In plain English: how ScratchPulse™ compares New York scratch tickets
Best Value: compares estimated remaining prize value against ticket cost.Best Odds: compares estimated chance of winning the selected prize size, from any prize to top prize odds.Important: rankings are informational estimates, not predictions. Most scratch tickets have negative expected value, and no result is guaranteed.
ScratchPulse™ compares New York scratch tickets based on what appears to be left today, not only the odds printed when a game first launched.
New York Lottery reports useful scratch ticket information such as ticket price, launch dates, overall odds, prize amounts, total prizes, estimated prizes remaining, and estimated prize amount remaining. Because New York already publishes estimated prizes remaining by prize tier, ScratchPulse does not need to estimate the prize counts from claimed prizes the way it does for some other states.
New York does not appear to publish a direct percent-sold or exact tickets-remaining number for each game, so ScratchPulse estimates remaining tickets from the reported prize depletion pattern.
How New York tickets remaining are estimated
For New York games, ScratchPulse starts by estimating the total number of tickets printed from the game's total winning prizes and published overall odds.
estimated tickets printed = total winning prizes × overall odds
ScratchPulse then estimates how much of the game may remain by comparing estimated prizes remaining against each prize tier's original total prize count.
Common lower and mid-level prize tiers are especially useful because they usually have many more prizes than the top prize tiers. When many common prizes have already been claimed, that usually suggests more tickets have been sold. When most common prizes remain, that usually suggests the game is still earlier in its life cycle.
prize tier remaining ratio = estimated prizes remaining ÷ total prizes for that tierestimated remaining ticket ratio = blended estimate from useful common prize tiersestimated tickets left = estimated tickets printed × estimated remaining ticket ratio
This is an estimate, not an official New York Scholarship Lottery ticket count. It is designed to make New York tickets comparable in Best Value and Best Odds views even though exact remaining ticket counts are not directly posted.
Best Value methodology
Best Value compares the estimated prize value of a ticket against its cost. It looks beyond the advertised top prize and focuses on the remaining prize pool, estimated tickets left, and ticket price.
An New York ticket can rank well in Best Value when its remaining prize pool appears strong relative to the estimated number of tickets still available and the price of each ticket.
raw estimated value per ticket = reported remaining prize pool ÷ estimated tickets leftestimated counted prizes per tier = cautious estimate of prizes likely still available in the unsold ticket supplyestimated adjusted prize pool = sum of estimated counted prizes × prize amountestimated return = estimated adjusted value per ticket ÷ ticket priceestimated value vs cost = estimated adjusted value per ticket − ticket price
This does not mean a ticket is expected to profit for any individual player. It is a comparison estimate based on public prize data and estimated remaining tickets.
Why ScratchPulse adjusts prize counts
Public prize data can lag behind real-world ticket sales and prize claims. A prize may still appear as remaining even if the winning ticket has already been sold and simply has not been redeemed yet.
New York publishes detailed prizes remaining, which helps. However, those counts are still based on claimed prizes, so sold-but-unclaimed tickets and reporting delays can still make a game look stronger than it really is.
ScratchPulse compares reported estimated prizes remaining with each game's original prize distribution and estimated tickets left. When a game shows more reported prizes than would reasonably be expected in the estimated unsold ticket supply, ScratchPulse uses a more cautious counted-prize estimate to reduce late-reporting distortion.
What estimated adjusted value means
Estimated adjusted value is ScratchPulse's cautious estimate of how much remaining prize value exists per ticket after accounting for ticket price, reported estimated prizes remaining, estimated tickets left, and reporting uncertainty.
Instead of only using the full reported remaining prize pool, ScratchPulse estimates counted prizes in each prize tier. For New York, the prize-count data starts from New York's published estimated prizes remaining, while the ticket-left number is inferred from common-prize depletion.
This number is useful for comparing tickets against each other. It is not a guaranteed return, investment calculation, or prediction of what any individual ticket will win.
Best Odds methodology
Best Odds lets users compare tickets by the prize size they care about, such as any prize, $100+, $1K+, $10K+, $25K+, or the top prize. Instead of ranking by total prize value, it estimates how many tickets may remain for each counted prize in the selected prize group.
An New York ticket can rank well in Best Odds when it has more estimated counted prizes for the selected prize size relative to the estimated number of tickets left.
estimated prize odds = estimated tickets left ÷ estimated counted prizes for the selected prize sizelower estimated prize odds rank better
Best Odds does not consider the full prize pool the same way Best Value does. A ticket can have strong odds for one prize size but still be weaker for overall estimated value.
How New York prize labels are handled
Most New York prize tables use straightforward cash prize amounts, which makes the prize tiers cleaner to compare.
If a prize label is not a simple cash amount, ScratchPulse tries to convert it into a comparable estimated cash value when the available prize information supports it.
These conversions are meant to make prize tiers comparable across tickets. They may not match every tax, annuity, cash-option, or claim-rule detail for an individual prize.
Why scratch ticket odds can change
Scratch tickets are not static after launch. As tickets are sold and prizes are claimed, the remaining prize pool and estimated tickets left can shift, making some games look stronger or weaker over time.
How to use these rankings
ScratchPulse is best used as a comparison tool. It can help you compare currently tracked New York tickets, understand remaining prize profiles, and avoid games that appear weaker.
What ScratchPulse cannot know
ScratchPulse cannot know the exact tickets sitting at each retailer, whether an unclaimed winning ticket has already been sold, or whether a recent claim has not yet appeared in public data.
Best Value vs Best Odds
Best Value looks at overall estimated prize value compared with ticket cost. Best Odds focuses on the estimated chance of hitting the selected prize size. The best ticket in one mode may not be the best ticket in the other.
Why New York estimates may differ from other states
New York's public scratch ticket data is useful, but it is different from Oregon, Washington, and Texas. New York publishes estimated prizes remaining directly, which means ScratchPulse can use the state's posted prize-count estimates instead of calculating remaining prize counts from claimed-prize totals.
However, New York rankings still require estimated tickets printed and estimated tickets left, because exact remaining ticket counts do not appear to be directly posted. Because of that, New York Estimated Return and Best Odds should be understood as ScratchPulse estimates based on the best public data available, not official remaining-ticket counts from New York Lottery.
Data source and limitations
ScratchPulse uses New York Lottery reported scratch ticket data plus estimates for tickets remaining, best-odds views, adjusted value, and estimated return. Reported prize data may not perfectly reflect what is available at every store right now.
ScratchPulse™ is not affiliated with New York Scholarship Lottery. You can compare posted scratch ticket information on the New York Lottery Instant Games page.