PCSO lotto odds: 6/42, 6/45, 6/49, 6/55 and 6/58 jackpot and prize odds, worked out

Every PCSO 6-number lotto game works the same way: you pick 6 numbers, the machine draws 6, and the order does not matter. The odds depend only on how many numbers are in the pool. In Ultra Lotto 6/58 that gives 40,475,358 possible combinations, so one play has a 1 in 40,475,358 chance at the jackpot. Lotto is run by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO), separately from PAGCOR's casinos and online gaming, where players must be 21+.

Jackpot odds for each game

The number of combinations is "n choose 6", written C(n,6): multiply the six highest numbers in the pool together and divide by 6 × 5 × 4 × 3 × 2 × 1 = 720. For 6/58: 58 × 57 × 56 × 55 × 54 × 53 = 29,142,257,760, and ÷ 720 = 40,475,358 (our arithmetic).

Game	Combinations C(n,6)	Jackpot odds per play	Minimum jackpot since 1 Feb 2026
Lotto 6/42	5,245,786	1 in 5,245,786	₱10 million
Mega Lotto 6/45	8,145,060	1 in 8,145,060	₱15 million
Super Lotto 6/49	13,983,816	1 in 13,983,816	₱25 million
Grand Lotto 6/55	28,989,675	1 in 28,989,675	₱45 million
Ultra Lotto 6/58	40,475,358	1 in 40,475,358	₱75 million

Combinations and odds are our arithmetic. The minimum jackpots are from PCSO's January 2026 announcement as reported by GMA News; when nobody wins, the jackpot rolls over and grows until someone matches all six.

Going from 42 to 58 numbers adds only 16 balls, but multiplies the combinations by about 7.7 (our arithmetic).

Odds of matching 3, 4 or 5 numbers

To match exactly k of the 6 winning numbers, your other 6 − k numbers must come from the losing ones. The count is C(6,k) × C(n−6, 6−k). For 6/58 and 3 matches: C(6,3) × C(52,3) = 20 × 22,100 = 442,000 winning combinations out of 40,475,358, or about 1 in 91.6.

Game	Exactly 5	Exactly 4	Exactly 3
6/42	1 in 24,286	1 in 555.1	1 in 36.7
6/45	1 in 34,808	1 in 732.8	1 in 44.6
6/49	1 in 54,201	1 in 1,032	1 in 56.7
6/55	1 in 98,604	1 in 1,643	1 in 78.7
6/58	1 in 129,729	1 in 2,035	1 in 91.6

All figures are our arithmetic, rounded. In 6/58, there are 312 combinations that match exactly 5 numbers and 19,890 that match exactly 4.

What each tier pays

Three numbers: a fixed prize. The Summit Express, reporting PCSO's prize structure after the February 2026 changes, wrote that "the agency maintained its fixed consolation prize matrix for players who match three winning numbers":

Game	3-number prize
Lotto 6/42	₱20
Mega Lotto 6/45	₱30
Super Lotto 6/49	₱50
Grand Lotto 6/55	₱60
Ultra Lotto 6/58	₱100

So matching 3 numbers in Ultra Lotto 6/58 pays ₱100, which happens about once in 92 plays (our arithmetic).

Four and five numbers: shared prizes. Since 1 February 2026 these are pooled amounts split among that draw's winners. GMA News reported the new amounts announced by PCSO:

Game	5 numbers	4 numbers
Lotto 6/42	up to ₱1.1 million	₱1 million
Mega Lotto 6/45	₱1.2 million	₱1.1 million
Super Lotto 6/49	₱1.3 million	₱1.2 million
Grand Lotto 6/55	₱1.4 million	₱1.3 million
Ultra Lotto 6/58	₱1.5 million	₱1.4 million

The Summit Express described the 4-number prize as "at least ₱1 million, to be divided equally among all winners". Its results for 27 June 2026 show what that means in practice: in Lotto 6/42, 1,001 players matched 4 numbers and got ₱999 each, and 20 matched 5 and got ₱55,000 each; in Grand Lotto 6/55 one player matched 5 and got ₱1,400,000, while 180 who matched 4 got ₱7,222.22 each.

Prizes above ₱10,000 are taxed 20% at payout (lotto tax).

What the odds mean per ₱25 ticket

A play costs ₱25 in every jackpot game since 1 February 2026 (GMA News, 30 January 2026; ₱20 before).

The 3-number prize returns about ₱1 per ticket. In 6/58, ₱100 × (1 ÷ 91.6) ≈ ₱1.09 per ₱25 play; in 6/42, ₱20 × (1 ÷ 36.7) ≈ ₱0.54 (our arithmetic).

The jackpot, even a very large one. GMA News listed the Ultra Lotto 6/58 jackpot for the 8 November 2026 draw at ₱500,614,204.72. Divided by 40,475,358 combinations, that is about ₱12.37 per combination before tax, and ₱9.89 after the 20% tax, assuming nobody shares it (our arithmetic). Even with ₱500 million on the line, the jackpot part of each ₱25 play is worth less than half the ticket.

Buying every combination. Covering all 40,475,358 combinations at ₱25 would cost ₱1,011,883,950, about twice that ₱500.6 million jackpot (our arithmetic), before counting the 20% tax or the chance of sharing the prize.

The 4- and 5-number pools add a little more, but because they are split among winners, their value per ticket changes from draw to draw. No reading of the numbers makes lotto pay back what it costs on average; PCSO's charter, as amended by Batas Pambansa Blg. 42, makes it the government's agency "for raising and providing for funds for health programs, medical assistance and services and charities".

Digit games. The daily digit games pay fixed prizes: 2D Lotto (EZ2) pays back about 41.6% of what is bet on average, and Swertres (3D Lotto) about 45% (our arithmetic).

Things that do not change the odds

• Your choice of numbers. Every combination, including 1-2-3-4-5-6 and birthdays, has the same 1 in 40,475,358 chance in 6/58. Popular numbers only make it more likely you'd share a jackpot.
• "Hot" and "cold" numbers. Each draw is independent; past results do not make a number due.
• Playing more often. Ten plays in one draw make your chance 10 in 40,475,358. Playing every draw for years still leaves you far from even odds.

If you want to set a limit or stop, see help and self-exclusion and paano tumigil sa sugal at makaahon sa utang (in Tagalog). If you do win, how to claim a PCSO lotto prize covers the one-year deadline and what to bring.

All PCSO games, prices and odds on one page: PCSO lotto guide.