Pay $6, chase $90 million: Inside Lotto Max’s pricier, bigger-jackpot makeover

Technically, both promises were kept. But “better odds” doesn’t mean what most players assume — and that disconnect matters if lottery ticket expenses are a fixed line in your household budget. Here’s what you need to know.

What changed when Lotto Max went to $6?

So what does the extra dollar buy? The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) is the provincial Crown agency that runs lotteries in Ontario. According to OLG, the jackpot cap rose from $80 million to $90 million in April. Each $6 play now includes four sets of seven numbers drawn from 1 to 52, instead of three sets drawn from 1 to 50.

And there’s a new chance to win with Maxplus. Every draw includes one $100,000 prize for every million dollars in the jackpot, so a $90 million jackpot comes with 90 chances to win a prize of $100K. And the $1 million Maxmillions prizes also kick in once the jackpot reaches $50 million.

This new cap was reached for the first time on Oct. 16. Since no ticket matched all seven numbers, the Lotto Max jackpot stays frozen at $90 million for the Oct. 20 draw. Loto-Québec, Quebec’s Crown lottery corporation, puts Tuesday’s total prize pool at about $110 million.

What this means is that players now get more number combinations, a larger potential jackpot and additional prize opportunities. But that doesn’t necessarily mean they have better odds of winning the jackpot.

Did the odds of winning Lotto Max actually improve?

Since the price increase in April 2026, did your chance of winning also improve? Yes and no.

OLG says the overall odds of winning any prize improved from about 1 in 7 to about 1 in 5.8 — but that’s when all prizes are taken into account. If you’re just wondering about your chance to win the jackpot prize, then the upgraded ticket cost and winning rules means you have a reduced chance of winning the grand prize. Prior to the price increase (and updated game rules), a ticket-holder had a 1 in 33.29 million chance to win the grand prize; now a ticket-holder has a 1 in 33.45 million chance of winning the jackpot.

So, why the split in odds of winning? According to the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) and its published odds of winning table, the improved odds is concentrated at the bottom — with the smaller prizes. For instance, matching three of seven numbers happens about once every seven plays, while winning any prize happens once every 5.8 plays. That means more than 8 out of 10 winning plays land in the smallest prize tier.

Each Maxmillions and Maxplus prize also carries roughly the same 1 in 33 million odds per play as the jackpot, according to BCLC. More prizes mean more winners nationally, but your ticket still faces steep odds for each of these larger cash prizes.

Measured per dollar, the picture shifts further. You now pay 20% more for slightly longer jackpot odds, so each dollar buys about 17% less jackpot chance than it did before April.

What is a $6 Lotto Max ticket really worth?

Is the Lotto Max $90 million jackpot ticket a good deal?

One way to answer this question is to divide the jackpot by the odds. This calculation means that each ticket is about $2.69 in jackpot value. Add the estimated 20 Maxmillions and 90 Maxplus prizes and the figure rises to roughly $3.56, before smaller secondary prizes. Meaning, you spend $6 but the ticket is theoretically worth $3.56.