Sweepstakes and Lottery Fraud by State: Where Americans Report the Most Scams

Californians reported $146.0 million in losses to prize, sweepstakes and lottery scams between 2022 and June 2026, the most of any state. West Virginia has the highest rate: 2,344.7 reports per million residents, more than two and a half times Massachusetts at 883.2.

The Action Network analyzed Federal Trade Commission data for the Prizes, Sweepstakes and Lotteries fraud category. Across the 50 states and Washington, D.C., consumers filed 449,613 reports and listed $1.25 billion in losses. Many reports list no loss at all. In 2024, the FTC says, 22% of reports in this category did, with a median loss of $1,000.

If a message says you won

The FTC advises that a legitimate prize never requires a payment, and that requests for fees labeled as taxes, shipping or processing are scams. Suspected scams can be reported at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

The same checks apply to online casino sites.

Before you deposit money or share personal details, find out who operates the site and read its terms. A message promising a prize, or a bonus you never signed up for, deserves the same scrutiny. If you want to compare sites, start with our sweepstakes casinos page.

Dave Grendzynski, Action's journalist commented:

“If you didn’t enter, you didn’t win. That’s the golden rule when someone contacts you about an unexpected contest prize. Be suspicious of any request to pay a fee to collect your winnings, and don’t mistake a social media message or text for an official notification.

Scammers also use AI-generated voices to impersonate people you know, so a familiar voice alone isn’t proof that a request is genuine.

Slow down, especially if someone pressures you to act immediately or keep the conversation secret. Before sending money or sharing personal information, verify the story independently using an official website or a phone number you already trust—not the contact information the caller or message provides.”

States with the most money lost to prize scams

California, Florida and Texas account for $350.9 million of the $1.25 billion, or 28.1% of the national total. California's 43,487 reports are the most of any state, yet its rate of 1,108.3 reports per million residents ranks 45th of 51.

Arizona is fifth at $48.7 million from 11,880 reports. New York is fourth at $50.9 million from 18,971, so Arizona is within $2.2 million of New York with 37% fewer reports.

States with the highest average annual loss

California's average of $32.8 million a year is 9.3 million more than second-place Texas. Texas (23.5 million) and Florida ($23.4 million) are about $72,000 apart. Florida ranks second on total losses through June 2026 because the partial 2026 data is included there. The averages use full years only (2022 through 2025), so the partial 2026 figures don't pull them down.

States with the most reports per capita

No state appears in both top 10s. West Virginia is first for reports per capita and 32nd for dollars lost. Its yearly rate was 782.3 in 2022 and 788.5 in 2023, then 411.9 in 2024 and 239.8 in 2025.

Wyoming is second at 2,086.9 reports per million but 45th in dollars ($4.3 million). Oregon and Alabama are fourth and fifth, and both have more than $18 million in total losses.

States with the highest average loss per report

The national figure is $2,779 per report. South Dakota's $5,792 is more than double that, from only 1,239 reports. Arizona is the only state in both the top 5 for total losses and the top 5 for loss per report.

Nebraska has the lowest figure at 1,639, followed by D.C.(1,640), Rhode Island (1,774), Connecticut(1,913) and Alabama ($1,917). Alabama is fifth for reports per capita and 25th for average annual loss.

These figures divide total losses by every report filed, including the many that list no loss. They are not the average amount a victim lost.

States with the fewest reports per capita

Massachusetts has the lowest rate of the 50 states and D.C. at 883.2 reports per million residents. New York (954.7), New Jersey (970.0), Connecticut (1,003.2) and Illinois (1,061.1) follow. New York is fourth in dollars lost and 50th in reports per capita.

By dollars, D.C. has the smallest total at 1.56million, followed by Vermont (2.2 million), Rhode Island (2.3million),Alaska (3.0 million) and North Dakota ($3.5 million). Alaska is eighth in reports per capita and 48th in losses.

Reports are down 59% since 2023

Reports fell 59% from 2023 to 2025, while reported losses fell 13%. Losses per report rose from about $2,048 to about $4,374. 2024 had the highest annual losses in the data.

The FTC's 2024 Data Book notes that some categories and subcategories were renamed, retired or consolidated that year. We did not confirm whether that affected this category's counts, and we make no claim about the cause of the drop.

Methodology

We analyzed Federal Trade Commission Consumer Sentinel Network data on the "Prizes, Sweepstakes and Lotteries" fraud category. The figures were collected from the FTC's public Fraud Reports dashboard on Tableau Public (published July 28, 2026, with data as of June 30, 2026). The data covers 2022 through 2026 and includes all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The 2026 figures cover part of the year only.

For each state and year, we recorded the number of reports, reports per million residents and total reported dollar loss. The per-million rates and the population figures behind them come directly from the same Tableau dashboard. To rank states by total losses, we added each state's reported losses across all five years.

To rank by reports per capita, we added the dashboard's reports-per-million rate for each year, with 2026 counted as a partial year.

Average annual loss is a state's total reported loss for 2022 through 2025 divided by four. We excluded 2026 from this measure because the data covers only part of that year. Loss per report is a state's total reported loss for 2022 through June 2026 divided by its total reports for the same period.

State figures sum to less than the FTC's national totals. For 2024, the state data totals 85,379 reports and $315.6 million, while the FTC's 2024 Data Book lists 97,350 reports and $351 million for the category.

The data reflects only reports submitted to the FTC's Consumer Sentinel Network. Not every victim files a report, and many reports list no loss, so the figures understate how much fraud occurred.

You can find the full dataset here.