daily lotteries to multi-state jackpots – Arizonans have played and won them all. Let’s see how it all started and follow the journey of the Arizona Lottery to the present day.

Famous Winners – Double Winners and Mega Jackpots!

In 2012 Matthew Good from Phoenix won half of a $587.5 million jackpoton the Powerball. Good remains an enigma, as all we really know about him is that he was in his 30s and married. He went for $192 million upfront before taxes, instead of a 30-year payout. The other half of the mega jackpot went to Mark and Cindy Hill of Missouri. The jackpot was so large because a winner hadn’t been picked in two months. It grew larger and larger as more and more people bought tickets in the hopes of a lucky windfall.

Matthew Good is not the only lucky Arizonan to win big. Diane and Kerry Carmichael have won twice. Kerry’s winning ticket won the couple $2.5 million in 1995. Diane landed them another $1 million just as their annual payout was due to end. They’re still buying tickets and claim they’re ‘holding out for the big one’!

Lottery Legal Age in Arizona

The minimum legal age for playing the lottery or buying a ticket in Arizona is 21 years old. 21 years old is also the general Arizona gambling  age for pari-mutuel and casino betting. The legal lottery age used to be 18, but it was raised to 21 on June 1st, 2003. This was to bring it in line with all forms of gambling, including pari-mutuel betting and tribal casinos. Underage gambling is an offence that can carry large fines and even jail time – not to mention you’d lose your winnings. The legal drinking age is 21 too.

• Lottery Age
  Lottery players must be at least 21 years old in the state of Arizona.
• Alcohol Age
  In Arizona the legal drinking age is 21 years old.
• Weed Age
  As marijuana is not legal for recreational use, there is no legal age.

Is Online Lotto Legal When You Are Out of the State?

At present, ten US states offer online lotto to their residents. Among them, the Georgia lottery is thriving and bringing millions in state revenue, as an example. Other states seem to be making moves towards passing their own legislation too. Minnesota used to offer online instant-win games – in fact it was the first to do so. However, this came to an end when lawmakers decided to make online lottery sales illegal in 2015. Online lotteries have only been legal since 2011, when an amendment was made to the Wire Act. Nowadays, it’s up to individual states to pass their own legislation when it comes to introducing online lotteries. There are widespread lotteries in the US and all over the world. In Europe the Euromillions and Eurojackpot lotteries are hugely popular. In Australia Oz Lotto is the one to play.

The Best Lottery Mobile App

Despite not having a real online lottery, Arizona Lottery has made a great app for players. Arizona Lottery Players Club can be used to check numbers, discover promotions and find drawing schedules. This makes playing the lottery fast, convenient and exciting! The app is available for both apple and android mobile users. This makes it useful for playing on the go and finding out if you’ve won instantly. Even if you haven’t’ won, you can scan your ticket to take advantage of promotions. It’s worth noting that tickets cannot be purchased online through the app, only at physical retailers and machines.

Online Lottery Promotions to Take Advantage Of

Arizona doesn’t offer it’s own online lottery, so there aren’t really online lottery promotions to take advantage of. The Arizona Lottery Players Club app does actually offer a useful promotion though. You can scan a non-winning ticket for a second chance to win prizes and cash. These can add some fun while boosting your odds. If Arizona does decide to implement it’s own online lottery in the future, you could expect to see more promotions like match bonuses, point systems, and free tickets. These are the types of promotions available in states that do offer online lotteries. In the meantime, while we all wait for further development on the matter here, we urge you to check out our thorough gambling in Arizona page. There you will find various information regarding other aspects of the gambling field in the state.

Taxes on Lotto Winnings in Arizona

If you’re a lucky winner in Arizona, it’s important that you don’t forget about tax! All lottery winnings must be reported to the IRS. Winnings are subject to 4.8% state income tax. 24% will also be withheld for federal taxes. If you’ve won over $600 but you’re in debt to the state, a check will be subtracted from your winnings to pay off that debt. If you want to find out more about taxes and how much you need to pay it’s worth heading over to Arizona Lottery. The Arizona Lottery Commission is responsible for regulating the state lottery.

Upcoming Regulation Changes for Online Lottery

It’s clear to see that the Arizona Lottery is a success story. So how does this bode for its future? The revenue it brings has been useful for the economy and has benefitted Arizonans directly. This large revenue is largely thanks to the popularity of headline-grabbing high jackpot draws. Evidently, everyone wants a chance at a life-changing windfall. It would logically follow that an online lottery is the most sensible next step, especially considering Arizona Lottery have already put out their own app. The truth is that we simply don’t know. There are no rumors on the grapevine, and an online lottery does require in-depth legislation. We’ll keep our ear to the ground though, just in case Arizona does decide to follow in the footsteps of trail-blazing eastern states like Georgia and Michigan.

Lottery Guides for Nearby States

• Nevada
• Utah
• New Mexico
• California