The Irish Lottery is one of the most popular lottery games to bet on in the UK and around the world as it is favoured by many over other lotteries such as the UK National Lottery and the Euromillions due to a higher chance of winning.

On this page, we’ll be answering the following questions about the Irish Lottery.

1. How does the Irish Lottery work?
2. How to bet on the Irish Lottery
3. Which bookies can you bet on the Irish Lottery with?
4. What are the odds of winning the Irish Lottery?

Before we start, if you already know how the Irish Lotto works and are looking for a bookmaker to bet on the Irish Lottery with, we have listed our recommended bookies below.

Bookie	Information	Visit
Betfred	Best odds & regular lotto offers	Visit
Bet365	Great odds & trusted brand	Visit
Paddy Power	Regular lotto & betting offers	Visit
William Hill	Reputable brand & various lotto options	Visit
Boylesports	Large range of online lotteries	Visit
Coral	Good all-round betting brand	Visit

How Does The Irish Lottery Work?

There are 47 balls in the Irish Lottery with six numbers and a bonus ball being drawn.

The Irish Lottery takes place every Wednesday and Saturday at 8pm GMT. There is also the Plus 1 and Plus 2 draws which take place immediately after the main Irish Lotto draw.

How To Bet On the Irish Lottery

There are two ways to bet on the Irish Lottery.

1. Buy a line for the draw via a lottery site
2. Bet on numbers being drawn with a bookmaker

The first option works in a similar way to buying a ticket for the UK National Lottery or the Euromillions. You simply select 6 different numbers from the 47 in the draw and if 3 or more of your numbers are drawn, you win a prize. The more numbers which you match, the bigger the prize you receive. Each line costs £2 and you have the option to purchase lines in the Plus 1 and Plus 2 draws for an additional £1 each.

Betting On The Irish Lottery With Bookmakers

The second way to bet on the Irish Lottery is with a bookmaker which can either be done in a betting shop or online on a bookmaker website.

Betting on the Irish Lottery with a bookmaker is extremely popular as you have additional betting options compared to purchasing a standard Irish Lottery line.

When you bet on the Irish Lotto with a bookie, you’re not actually purchasing a line for the draw and any winnings are not paid out of the prize pool but instead directly from the bookmaker. You also know exactly how much you will win should your numbers be drawn as bookies offer fixed odds on all Irish Lotto bets.

Betting with a bookmaker works differently in that you do not have to select 6 numbers to bet on. Instead, you can bet on either 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 numbers and all must be drawn for you to win your bet.

For example, with a bookmaker, you can bet on:

• 1 number: Approx odds of 6/1
• 2 numbers: Approx odds of 60/1
• 3 numbers: Approx odds of 700/1
• 4 numbers: Approx odds of 8,500/1
• 5 numbers: Approx odds of 150,000/1

For example, your lucky number may be 27 and so you could bet on the number 27 being drawn. With a £1 bet on this you would receive back £7 based on odds of 6/1 should it happen.

You can’t bet on single or multiple numbers being drawn in this way by buying a standard Irish Lotto line which is why many choose to bet on the Irish Lotto with bookies.

Another option you have when betting on the Irish Lottery with bookies is to include or not include the bonus ball. If you choose not to include it then the numbers which you have chosen must match some of the 6 main balls which are drawn. If you choose to include it, then you increase your chances of winning as an extra ball gives you an additional chance of being one of your numbers. To compensate for the increased chance of winning, you are offered lower odds when choosing to include the bonus ball.

Which Bookies Can You Bet On The Irish Lottery With?

Not all online bookmakers allow customers to bet on the Irish Lotto or other lotteries. Also, we recommend some bookmakers over others as they do not all offer the same odds and some run some very nice lotto betting offers which can increase your chances of making a profit.

Below, we have listed our recommended bookies to bet on the Irish Lottery with.

Bookie	Odds For 3 Correct Numbers (Without Bonus Ball)	Odds For 4 Correct Numbers (With Bonus Ball)	Visit
Betfred Irish Lotto	700/1	8,500/1	Visit
Bet365 Irish Lotto	700/1	8,500/1	Visit
Paddy Power Irish Lotto	700/1	8,500/1	Visit
William Hill Irish Lotto	610/1	8,000/1	Visit
Boylesports Irish Lotto	625/1	7,500/1	Visit
Coral Irish Lotto	700/1	8,000/1	Visit

If you would rather bet on the Irish Lottery by buying a full line like you would with a standard lottery ticket, you can do so at lottery sites such as Lottoland and Lottomart.

What Are The Odds Of Winning The Irish Lottery?

The odds of winning the Irish Lottery depend on whether you have bet on a standard line or 1-5 numbers with a bookmaker.

When betting on the Irish Lottery with a bookmaker, you are given fixed odds. These odds will be slightly less than the true odds of your numbers being drawn which is how the bookmaker makes a profit.

When buying a line for the Irish lotto, the odds of winning are different as you are not betting on all of your selected numbers being drawn as you can win a prize if you match just 3 numbers.

We have listed the odds and payouts for each possible win when buying a standard line on the Irish Lottery.

Matching Numbers	Winning Odds	Estimated Returns
6 numbers	1 in 10,737,573	Jackpot
5 numbers + bonus	1 in 1,789,596	£89,000
5 numbers	1 in 44,740	£1,300
4 numbers + bonus	1 in 17,896	£130
4 numbers	1 in 918	£44
3 numbers + bonus	1 in 688	£44
3 numbers	1 in 54	£8
2 numbers + bonus	1 in 72	£2