If you’re like most Americans, you carry a healthy degree of superstition around in your everyday life. This magical thinking can have hidden benefits at times—but can it help you win something like the lottery?

Many lottery players stick to the same numbers over and over or choose “lucky” patterns based on their past, for example, but it’s hard to tell if these strategies can help increase your odds of winning the lottery. Whether you’re playing the EuroMillions jackpot or a beloved local game, here are a few fact-based tips to help you become a lottery winner.

Buy More Tickets

It’s an unavoidable fact: the more tickets you buy, the higher your chances of winning. However, many people who want to win the lottery don’t have a fortune to spend on extra tickets.

To get around this, consider forming a pool with friends, family, or colleagues in which you collect money to buy tickets together. This might mean sharing the jackpot, but winning some money is better than none at all!

Find the Small Games

Multi-million dollar jackpots are always worth trying, but don’t forget to play unpopular lotteries as well. Smaller games tend to have fewer players and less competition, which can increase your chances of winning.

Stop Playing Common Patterns and Numbers

Though some people tend to stick to their “lucky” numbers—often a specific date—this can limit your chances of winning. Many lotteries have a number range that goes beyond the roughly thirty days in a month, you’re missing out on the same higher numbers that many ticket buyers are also forgetting!

In addition, don’t pick a visual pattern based on the design of the ticket or a set number range, like 1, 11, 21, 31, 41. Chances are, if you’re choosing based on a pattern, someone else is as well!

Don’t Waste Time Making Predictions

There’s no sense in losing your mind trying to predict the winning numbers. After all, statistically speaking, each number has the same chance to win!

Instead, increase your chances of not sharing your winnings by opting for numbers that look completely random. Check out these results, for example, and note that the winners are free of patterns of any kind. Consider letting a computer generate your numbers if you have trouble matching this degree of randomness.

It’s also worth noting that you’ll often have better chances with higher numbers, with around 70% of all lottery winners having picks that total between 104 and 176. This fact is so well established that many people assume jackpot winners with consecutive numbers or patterns must be a scam!

Increase Your Odds of Winning the Lottery

These lottery-winning tips won’t guarantee success, but they’re a great way to boost your chances. Strategies like understanding the odds of smaller games or creating a lottery pool may not seem like huge changes, but they can increase your odds of winning the lottery with just a little effort. Take steps to win your jackpot today!

Looking for more of the lottery, gaming, and gambling tips you need to know? Check out our other posts for additional insights!