Which states’ residents spend the most on lottery tickets?
Residents of Rhode Island, Georgia and Michigan made it into the five for lottery spending.
A new study conducted by LendingTree has revealed which states’ residents spend the most cash on lottery games per capita.
Residents of Massachusetts spent $805.30 cents per capita on lottery and scratch-off tickets, according to the study based on lottery data from the US Census Bureau 2020 Annual Survey of State Government Finance.
New York behind Massachusetts
The study reveals that New York residents spent the second-most on lottery tickets in the country ($455.93 per capita).
Residents in Rhode Island, Georgia and Michigan also made it into the five, spending an average of $429.88, $429.51, and $408.51 respectively.
Top ten states in the US
- Massachusetts $805.30 per capita
- New York $455.93
- Rhode Island $429.88
- Georgia $429.51
- Michigan $408.51
- South Carolina $397.11
- Connecticut $366.63
- New Jersey $361.00
- Maryland $354.03
- Florida $345.25
Massachusetts residents were not, however, the biggest lottery losers in the US in 2020. Lottery players in Rhode Island only won back $148.25 after spending an average of $429.88, making a net loss of 281.63 per capita.
People living in West Virginia lost around $249.81 per capita, while those in Massachusetts lost about $244.49.
Folks in North Dakota only spent $32.24 per capita, below Wyoming ($40.97) and Montana ($58.62). And the states that spent the least overall had the smallest deficits: North Dakota ($15.69), Wyoming ($17.31) and Montana ($24.60).
Matt Schultz, the chief credit analyst for LendingTree, said: “If you only play the lottery occasionally and only spend a few dollars a time, no real harm is done.
“However, if you’re consistently playing $10 or $20 or more each week, that adds up over time. You’re dropping more than $1,000 a year on lottery tickets if you play just $20 per week. That’s real money that could be earning interest and growing your wealth or bulking up your emergency fund instead.”
Further studies
Another LendingTree survey revealed that 86% of lottery players buy scratch-offs, while 65% buy tickets. Over half of Americans (58%) say they would prefer a lump-sum payment if they won the lottery.