Greece Lottery Tickets Online: Official Games and How They Work

How to play Greece lottery tickets

The phrase “Greece lottery tickets” can refer to several products, so there is no universal number matrix.

For JOKER, choose five numbers from 1 to 45 and one JOKER number from 1 to 20. The top category requires all six selected numbers in the two part draw. JOKER is scheduled on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.

Greek LOTTO is a different game. Under its current format, it uses six selected main numbers and offers an annuity style first prize rather than the same rollover structure as JOKER. OPAP introduced the modern LOTTO prize model in 2023, including a top category payment of €10,000 per month for ten years for a single winning column, subject to the game's rules and sharing where applicable.

Because the products are different, a player should never use the price, odds or claim instructions for one Greek game as if they apply automatically to another.

Ticket prices and add-ons

JOKER currently costs €1 per standard column. Greek LOTTO also uses a €1 standard column under its current format.

A ticket can include several columns or a system entry, so the total price can be higher than the base figure. The amount shown at checkout or on the authorised retail terminal is the relevant total.

Other Greek lottery products can have completely different prices and mechanics. Scratch cards, passive lotteries and special draws should not be grouped with JOKER or LOTTO simply because they are sold in Greece.

There is also no universal “online Greece lottery ticket fee.” OPAP sets the price of the official game, while any third party service can have separate fees or a different betting product altogether.

Draw days and times

JOKER is drawn on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday evenings, with the draw around 22:00 Greek local time and sales closing earlier.

LOTTO is scheduled on Wednesday and Saturday. Its sales deadline is likewise set before the draw by OPAP.

Greek local time changes seasonally between standard time and summer time. For anyone comparing the schedule from another country, the official OPAP listing for the specific contest is preferable to relying on a fixed time zone conversion.

Special draws and promotional products can use different schedules, so the name of the exact lottery should always be checked before purchasing.

Prizes and odds

There is no single set of odds for “the Greek lottery.”

JOKER's 5-from-45 plus 1-from-20 structure gives top prize odds of 1 in 24,435,180 for one standard column. It also has lower prize categories for partial matches.

LOTTO has its own six number matching structure and annuity style top category. Its prizes and odds should be read from the current LOTTO rules rather than copied from JOKER.

For both games, lower tier payouts can depend on the rules for that category and the number of winning entries. OPAP publishes results and prize distributions after each draw.

A useful rule for comparing Greek games is to look first at the number matrix, then the top prize format, then the cost per column. A low ticket price does not by itself mean the game has better jackpot odds.

Jackpots, rollovers and records

JOKER uses a rollover jackpot for its 5+1 top category. If the jackpot is not won, the first category money can increase for the next draw.

Greek LOTTO takes a different approach. Its modern format is built around recurring monthly payments for the top category rather than presenting the same kind of escalating JOKER jackpot. When OPAP relaunched the format in 2023, it promoted a first category prize of €10,000 per month for ten years and a second category payment stream under the applicable rules.

That difference is why search pages that simply advertise one “Greece jackpot” can be misleading. The amount, payment method and rollover rule are features of the named game, not of Greek lotteries as a whole.

How to play Greece lottery tickets online

OPAP operates official online channels for eligible customers, including opaponline.gr and supported mobile services. Registration, age checks, identification, payment methods and any location conditions are determined by OPAP.

International websites can offer very different services. A lottery messenger may say it arranges the purchase of an official entry. A lottery betting site can instead offer a wager based on the outcome of a Greek draw without purchasing an official ticket for the bettor.

Those models should be distinguished from direct OPAP entry. A third party site's availability in a country does not by itself establish eligibility to open or use an official Greek lottery account.

Claiming prizes

Prize claims depend on the specific Greek product, the amount won and whether the entry was retail or digital.

For a retail ticket, keeping the original ticket secure is essential. The ticket contains the information needed to establish the claim. Online entries are tied to the registered account and use OPAP's digital payment and identity procedures.

Large prizes generally require more direct processing and identification than small wins. The applicable claim deadline and tax treatment should be taken from OPAP's current instructions for the named game and ticket, because those details can differ across products and can change over time.

If a ticket was obtained through a third party, the service's own contract may determine how the customer receives a payout. That is not the same process as claiming directly from OPAP.