NY Pick 10 Odds, Prizes and How the Draw Works

In NY Pick 10, a $1 play wins something about once in every 17 plays, according to the New York Lottery's overall odds, and the top prize of $500,000 for matching all 10 numbers comes in at 1 in 8,911,711 (both as of October 2026). The quirk worth knowing: a ticket that matches none of the drawn numbers still pays $4.

How New York Pick 10 is drawn

Pick 10 is a keno-style game in which 20 numbers from 1 to 80 are drawn every evening, and your ticket is scored by how many of your picks land among them. Draws run daily at 8:30 PM Eastern, and each play costs $1 (as of October 2026).

That 20-of-80 structure is why the game behaves so differently from a jackpot lotto. A quarter of the field is drawn each night, so your numbers are always in play, but lining up every one of them with the draw is extremely unlikely.

NY Lotto Pick 10 odds and prizes

The lottery publishes a prize and odds table for every match tier. The two ends of that table tell most of the story:

The figures come straight from New York's Pick 10 prize table. Matching nothing pays too: at 1 in 22 it lands more often than the top tier by a margin of millions. The middle tiers sit between those two rows, and the lottery's own page lists them in full.

What the odds mean for a $1 play

Odds of 1 in 17 for any prize mean most plays lose, and the common wins are small. The zero-match prize returns four times the stake, which is a nice surprise on a bad night but not a strategy: you cannot choose to miss.

At the top, 1 in 8,911,711 is long enough that no number system, birthday set or hot-and-cold chart changes it. Every draw is independent, so past results tell you nothing about the next 20 numbers. Play Pick 10 for the fun of the nightly draw, with money you are happy to spend.

Taxes on Pick 10 winnings

Any Pick 10 win counts as income. The IRS says gambling winnings are fully taxable and must go on your tax return, and for certain wins the payer issues Form W-2G to report it. A $500,000 hit is firmly in that territory.

Your odds questions

How do you win the NY Lottery's Pick 10?

Buy a play for $1, then wait for the nightly draw at 8:30 PM ET, when 20 numbers from 1 to 80 come out. Your prize depends on how many of your numbers land among those 20, and New York publishes the payout for each match tier on its odds page.

How many numbers do you need for a win?

Fewer than you might think, and sometimes none at all. Hitting all 10 is the jackpot tier, yet a ticket that matches zero numbers also pays $4, with odds of 1 in 22 as of October 2026.

Should you pick the same numbers always?

It makes no difference to your chances. Each evening a fresh set of 20 numbers is drawn from the full 1 to 80 field, so a favourite line carries the same odds every night, and the overall chance of any prize stays at 1 in 17.

Are Pick 10 winnings taxable?

Yes. The IRS treats gambling winnings as fully taxable income that you report on your return, and bigger wins can come with a Form W-2G from the payer.

Official sources

• New York Lottery, Pick 10 Odds and Prizes, accessed October 2026
• New York Lottery, How to Play Pick 10, accessed October 2026
• Internal Revenue Service, Topic no. 419, Gambling income and losses, accessed October 2026