NY Cash4Life Odds & Prizes
Discover Cash4Life odds and prizes in the Empire State here. With nine different tiers, a top prize of $1,000 a day for life and a second prize of $1,000 a week for life, there are many opportunities to win in this NY lottery.
Overall odds of winning Cash4Life are 1 in 8, making this an easier game to win than Powerball, Mega Millions, and other NY lotteries.
Find all odds and prizes in the table below:
| Numbers Matched | Prize | Odds of Winning |
|---|---|---|
| 5 + Cash Ball | $1,000 a day for life | 1 in 21,846,048 |
| 5 | $1,000 a week for life | 1 in 7,282,016 |
| 4 + Cash Ball | $2,500 | 1 in 79,440 |
| 4 | $500 | 1 in 26,480 |
| 3 + Cash Ball | $100 | 1 in 1,471 |
| 3 | $25 | 1 in 490 |
| 2 + Cash Ball | $10 | 1 in 83 |
| 2 | $4 | 1 in 28 |
| 1 + Cash Ball | $2 | 1 in 13 |
| Overall odds of winning Cash4Life are 1 in 8 | ||
If there are multiple winners of the top prize in the same draw, the cash prize will be divided equally among them. This means that if there are two winners then each will receive $500 a day for life.
The remaining prizes are all fixed cash amounts, from $2 for matching one main number and the Cash Ball to $2,500 for matching four numbers and the Cash Ball.
Claiming Prizes
Cash4Life is played in multiple states, but you can only claim prizes in the state in which you bought your ticket.
Here’s how it works in New York:
- Prizes up to and including $600: Claim your winnings from any licensed lottery retailer in the state.
- Prizes over $600: Claim at one of the New York Lottery’s Customer Service Centers. You must provide your winning ticket and a completed claim form to complete the process.
- Claiming by mail: Do this by mailing your winning ticket, along with a claim form for prizes of $601 or more, to the New York Lottery at PO Box 7533, Schenectady, NY 12301-7533.
- Claim Timeframe: Prizes must be claimed within one year of the draw taking place. Any prize money left unclaimed after this period will be used to subsidize future New York Lottery events or jackpots.
Cash or Annuity
If you’re lucky and win one of the top two prizes, you can choose between a one-time cash lump sum and a lifetime annuity (payments made to you over time).
- Lump Sum: If you choose the lump sum option, you will receive the estimated cash value of the prize at the time you make the claim. For the top prize, the cash option is worth $7 million, while it is $1 million for the second prize.
- Annuity: For long-term annuity, payments can be made over a minimum of 20 years, and outstanding payments can be made to your estate. You actually receive $365,000 per year if you win the jackpot (rather than $1,000 a day), or $52,000 a year if you win the second prize.
You will receive further information about payment options when you claim your prize at one of the lottery’s Customer Service Centers.
New York Cash4Life Winners
The prize structure of Cash4Life means that there’s no real way of determining the lottery’s biggest payouts, but there have been some famous winners since the game started in New York in 2014.
- The first ever $1,000-a-day prize was won on June 23, 2014, but the first person to come forward to claim the top prize was Edna Aguayo of Queens, who won three weeks later in the drawing on July 14, 2014. The retired police officer revealed that an amusement park psychic had told her 16 years previously that she should buy a lottery ticket. “I knew I’d win one day”, Aguayo said, “I just didn’t know when. I thought I would win the second prize.” The winning ticket was purchased from Waldbaum’s supermarket on Cross Bay Boulevard in Howard Beach.
- Gregory Velez from New Jersey worked in garages his whole life before he won the top Cash4Life prize on February 25, 2016, but he said he wouldn’t buy a car with his winnings. Instead, he wanted to go one step further and hire a personal chauffeur. Velez bought his Cash4Life ticket on a break from work in NYC’s Battery Park City after someone told him the top prize was worth $7 million. He validated the winning ticket at a South End newsstand the day after the draw and quit his job as soon as it was confirmed that he had won. He opted to take a cash lump sum payment of $4.63 million.
- Yangi Sherpa, a 26-year-old administrative assistant from Woodside, Queens, didn’t know what compelled her to buy a Cash4Life ticket for the drawing on July 17, 2017, but it turned out to be a good decision after she matched all six numbers to win the lottery’s top prize. “My father plays all the games and suggested I play Cash4Life”, Sherpa said. “Why? I don’t know, but I’m sure glad I did.” She chose to take her winnings as a lump sum worth $4.3 million and said she planned to buy a house with the money. The winning ticket was bought at Pronto Lotto on 74th Street in Elmhurst, New York City.