Loto 6 vs 7 vs Mini Loto vs Bingo 5 vs Numbers: Which Wins More?
Which is easier to win — Loto 6 or Loto 7? Bingo 5 or Mini Loto? This free tool answers any lottery-vs-lottery question by comparing the 1st-prize odds, prize amounts, and ticket price of Japan's number-selection lotteries — Loto 6, Loto 7, Mini Loto, Bingo 5, and Numbers 3/4 — side by side, plus a radar chart for "ease of winning," "prize size," and "affordability" at a glance.
Lottery Type Comparison Table
| Type | Ticket Price | 1st Prize Odds | Approx. 1st Prize | Drawing Method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loto 7 (ロト7) | 300 yen | 1/10,295,472 | Theoretical value 700 million yen (up to 1.2 billion yen with carryover) | Pari-mutuel |
| Loto 6 (ロト6) | 200 yen | 1/6,096,454 | Usually capped at 200 million yen (up to 600 million yen with carryover) | Pari-mutuel |
| Bingo 5 (ビンゴ5) | 200 yen | 1/390,625 | Theoretical value approx. 5.55 million yen | Pari-mutuel (bingo-style drawing) |
| Mini Loto (ミニロト) | 200 yen | 1/169,911 | Theoretical value approx. 10 million yen (capped at 40 million yen) | Pari-mutuel |
| Numbers 4 (ナンバーズ4, Straight) | 200 yen | 1/10,000 | Theoretical value approx. 900,000 yen (fixed payout) | Fixed payout (multiplier-based) |
| Numbers 3 (ナンバーズ3, Straight) | 200 yen | 1/1,000 | Theoretical value approx. 90,000 yen (fixed payout) | Fixed payout (multiplier-based) |
* 1st-prize odds are theoretical values calculated from each lottery's number-selection rules (the number of possible combinations), and prize amounts are representative figures based on official announcements. For pari-mutuel lotteries (Loto 6, Loto 7, Mini Loto, Bingo 5), actual prize amounts vary by drawing depending on ticket sales and the number of winners. Check the official lottery website for the latest odds and prize amounts.
Compare 3 Metrics on a Radar Chart
What It Means to Compare Lottery Types
Japan runs several number-selection lotteries side by side, and each one differs in ticket price, 1st-prize odds, prize size, and how the drawing itself works. Whether one is "better" than another depends entirely on which of those three factors matters most to you. This page lines up six types — Loto 7, Loto 6, Bingo 5, Mini Loto, Numbers 4, and Numbers 3 — on the same yardstick, so you can see the differences in the comparison table and the radar chart without having to dig through each lottery's own rules page.
The odds shown here are theoretical values worked out from each lottery's number-selection rules — essentially the total number of possible combinations a player could choose. Prize amounts are representative figures based on official announcements; for the pari-mutuel lotteries in particular, the actual amount paid out in any given drawing depends on how many tickets were sold and how many people matched. It's also worth knowing up front that every one of these lotteries is legally capped at returning no more than 50% of sales to players on average, so no amount of comparison shopping changes your expected return — it only changes how the odds and prize size are distributed.
How to Read the Comparison
- Scan the comparison table for the raw numbers Ticket price, 1st-prize odds, approximate prize amount, and drawing method are all lined up side by side. Start by getting a feel for how many orders of magnitude separate the odds and the prize sizes.
- Use the radar chart to see the overall shape The three axes — ease of winning, prize size, and affordability — are plotted as relative scores, so you can tell at a glance whether a lottery leans toward a big jackpot or a better shot at winning something.
- Decide which axis matters most to you Once you know whether you care more about chasing a huge prize, winning more often, or spending less per ticket, the type that fits your priority becomes obvious.
- Cross-check with the notes below the table The drawing method column tells you whether a lottery is pari-mutuel (prize varies with sales) or fixed payout (prize is set in advance), which affects how much the numbers above can move.
Tips for getting more out of it
- Choose a lottery type to match your goal: Loto 7 or Loto 6 for a shot at a huge jackpot, or Numbers 3 and Bingo 5 if you'd rather prioritize ease of winning.
- Loto 7 costs 300 yen per ticket, somewhat more than the other lotteries, but its 1st prize is designed to be correspondingly larger than the rest.
- Beyond the "straight" bet (exact-order match) compared here, Numbers also offers a "box" bet that doesn't require matching the order, which changes both the odds and the payout.
- When Loto 6, Loto 7, or Mini Loto has no 1st-prize winner, the unclaimed prize carries over, making the next 1st prize significantly larger than usual.
- Every lottery type is legally designed to return no more than 50% of ticket sales on average, so combining multiple types only changes your odds of winning something — it never improves your average return.
When to Use This Comparison
Buying a number-selection ticket for the first time
The six types can be hard to tell apart by name alone. Comparing price and odds side by side gives you a starting point that matches your budget and expectations.
When you'd rather win something than win big
Lining up the order of magnitude in the odds column shows that Numbers 3 and Bingo 5 are dramatically easier to win than the Loto family. That's useful if you value the experience of actually winning over chasing a jackpot.
When you're chasing a large jackpot
Checking the prize estimates and whether carryover applies tells you which types are designed with a higher ceiling in the first place.
As a teaching example for probability
Lining up odds in the range of "one in several million" across different lotteries makes the scale of those numbers much easier to grasp intuitively — useful when explaining expected value or payout rates.
Lottery Terms
- Pari-mutuel
- A system where the total prize pool, drawn from ticket sales, is split among everyone who wins. The more winners there are, the smaller each individual payout becomes.
- Fixed payout
- A system where winnings are paid at a predetermined multiplier regardless of how many other people also won. Numbers 3 and Numbers 4 both work this way.
- Carryover
- When nobody matches the 1st prize in a given drawing, the unclaimed amount rolls over into the next drawing's 1st prize. Used by Loto 6, Loto 7, and Mini Loto.
- Straight
- A Numbers bet that only pays out when both the digits and their order match exactly. It offers the largest payout of the available bet types.
- Box
- A Numbers bet that pays out as long as the digits match, regardless of order. It's easier to win than a straight bet, but the payout is smaller.
- Payout ratio
- The share of total ticket sales that gets returned to players as prizes. Japanese law caps this at 50% or less for every lottery type.
- Number-selection lottery
- A lottery in which players choose their own numbers before the drawing, as opposed to a scratch card or a lottery where numbers are pre-printed on the ticket.
Frequently Asked Questions
Side Note — Pari-mutuel vs. Fixed Payout
Japan's number-selection lotteries are issued by prefectures and designated cities under the Lottery Ticket Act. Loto 6, Loto 7, and Mini Loto operate under a mechanism called the "pari-mutuel" system, where the 1st prize amount isn't fixed in advance — it fluctuates based on that drawing's ticket sales and the number of winners. This is the same principle used for payouts in publicly authorized racing such as horse racing: the more winners there are, the smaller each individual payout, while if nobody wins, the prize rolls over to the next drawing (a carryover).
Numbers 3 and Numbers 4, by contrast, use a "fixed payout" system where winnings are paid at a predetermined multiplier. Because the odds depend only on the number of digits, Numbers offers more predictable odds and payouts compared with the Loto family. Bingo 5 has its own bingo-style rule combining a 5×5 grid with eight drawn numbers — its odds aren't as long as the Loto family's, but it shares the same pari-mutuel structure.
Even within the single category of "number-selection lotteries," the odds, prize size, and drawing method vary considerably between types. The comparison table and radar chart on this page are meant to help you grasp these differences at a glance and choose the type that matches your own preference — whether that's chasing a life-changing jackpot or prioritizing a better shot at winning something — and are not intended to recommend purchasing any particular lottery.