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Lottery In Arkansas

By - Wednesday 23rd April 2025 12:36 PM

Arkansas was one of the original hotspots for gambling back in the 1800s, with Hot Springs being famous for gambling, saloons, and gangsters. Eventually, these kinds of corrupt criminal activities would tarnish the lottery’s name and it would be subject to prohibition. Arkansas residents were free to play the lottery again after a ballot was held in November 2008. The state would go on to join the Multi-State Lottery Association in July the following year to offer Powerball and Mega Millions tickets shortly after.


Legal Lottery Options in Arkansas

There are more than 1,900 retail locations where you can purchase tickets for the various lottery games in the state of Arkansas. With the state offering the local stores a 1% commission on winning tickets, every time a customer wins, so does the local business owner.

Although the state has a lottery website and mobile apps in place, you cannot use these online services to purchase tickets of any kind currently. However, it’s still worth signing up for because you can claim prizes from non-winning tickets and earn points with the Arkansas Player’s Club.

Lottery In Arkansas [Updated ]

Multi-State Games

Lottery In Arkansas [Updated ]

US Powerball

This game is drawn three times a week on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday nights. With jackpots that start at a cool $40 million, this is one of the largest lottery prize pools in the world, and in fact, it’s had the largest payout ever in January 2016 when three players would split a $1.586 billion jackpot.

Lottery In Arkansas [Updated ]

Mega Millions

Yet another huge lottery, much in the same way that the US Powerball game is, Mega Millions often sees hundreds of millions paid out as a jackpot. This lottery was responsible for the largest single payout in history, when a South Carolina resident won $1.537 billion on October 23rd, 2018.

Just like the Powerball game, tickets are $2 but you’ll also have the option of paying extra and using the Megaplier which again will increase any non-jackpot wins. Make sure to play this game every Tuesday and Friday night for a chance to win some serious cash.

Lucky For Life

Lottery In Arkansas [Updated ]

Arkansas Exclusive Lottery Games

Lottery In Arkansas [Updated ]

Cash 3 & Cash 4

Lottery In Arkansas [Updated ]

Natural State Lottery

This local game is drawn every Monday to Saturday evening and boasts a jackpot of hundreds of thousands typically. Tickets are just $1 and you only have to select five numbers from 1-39 to be in with a chance of winning some life-changing money.


Additional Games

You can have a chance at winning a progressive jackpot with the AR Fast Play game. This instant ticket game allows you to play from just $1 and win a jackpot that starts at $1,000 as well as plenty of other prizes.

You can also find a wide selection of scratch-off games on sales around the state. Tickets range anywhere from $1 up to $20 and offer prizes of up to $1,000,000.


Arkansas State Lottery History

    Lottery In Arkansas [Updated ]– A ballot is held to decide the legality of a lottery within Arkansas. Voters approved which would pave the way for residents to play the lottery for the first time since the 1880s.
  • July 2009 –Arkansas joined the Multi-state Lottery Association, allowing the sale of multi-state draw tickets such as Mega Millions and Powerball.
  • September 2009 – The state of Arkansas begins to sell scratch-off tickets.
  • October 2009 – The first Powerball tickets are sold in the state for the November 4th draw.
  • January 2010 – The first Mega Millions tickets are sold in the state for the February 2nd draw.
  • August 2012 – Arkansas begins its own in-state progressive game called the Natural State Jackpot.
  • February 2013 – Stephen Weaver would win $1,000,000 on a scratch card and then his wife would buy another ticket winning $50,000.
  • April 2017 – Eliberto Cantu wins $177 million on the Mega Millions and helps rebuild a local Arkansas church.

What Does the Arkansas State Lottery Fund?

The lottery in Arkansas has raised more than $1 billion in proceeds so far that go towards helping local Arkansas college students. So far over 650,000 scholarships have been awarded by the Arkansas Academic Challenge to help people that may not have been otherwise able to further their education.


Where Can You Play the Lottery in Arkansas?

There are more than 1,900 retail locations within state lines where you can go and purchase draw and instant lottery tickets. It’s well worth downloading the official Arkansas Lottery App from either the iOS app store or the Google Play store so you can locate your nearest retailer.


Frequently Asked Questions

What lottery games can I play in Arkansas?

There are multi-state lottery games like Powerball, Mega Millions, and Lucky For Life available as well as popular in-state games such as the Natural State Lottery, Cash 3 & Cash 4.

On top of these draw games, you can also enjoy a selection of instant win games at retail locations, with a progressive game called AR Fast Play and scratch cards that range from $1 up to $20 that pay prizes of up to $1,000,000.

Are lottery games legal to play online in Arkansas?

Sadly not, you can only purchase tickets for the various lottery games at retail outlets.

It's still worth downloading the Arkansas Lottery app or signing up for the website though because you can get your hands on some worthwhile promotions with 'The Club' including getting prizes from non-winning tickets and earning points on your play.

What are my odds of winning the Arkansas lottery?

One of the major reasons the Natural State Lottery is so popular is because you are much more likely to win compared to a multi-state game.

Lottery In Arkansas [Updated ]
What is the biggest lottery win in Arkansas? Lottery In Arkansas [Updated ]

It didn't change him much though, with Cantu claiming he wouldn't change his old truck. He would go on to found a charity to help rebuild his local church, however.

What other kinds of betting are legal in Arkansas?

There are various ways you can place bets on sports within the state of Arkansas, either with international sportsbooks or by going to the various casinos within the state.

'Ciaran McEneaney

Ciaran has been working within the Gambling Industry as a deep analyst since 2019. His deep knowledge and understanding of all the gambling regulations, and processes makes him a true asset, and an always valuable point of view for Gambling Industry News, allowing us to cover every topics from a brand new perspective.