Comparison

CA Lottery Official App vs Scratch Better

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

CA Lottery Official App

Check lottery tickets, discover winning numbers, and find retailers. Get personalized notifications for jackpots and draw results. Enter non-winning tickets into second chance drawings and stay updated on the latest lottery news.

Highlights
  • Check lottery tickets
  • View winning numbers
  • Find retailers
  • Receive jackpot notifications
  • Enter 2nd Chance Drawings
  • Get prize claim information
Features
Read full description

Welcome to the California Lottery Official App, where you can follow the Lottery in the palm of your hand - anytime, anywhere. Download the app today to personalize your experience by choosing your favorite ways to play! Cool features include: • See If You’re A Winner - Check-A-Ticket allows you to see if you won Powerball, Mega Millions, SuperLotto Plus, Fantasy 5, Hot Spot and all Daily games! • Never Miss A Game - Stay in the loop when jackpots are high and new Scratchers are out! • Customized Push Notifications – Be the first to know with jackpot and draw games notifications straight to your mobile device. • Winning Numbers - Get customized notifications of current jackpot and draw game results. • 2nd Chance Drawings – Find special promotions, enter non-winning Scratchers, SuperLotto Plus, and Fantasy 5 tickets into bonus draws, and track your submissions. • Find Where To Play – Use the interactive map of retailers to plan your purchase, including Lucky Retailers and Hot Spot play locations near you. • Find Prize Claim Information including hours, locations and prize claiming options. • All Things Lottery - Opt-in for the latest news, product updates, and 2nd Chance promotions. The California Lottery provides supplemental funding for California public schools. Please play responsibly. You must 18 or older to purchase, play or claim. Disclaimer: Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the winning number information in the California Lottery Official App, mistakes can occur. Please be sure to refresh your screen and look for the draw date when viewing winning numbers. In the event of any discrepancies, California state law and California Lottery regulations prevail. Complete game information and prize claiming instructions are available at www.calottery.com and all California Lottery Retailers.

About

Scratch Better

This app analyzes state lottery scratch-off games, ranking them by expected value and remaining prizes. It helps users identify the best games to play based on real-time data, avoiding those with poor value or few prizes left.

Highlights
  • Expected value (EV) calculation
  • Daily game rankings (Great, Okay, Skip)
  • Prize breakdown by tier
  • Big-prize odds analysis
  • County-level payout heatmaps
  • Real-time state lottery data
Features
Read full description

Stop buying scratch-offs blind. Scratch Better ranks every game in your state by what's actually left to win — official state lottery data, run through a real expected-value model. Not launch-day odds. Scratch-off odds shift every day as prizes get claimed. A ticket that was great at launch can be dead money today. Scratch Better does the math and sorts every game into Great, Okay, or Skip — so you know before you spend. WHY SCRATCH BETTER? DOLLAR VALUES, NOT JUST ODDS Odds tell you how often you'll win. EV tells you what a ticket is worth. We compute the expected value of every game in dollars — +$2.37 EV vs −$5.65 EV — from the remaining prize mix, so a $2 game and a $30 game are comparable at a glance. • Every game ranked daily: Great / Okay / Skip • Model EV, return %, and remaining % on every game • Big-prize odds: your real 1-in-N on $5K+ prizes through jackpots, ranked against the field KNOW EXACTLY WHAT'S LEFT • Full prize breakdowns: remaining vs printed, every tier • Remaining-prize history charts — the trend, not a one-day snapshot • Sell-out predictions: an estimate of when a hot game will be gone COUNTY HEAT MAP See where prizes actually get paid. County-level heatmaps built from real payout and claimed-winner data, in New York, Texas, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Missouri, and South Carolina. HONEST DATA, CLEARLY LABELED We pull official state lottery feeds several times a day, and every state shows a Live or Delayed badge — no stale numbers pretending to be fresh. 35 STATES Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin. FREE TO USE • Every game and its leftover prize breakdown — free • Okay-tier rankings — free • Unlock a state's Great picks, Skip warnings, and big-prize odds by watching a short ad • No account needed to browse SCRATCH BETTER PRO (optional) • Every Great pick and Skip warning in all 35 states — no ad wall • Big-prize odds ranked against the field • Remaining-prize history charts with sell-out predictions • County payout heatmap • No ranking ads Weekly, monthly, or annual. Pro saves to your account (Sign in with Apple or Google) and restores automatically on any device. Cancel anytime. HOW IT WORKS 1. Pick your state 2. Read today's board: Great, Okay, Skip 3. Tap any game for prize-by-prize detail and its trend 4. Check the map for where prizes get paid 5. Buy smarter — or don't. Skip is a recommendation too. THE HONEST PART Rankings are relative, not a promise you'll win. Scratch-offs are entertainment with a house edge — we help you avoid the worst games and get the most out of your budget. Not affiliated with any lottery. We don't sell tickets. 18+. Privacy policy: https://wzi292fcp8.execute-api.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/prod/privacy Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

CA Lottery Official App4 screens
Scratch Better4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: CA Lottery Official App at none against Scratch Better's 3. CA Lottery Official App also leads on ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (181K vs 1). Scratch Better's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months) and rating (5.0 vs 4.7). On price, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Scratch Better sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. CA Lottery Official App asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Scratch Better holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: CA Lottery Official App has 181K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

CA Lottery Official App ships an update every 2 months, Scratch Better weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
CA Lottery Official App versus Scratch Better: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCA Lottery Official AppScratch Better
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (181K ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews11.9% of reviews—
Number of ratings181K — better1
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsWeekly — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#130 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.016.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size47 MB63 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperCalifornia LotteryGabriello Lima

Customer experience

CA Lottery Official App

All ratings181,322 ratings
Positive94.0%
Neutral2.6%
Negative3.4%
Written reviews612 reviews
Positive11.9%
Neutral7.7%
Negative80.4%

Scratch Better

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

CA Lottery Official App

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Login and account issues
  • Scanning and ticket checking problems
  • Inconsistent app behavior after updates

Requested features

4 requests
  • Display winning numbers and draw dates
  • Customize default screen
  • Improve second chance entry process
  • Provide more winners and smaller jackpots

Scratch Better

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

CA Lottery Official App

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Scratch Better

Subscriptions3
  • Weekly Pro$4.997 Days
  • Monthly$9.991 Month
  • Yearly Pro$99.991 Year

Questions

Is CA Lottery Official App free?
CA Lottery Official App is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Scratch Better free?
Scratch Better is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, CA Lottery Official App or Scratch Better?
Scratch Better is rated higher. CA Lottery Official App averages 4.7 out of 5 from 181K ratings, while Scratch Better averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do CA Lottery Official App or Scratch Better have ads?
Scratch Better shows ads; CA Lottery Official App does not.
Which is updated more often, CA Lottery Official App or Scratch Better?
CA Lottery Official App ships an update every 2 months, and Scratch Better weekly. Most recently, CA Lottery Official App was updated on October 29, 2026 and Scratch Better on October 12, 2026.

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