Mystery Crossword — $10 California Scratcher #1708
Mystery Crossword (#1708) is a $10 California scratcher launched on December 15, 2025. As of September 12, 2026 it ranks #38 of 54 active games on current payout (69.6%, $6.96 expected back per ticket) and #9 of 10 $10 games, #34 on any-prize odds (1 in 3.74) and #20 on top-prize odds (1 in 1,027,986). Since launch the payout has fallen 8.4 points (78.1% at launch) and the any-prize odds have worsened 12.2% (1 in 3.33 at launch). 6 of 48 top prizes of $750,000 remain, and we estimate 6,167,917 tickets are still unsold (92.6% sold). That is below average for California; the California ranking lists show better payouts, including at $10.
Prizes remaining
Every prize level in Mystery Crossword, with the odds printed at launch, the odds today given what is left, and how much of each tier is still unclaimed. Across all tiers, 1,651,162 of 16,766,823 prizes (9.8%) are still out there.
| Prize | Odds at launch | Odds now | Total | Claimed | Remaining | % left |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $750,000 | 1 in 1,211,000 | 1 in 1,027,986 | 48 | 42 | 6 | 12.5% |
| $10,000 | 1 in 587,152 | 1 in 513,993 | 99 | 87 | 12 | 12.1% |
| $4,000 | 1 in 377,455 | 1 in 324,627 | 154 | 135 | 19 | 12.3% |
| $2,000 | 1 in 406,490 | 1 in 308,396 | 143 | 123 | 20 | 14.0% |
| $1,000 | 1 in 7,936 | 1 in 7,033 | 7,325 | 6,448 | 877 | 12.0% |
| $400 | 1 in 4,756 | 1 in 5,285 | 12,222 | 11,055 | 1,167 | 9.5% |
| $200 | 1 in 531.0 | 1 in 609.5 | 109,433 | 99,314 | 10,119 | 9.2% |
| $100 | 1 in 50.0 | 1 in 60.9 | 1,173,906 | 1,072,697 | 101,209 | 8.6% |
| $60 | 1 in 100.0 | 1 in 117.4 | 583,475 | 530,955 | 52,520 | 9.0% |
| $40 | 1 in 63.0 | 1 in 73.9 | 929,298 | 845,807 | 83,491 | 9.0% |
| $20 | 1 in 12.0 | 1 in 14.6 | 4,650,240 | 4,227,623 | 422,617 | 9.1% |
| Ticketfree ticket | 1 in 6.00 | 1 in 6.30 | 9,300,480 | 8,321,375 | 979,105 | 10.5% |
| All prizes | 1 in 3.33 | 1 in 3.74 | 16,766,823 | 15,115,661 | 1,651,162 | 9.8% |
How Mystery Crossword has moved
Recent claims of $1,000 and up
- September 12, 2026: one $750,000 prize was claimed; 6 remain.
- September 12, 2026: 2 $4,000 prizes were claimed; 19 remain.
- September 12, 2026: one $2,000 prize was claimed; 20 remain.
- September 12, 2026: 14 $1,000 prizes were claimed; 877 remain.
- September 11, 2026: 13 $1,000 prizes were claimed; 891 remain.
- September 10, 2026: one $4,000 prize was claimed; 21 remain.
- September 10, 2026: 21 $1,000 prizes were claimed; 904 remain.
- September 9, 2026: 28 $1,000 prizes were claimed; 925 remain.
Mystery Crossword: common questions
- How many $750,000 prizes are left in Mystery Crossword?
- 6 of 48 as of September 12, 2026. The chance that a ticket bought today is a top-prize winner is about 1 in 1,027,986.
- What are the odds of winning anything on Mystery Crossword?
- 1 in 3.74 today, compared with 1 in 3.33 printed at launch. Cash-only odds are 1 in 9.22, and the odds of winning more than the $10 ticket price are 1 in 9.18.
- Is Mystery Crossword worth buying?
- Its current payout is 69.6% ($6.96 back per $10 ticket), rank #38 of 54 in California. The best $10 alternative today is LOTERIA™ Grande (#1704, $10) at 76.5%. No scratcher has a positive expected value; this is about losing less over time.
- How many Mystery Crossword tickets are left?
- We estimate 6,167,917 of roughly 55,802,880 printed tickets are unsold (92.6% sold), derived from the prizes claimed at each tier and their published odds.
- When did Mystery Crossword launch and is it still on sale?
- It launched on December 15, 2025. It is still on sale.
Other $10 California scratchers
- LOTERIA™ Grande — 76.5% payout, 1 in 3.66 any prize
- Mystery Crossword — 76.1% payout, 1 in 3.52 any prize
- California Jackpot — 74.2% payout, 1 in 3.37 any prize
- $1,000,000 Poker — 74.0% payout, 1 in 3.49 any prize
- $50 or $100 — 73.4% payout, 1 in 8.09 any prize