Australian lottery wheels

System entries and wheels

The Lott and Lotterywest sell System entries: you choose more numbers than a game needs, and the entry plays every combination of them, at the full price of every game. If all the winning numbers are among yours, a System holds them. A wheel plays only some of those games, chosen so that if a smaller number of your numbers are drawn, at least one game still matches them. It costs a small part of the price, and it can't do what a full System does.

For Saturday Lotto, against wheels that match three whenever three of your numbers are drawn:

Prices are the official selling fees in every state but Western Australia, where Lotterywest's commission is a little lower. No choice of games changes the odds of any one game or what entries pay back on average.

Buying tickets in Australia

• You must be 18 or over to play, except in Western Australia, where Lotterywest's minimum age is 16.
• Prices include the outlet's commission, which each game's rules set, and most entries need at least 4 games. The costs on these pages are the official selling fees.
• Coupons must be marked by hand: printed or computer-filled slips aren't accepted.
• System entries are full wheels: every combination of your numbers, at the full price of every game. The wheels here cover the same numbers with far fewer games, and promise less in return.

Mark each line on an official coupon by hand at a lottery outlet, or enter them online or in the app: The Lott everywhere except Western Australia, Lotterywest there. A coupon holds up to 18 games and an online entry up to 50. Saved as Favourites in The Lott, a big wheel can be played in store by scanning your member card.

For the official rules and results, see The Lott or Lotterywest. LotteryWheels.com is independent and not part of The Lott or Lotterywest.

Syndicates

Lottery outlets sell official syndicates: shares in big entries, with a ticket for every member. The Lott's SyndiMate lets a group build its own syndicate online and buy it in store. A free office or family pool is fine, but in NSW, SA, WA and the ACT it's an offence to run a syndicate for a fee or reward, so nobody should take a cut.

Tax on prizes

Lottery prizes aren't taxed in Australia: the ATO says you don't need to declare prizes from ordinary lotteries such as lotto draws. Interest earned on winnings is taxed as usual.

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