Australian Lottery Transparency Report
9,291 draws. Four games. Four decades. Here is what the data actually shows about prize sharing, jackpot frequency, and whether the numbers come up randomly. Every figure on this page is computed from the official Lotterywest draw records.
9,291
Total draws analysed
40
Years of data
4
Games covered
9,291
Prize records included
1. Draw history by game
Each game has a different draw frequency and start date. Set for Life draws three times per week, which is why it has by far the most draws despite launching only in 2015.
| Game | Draws | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Powerball | 1,569 | May 1996 to Jun 2026 |
| Saturday Lotto | 2,067 | Nov 1986 to Jun 2026 |
| Oz Lotto | 1,687 | Feb 1994 to Jun 2026 |
| Set for Life | 3,968 | Aug 2015 to Jun 2026 |
| Total | 9,291 | Nov 1986 to Jun 2026 |
2. The prize sharing reality
The advertised jackpot is almost never what a Division 1 winner actually receives. Prize sharing is the norm in Saturday Lotto and common in the other games too.
Headline finding
96% of Saturday Lotto jackpots are shared
Across 1,429 Division 1 wins in our dataset, 1,377 were shared between multiple winners. The average Saturday Lotto jackpot draw had 6.9 Division 1 winners, and the most in a single draw was 54. The advertised prize is typically split many ways.
| Game | Jackpot wins | Shared | Avg winners | Avg prize/winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Powerball | 431 | 21% | 1.3 | $16.7M |
| Saturday Lotto | 1,429 | 96% | 6.9 | $1.2M |
| Oz Lotto | 423 | 25% | 1.4 | $10.7M |
| Set for Life | 161 | 4% | 1.1 | $4.8M |
“Shared” means two or more Division 1 winners in a single draw. Avg prize/winner is the average Division 1 payout, not the advertised jackpot.
The contrast between games is stark. In Powerball, 79% of jackpots go to a sole winner. In Saturday Lotto, a sole winner is the exception: it happens in only 4% of jackpot draws (52 out of 1,429). The most extreme single draw produced 54 winners splitting a $40 million prize pool, around $740,000 each rather than $40 million.
The Prize Division Simulator lets you estimate prize sharing for any current jackpot based on your specific numbers.
3. How often does Division 1 go off?
The frequency with which Division 1 is actually won varies enormously between games. This is driven by the odds structure and whether the game rolls over.
431 Division 1 wins from 1,569 draws
1,429 Division 1 wins from 2,067 draws
423 Division 1 wins from 1,687 draws
161 Division 1 wins from 3,968 draws
Set for Life Division 1 wins in only 4% of draws, meaning the jackpot rolls over 24 times on average before someone wins. Powerball goes off 27% of the time, Saturday Lotto 69%. Note that Set for Life's Division 1 prize is a fixed payment structure rather than a growing jackpot, so rollovers do not increase the prize in the same way.
4. Are the numbers drawn fairly?
One persistent belief is that “birthday numbers” (1 to 31) are drawn more often because more people pick them. The data shows no such bias in the draw machine itself.
Number fairness test
69.0% actual vs 68.9% expected
In Saturday Lotto, numbers 1 to 31 make up 31 of the 45 possible balls, so you would expect them to appear 68.9% of the time in any truly random draw. Across 12,402 ball draws in the dataset, the actual rate is 69.0%. The difference is statistically negligible. The draw machine is fair.
This matters because number popularity does not affect which balls come out of the machine. It only affects how many people share the prize if those numbers win. Picking unpopular numbers does not change your odds of winning — it changes what you would receive if you win. The Prize Simulator and every number generator on Outnumber weights against popular combinations for this reason.
5. Biggest prize pools on record
The largest Division 1 pool in each game, from the official draw records.
The $200M Powerball pool in February 2024 is the largest in Australian lottery history. It was split two ways. For the full ranked list with dates, sources, and winner details, see the Jackpot History page.
Methodology
All figures are computed from the official Lotterywest draw CSV exports, covering 9,291 draws from November 1986 to June 2026. These records include winning numbers, supplementary balls, and per-division prize data (winner count, prize pool, and per-winner payout) for every draw.
Prize sharing percentages count draws where Division 1 winners were greater than one. Average winners and average prize per winner are computed only over draws where at least one Division 1 winner was recorded. The number fairness test counts individual ball appearances across all draws for Saturday Lotto (6 balls per draw, 45-ball pool, 2,067 draws).
Outnumber is independent and not affiliated with The Lott or any lottery operator. This report is published for informational and educational purposes. Lottery products have negative expected value. Play responsibly. 18+.
Explore the data
Source: Official Lotterywest draw records. Data covers draws from November 1986 to June 2026. Outnumber is independent and not affiliated with The Lott, Lotterywest, or any lottery operator. All lotteries have negative expected value. For entertainment purposes only. Play responsibly. 18+ only. If gambling is affecting your finances or relationships, Gambling Help Online offers free, confidential support at gamblinghelponline.org.au or on 1800 858 858.