ialottery blog

Lottery-Ticket Purchases at The Checkout Make Iowa Debut at Fareway Stores

Powerball® and Mega Millions® tickets can now be purchased in checkout lanes at many Fareway® Stores in Iowa, marking the state debut of this new convenience in lottery play.

The new purchase option, called Easy Play, has debuted in select Fareway locations in Iowa. Roll-out is planned by the end of March to all Fareway locations in the state that sell lottery tickets.

The new option allows quick-pick tickets in Powerball and Mega Millions to be printed from the cash register. The tickets are produced on the same paper as store receipts, but printed separately.

Customers in those stores can buy quick-pick tickets – where the numbers in the plays are randomly assigned – in Powerball and Mega Millions at any checkout lane staffed by a cashier.

Before this, Iowa Lottery tickets could only be purchased at a lottery terminal or self-service kiosk in a retail location.

Express Lane vs. Full Selection

Think of Easy Play as an express lane with just a couple lottery options available. Customers who want to cash a lottery prize, choose their own numbers in a lotto game, or buy tickets in the full selection of lottery games available at the store, will still go to the clerk at the lottery terminal.

At the Iowa Lottery, we recognize that consumers value convenience. And we’re glad to help meet that expectation by going live at Fareway with this new way to buy lotto tickets in Iowa.

How It Works

The Easy Play option allows customers at the cash register to buy quick-pick tickets with 1, 2, 3, 5 or 10 plays on them for the next drawing in Powerball and Mega Millions.

The point is to keep things moving, so you can’t add the Power Play®, Double Play® or Megaplier® options on an Easy Play ticket. Also note that Easy Play tickets can’t be purchased in self-service lanes.

But Easy Play tickets can be checked or cashed at any lottery retail location in Iowa. The tickets look a lot like those from a lottery terminal or self-service kiosk, but include the Easy Play logo to identify them.

Easy Play tickets comply with the same security standards as any Iowa Lottery ticket. And,
Fareway cash registers have the technology to ensure that customers buy Easy Play tickets with cash or the equivalent, including debit. It is illegal in Iowa for lottery tickets to be purchased with credit.

This Week Marks 25 YEARS Of ‘Crossword’ Scratch Games In Iowa!

A lottery game that shot to popularity as soon as it debuted in Iowa is marking 25 YEARS on the market this week.

The Iowa Lottery’s first “Crossword” scratch game was released on March 13, 2000. And we’ve had at least one Crossword game on the market every day since then.

While the Iowa Lottery has high expectations for any game we sell, I don’t think we could have imagined what the future would hold for Crossword. It’s now been one of the lottery’s top-selling games for a quarter of a century!

The Design Still Looks The Same

It’s interesting to look back at those first Crossword tickets, which you can see above. They could be among the Crossword games we have on the market today! The design of our Crossword tickets obviously hasn’t changed much because that’s the way players like them! (If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, people!)

What HAS changed is the variety of Crossword games on the market in Iowa at any one time. For years, the Iowa Lottery had just one Crossword game for sale. The first version of Crossword was a $3 game and we stuck with that for a long time.

But then we got brave. We decided to keep a $3 Crossword game out there, but add more. We released a $5 Crossword game, then a $10 Crossword, a $20 Crossword, and a $30 Crossword. Somewhere along the line, we backed up and added a $2 Crossword. And today, we’ve also got a SCRABBLE™ version of the Crossword game!

You Can Choose Your Favorite Today

There currently are 6 Crossword scratch games for sale in stores across the state. They all have different prize structures and some of them have multiple versions of Crossword puzzles on each ticket. What’s universal about them all is that it takes a while to uncover all the letters available – and that’s what players say they like about Crossword.

So, when you see Crossword tickets this week in local stores, wish them a happy 25th birthday! I’m betting Crossword scratch games will celebrate many more birthdays in Iowa!

There IS A Jackpot Game That Costs Just $1 To Play & Has Easier Odds Of Winning

Here’s something that players regularly tell us they want in a lotto game. And in fact, it already exists.

You can play it today, and the game’s current jackpot is the second-highest in its history.

I’m referring to Lotto America®, the multi-state lotto game that costs $1 to play and has easier odds of winning than its larger cousins, Powerball® and Mega Millions®.

The Lotto America jackpot currently stands at an estimated $25.56 million annuity ($12.04 million lump-sum option) for tomorrow night’s drawing. That’s the second-largest jackpot ever offered in the game.

And, did you know that the largest Lotto America jackpot to date was won by an Iowan? That $40.03 million prize was won in April 2023 by a Dubuque man.

Some players tell us they wish there were an alternative to Powerball and Mega Millions, which both cost more than $1 per ticket and have long odds of winning. (You can’t achieve the giant jackpots that those games regularly produce without having a higher price point and longer odds.)

And so we’re left to wonder: If people SAY they want a $1 lotto game with easier odds of winning, are they playing Lotto America, which provides just that?

Things that make you go, “Hmmmm …”

‘Step Down’ Now Underway On Advance Plays In Mega Millions

We gave you a head’s up last month that it was coming, and now a temporary countdown is underway on the number of drawings for which you can buy tickets in advance in Mega Millions®.

As of today, you can buy tickets in the game here in Iowa for up to 9 drawings in advance. (The usual maximum is 10.) After Friday’s drawing, the number will be reduced to 8. With each drawing, the number will continue to be reduced until the new version of the Mega Millions game debuts early next month.

The limit on advance plays is called a “step down” and it’s put in place to ensure that no one mistakenly ends up with an invalid play when the revamp of the game begins.

Once the redesign in Mega Millions debuts on April 5, you’ll again be able to buy tickets in advance for up to 10 drawings in the game.

Please note that the current step down only applies to Mega Millions. You can buy the usual number of advance plays in the other lotto games available in Iowa.

The changes on the way in Mega Millions are designed to allow the game to continue meeting player expectations for play options and big jackpots.

The Step Down Schedule

Here is the Iowa schedule for the step down on advance plays leading into the Mega Millions redesign. The reduction in the number of advance plays you can purchase happens after the Mega Millions drawing on each date.

Drawing Date	Max Number Of Advance Plays Available
February 28	10
March 4	9
March 7	8
March 11	7
March 14	6
March 18	5
March 21	4
March 25	3
March 28	2
April 1	1

When The New Version Of Mega Millions Will Debut

The final drawing in the existing version of Mega Millions will be held on Friday, April 4. Sales in the $5 version of the game begin the next morning, on April 5.

The first drawing in the revamped game will be held on Tuesday, April 8. Drawings in Mega Millions will continue to be held twice a week at 10 p.m. central time on Tuesdays and Fridays.

In Their Own Words: These Iowans Share What Help Means For Gambling Addiction

In these new videos you’ll see on television and online in the next month, 2 Iowans talk about gambling addiction. It’s a tough issue that can affect people at any time – and help is available for it.

But what would lead someone to think they need help for this often misunderstood condition? What does that help look like, exactly? And what difference can it make?

In the first video, an Iowa man shares his struggle from the time that he gambled too much, how it harmed his life, and the moment he knew he needed to make a change. His bright smile as he says he’s doing well today just shines through!

In the other message, a Burlington counselor who helped the man with his gambling disorder tells you what that treatment looks like, and the turn-around it can make in someone’s life.

At the Iowa Lottery, we're highlighting their stories to help us all have a better understanding of gambling addiction.

March is Problem Gambling Awareness Month. During the next few weeks, you’ll see the Iowa Lottery’s reminders about it across the state. Whether you’re in a store, driving by an outdoor billboard, watching TV, listening to the radio, using a streaming service or going online, you’ll likely see one of the public service announcements.

We hope that by providing these details, we can get the right information at the right time to someone looking for answers.

Remember that people with gambling disorders can come from any background and live anywhere. A gambling disorder can have periods where symptoms subside, and times where it’s more severe.

The universal truth for us all to know is that gambling disorders are treatable.

If you have questions about gambling addiction, free and confidential help is available 24/7 in Iowa by visiting yourlifeiowa.org or calling 1-800-BETS OFF. You can reach someone who cares through text, secure chat, email, telephone or in person.

Player Comment: I Just Had To Pay An Extra Fee To Buy Lottery Tickets!

A player just reached out to us with a question about a fee she paid to buy lottery tickets at a store in her area. We were able to help resolve that situation, and I’m sharing the details here in case you’ve ever experienced the same thing.

The woman bought lottery tickets at an Iowa store and thought she’d been charged sales tax on the purchase. She wanted to know if that was something new.

We reached out to the store involved and learned that it had mistakenly been charging a processing fee to players who used a debit card to buy lottery tickets. We let the store know that fees like that can’t be passed along to the player for a lottery purchase.

Iowa Lottery tickets are sold at the price printed on the ticket. So even if you buy multiple tickets, the total amount of your purchase will always end in 0.

Sales tax doesn’t apply to lottery tickets, and processing and service fees also can’t be charged to a player for a lottery purchase.

The reality of those requirements means that some stores may not accept debit cards for lottery purchases, and that is their decision to make.

In Iowa, it’s legal for a customer to use cash or the equivalent (including gift cards, debit cards, and checks) to buy Iowa Lottery tickets. Any of those methods use available funds for the purchase, so they are permitted. But it is illegal in Iowa for lottery tickets to be purchased with a credit card.

While a lottery retail location can accept a debit card for the payment of lottery tickets, they are not required to do so. Card transactions for retail purchases involve processing fees (sometimes called swipe fees) that the merchant has to pay. Some retail locations limit card transactions to also limit the processing fees they pay.

The bottom line: You should never pay any sort of fee to buy lottery tickets in Iowa. If a retailer is charging you one, let us know so we can help.

On Our Website & Mobile App: New Details For The Jackpots In InstaPlay Games

We’ve added some additional details on our website and mobile app to help show exactly how the jackpots work in our Progressive InstaPlay games.

The information for each Progressive InstaPlay game now includes the game’s starting jackpot amount AND the amount that jackpot grows with each ticket sold statewide in the game.

There are currently 9 Progressive InstaPlay games available in Iowa. And as any new Progressive games are added in the future, we’ll continue to make sure the jackpot-growth details are available.

Why They’re Called Progressive

The jackpots in Progressive InstaPlay games have set starting amounts and increase with each ticket sold statewide until they’re won. The jackpot then resets to the starting amount and begins to grow again.

InstaPlay games have similarities to scratch games, but their plays are left in electronic form rather than being pre-printed into a supply of tickets.

An electronic file of plays exists for an InstaPlay game, and winners are randomly distributed within that file. When you buy an InstaPlay ticket at a lottery terminal or self-service kiosk, you get the next available play from the top of the file.

Some jackpots won in a Progressive InstaPlay game will be larger, based upon where the particular jackpot-winning ticket falls within the file, and some will be smaller, for that same reason.

No one – not even those of us who work at the lottery – knows where the next big winner will hit.

And as with any of our games, the jackpot is just one of the prize levels available in an InstaPlay game. Some of the money spent on tickets in the games goes to pay the jackpot, and some goes to pay the other prizes.

The Jackpot Details, All In One Place

While the jackpot details are on our website and mobile app for each Progressive InstaPlay game, I’m providing them here so you’ll have them all in one place:

• In the $30 Blank Check Progressive game, the jackpot starts at $50,000 and grows by $3 with each ticket sold statewide until it is won.
• In the $30 Super 7s Progressive game, the jackpot starts at $50,000 and grows by $3 with each ticket sold statewide.
• In the $20 Xtreme Multiplier Progressive game, the jackpot starts at $20,000 and grows by $2 with each ticket sold.
• In the $20 Extreme Green Progressive game, the jackpot starts at $20,000 and grows by $2 with each ticket sold.
• In the $10 Hot Ticket Progressive game, the jackpot starts at $10,000 and grows by $1 with each ticket sold.
• In the $5 Big Money Doubler Progressive game, the jackpot starts at $5,000 and grows by 35 cents with each ticket sold.
• In the $5 MONOPOLY™ Game Tokens Progressive game, the jackpot starts at $5,000 and grows by 35 cents with each ticket sold.
• In the $2 Fat Wallet Progressive game, the jackpot starts at $2,000 and grows by 15 cents with each ticket sold.
• In the $1 Cash on the Run Progressive game, the jackpot starts at $650 and grows by 8 cents with each ticket sold.

Those amounts are programmed into the prize structure of the game itself, and the lottery does not adjust the prize structure once it has been implemented.

MONOPOLY TM, ® & © 1935, 2024 Hasbro

He’s Going To Ireland: ISU Grad Wins Trip To See The Cyclones Play In Dublin!

Luke Becker (right) is shown with his fiancée, Lauren Kimball, and Tim Atterburg with Cyclone Sports Properties. 

THIS Iowa State grad is going to Ireland to see the Cyclones™ play football in Dublin!

On Tuesday, Luke Becker of Des Moines was selected as the winner of a VIP trip for two to Ireland in the Iowa Lottery’s Dublin Your Luck promotion. The promotion gave away a travel package to Dublin to see Iowa State take on Kansas State in the teams’ 2025 football season opener on Aug. 23 at Aviva Stadium.

Luke, a 2023 Iowa State graduate, claimed his prize on Friday at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive. He said he knew he’d entered tickets into the promotion, but still had trouble believing it when an Iowa Lottery staffer called him on Tuesday to say that he was the winner.

Trying To Be Calm At Work

Luke said he was at work in the middle of his office when he learned the news, so he couldn’t yell or have a big reaction. He quietly let his fiancée, Lauren Kimball, and his parents know that he thought he’d won.

Luke said his parents immediately started scouring the Iowa Lottery website and sent him a screenshot showing his name as the promotion winner. That’s when it all really started to sink in.

The Tickets He Entered Were Gifts

Luke said he thinks all the “Cyclone” scratch tickets he entered in the promotion were gifts from his parents or his fiancée’s grandparents, who all wanted he and Lauren to have the chance to go to Ireland.

Luke said the outcome seems just crazy to him. And he knows that without their family members having fun while buying tickets, this wouldn’t be happening.

The lottery’s Dublin Your Luck promotion was open for entries from Dec. 2 through this past Monday, Feb. 10. The lottery held the promotion's drawing on Tuesday and one of Luke’s tickets was selected as the winner out of more than 17,100 entries.

Luke’s plus-one for the trip will be Lauren, a current Iowa State student majoring in education. Lauren said that her great-grandparents immigrated to America from Ireland, her mother studies their family history, and they celebrate their Irish ancestry.

Lauren said she’s pretty sure her parents will be purchasing tickets to the Iowa State game in Dublin so they also can be there!

What’s In The Trip Package

Luke’s travel prize package for two includes airfare, lodging, game tickets to the Iowa St.-Kansas St. football game on Aug. 23, $5,000 spending money and a merchandise pack.

He said he’s sure there will be a thousand things for them to do to pack their time in Dublin, in addition to going to the game.

“Ireland has been on our radar outside of this game for someplace we wanted to visit,” he said. “And so to now have it be a football game in addition to the days there to just tour the city and experience everything local … We’re ready to go when the plane is ready.”

A Lot Of So-Called Formulas, But Only 1 Approach Gives You A Chance To Win

A man just reached out to us who was excited about the “formula” he'd seen online for how to win the lottery. And he wanted to know why we don’t share those ideas with people.

It’s because they’re not true. Lots of people SAY they have a way to guarantee you’ll win the lottery, but they really don’t.

I’m betting there have been debates about “the winning formula” in lottery games for as long as there have been lotteries -- and that stretches back at least to the time that the Great Wall of China was built.

It’s All Random

To be clear, lottery games and drawings are based solely upon random outcomes. There truly is no way to predict which numbers will be drawn next in our games or where a big winning ticket will hit next because it’s all random.

Now, there have been weird coincidences in lottery games through the years. But that’s all they are: coincidences.

The Fortune Cookie Coincidence

For example, in a March 2005 Powerball® drawing, 110 prizes were won at the game’s second-prize level. All those tickets matched the 5 white balls but missed the Powerball. Back then, the odds of winning at that prize level were about 1 in 3 million, so there usually would have been 4 to 5 second-prize winners in a drawing.

It turned out, fortune cookies were behind the huge number of winners. The people involved had all been playing the numbers they’d found in fortune cookies. All the cookies were produced by the same New York company and contained the same numbers.

When those numbers came up in the drawing, the players all won big.

A weird coincidence for sure!

What Actually Gives You A Chance To Win 

There is only one “formula” I know of that guarantees you a chance at winning a lottery prize: You have to buy a ticket!

So buy a ticket if you want. But remember that the lottery is a form of entertainment, like subscribing to a streaming service, going to a concert or enjoying a night out to eat.

Don’t believe claims of a so-called formula to help you win, and don’t play beyond your means. Just have fun with it!