Buying Powerball and Mega Millions tickets just got easier.
Customers will not be able to buy tickets for the lottery games through the iLottery platform online at pailottery.com, Pennsylvania Lottery officials announced today.
“We are excited to announce that we are now selling Powerball and Mega Millions tickets online,” Drew Svitko, Pennsylvania Lottery executive director, said in a statement. “Selling lottery online is a big part of our effort to appeal to new customers and meet our players where they already are — which is online. This is an important step that will help us continue generating funds to benefit older Pennsylvanians.”
Players, who will be able to buy multiple tickets, can pick their own numbers or choose a “quick pick” option for a random selection of numbers. They also will be able to buy tickets up to 26 drawings (13 weeks) ahead of time.
To buy tickets online, customers must sign up for an iLottery account, which requires them to submit a proof of identity and age (they must be 18 or older) through a secure system. They then must deposit money into the account in order to play.
“By law, online lottery players must be physically located in the state of Pennsylvania to play for money and win prizes,” Svitko said in the announcement. “As with all Lottery games, we urge players to play responsibly and always within their means.”
The state has used the iLottery systems since May 2018 and offers several online instant games. It also has safeguards in place to promote responsible gambling, such as time, deposit and spend limits as well as an option for a “cool-off” period that lets players take a break for up to 30 days or exclude themselves from the system for one year or five years.
The Pennsylvania Lottery also has an official app, available for Apple and Android users, that allows players to play games on mobile devices.
For details, visit paiLottery.com.
Caitlin Heaney West is the content editor for Access NEPA and oversees the Early Access blog in addition to working as a copy editor and staff writer for The Times-Tribune. An award-winning journalist, she is a summa cum laude graduate of Shippensburg University and also earned a master’s degree from Marywood University. Caitlin joined the Times-Shamrock family in 2009 and lives in Scranton. Contact: cwest@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100 x5107; or @cheaneywest