UAE Lottery Pick 3 and Pick 4 Explained: Bet Types, Odds and Prizes

Last updated: 21 October 2026

Pick 3 and Pick 4 are the UAE Lottery's daily number games. Each entry costs Dh5. You choose a three-digit number (000 to 999) or a four-digit number (0000 to 9999), and a draw takes place every evening at 9:30pm UAE time. Matching in exact order pays Dh2,500 in Pick 3 and Dh25,000 in Pick 4. Both games remain live as of October 2026, and both return roughly half of what is staked over time, whichever bet type you choose.

Key takeaways

• Both games draw every evening at 9:30pm UAE time; ticket sales close two minutes earlier, at 9:28pm, according to the official game rules.
• An entry costs Dh5 including 5 per cent VAT, with a maximum of Dh2,500 per transaction.
• Pick 3 pays Dh2,500 for an exact match (1 in 1,000), Dh850 for "Any 3" and Dh425 for "Any 6".
• Pick 4 pays Dh25,000 for an exact match (1 in 10,000), with "Any" prizes from Dh1,000 to Dh6,000.
• Published return to player is 50 to 51 per cent for Pick 3 and 48 to 50 per cent for Pick 4, against 42.62 per cent (plus Lucky Chance prizes) for Lucky Day.
• Pick 3 is one of only two UAE Lottery games sold at authorised retailers; Pick 4 is not on the retail list.

Are Pick 3 and Pick 4 still available?

Yes. On 17 October 2026 both games were on sale on theuaelottery.ae, each showing draw No. 261017 and "AED 5 Per Entry", and the site's winners feed listed Pick 3 and Pick 4 prizes from the previous evening's draws. Pick 3 launched in June 2025 and Pick 4 in September 2025, according to trade publication Gaming Intelligence.

They are not to be confused with the faster games. Quick 5 draws every two minutes and Color Prediction every minute. Pick 3 and Pick 4 are the only UAE Lottery games with a single draw each day.

How does Pick 3 work?

You pick three digits, each from 0 to 9, then choose a play type. The official rules describe three:

• Exact Order: your digits must match the draw in the order drawn.
• Any 3: for numbers with two matching digits and one different, such as 1-1-2. You win if the draw contains your digits in any order.
• Any 6: for numbers with three different digits, such as 1-2-3. Again, any order wins.

The names come from the number of possible orderings. A number like 1-1-2 can come up in three ways (112, 121, 211); 1-2-3 can come up in six. The rules also say three identical digits, such as 7-7-7, "cannot be selected" for Any Order, which makes sense: there is only one way to draw 777, so it can only be played Exact.

Pick 3 bet — Prize — Odds

• Exact Order — Dh2,500 — 1 in 1,000
• Any 3 — Dh850 — 1 in 333
• Any 6 — Dh425 — 1 in 167

The operator lists the return to player as 50 per cent for Exact Order and 51 per cent for Any Order.

How does Pick 4 work?

Pick 4 extends the same idea to four digits, 0000 to 9999, with five prize categories. The official rules define the Any types by the shape of your number:

• Any 4: three identical digits plus one other, such as 2-2-2-5 (four possible orders)
• Any 6: two pairs, such as 3-3-7-7 (six orders)
• Any 12: one pair plus two different digits, such as 4-4-1-2 (twelve orders)
• Any 24: four different digits, such as 5-6-7-8 (twenty-four orders)

Pick 4 bet — Prize — Odds

• Exact — Dh25,000 — 1 in 10,000
• Any 4 — Dh6,000 — 1 in 2,500
• Any 6 — Dh4,000 — 1 in 1,666.67
• Any 12 — Dh2,000 — 1 in 833.33
• Any 24 — Dh1,000 — 1 in 416.67

The published return to player is 50 per cent for Exact and 48 per cent for Any. The rules list no Any type for four identical digits such as 9-9-9-9, so on our reading that number can only be played Exact.

Exact or Any: which bet is better?

On the operator's own figures, neither is meaningfully better. Each prize is set so that the expected return per Dh5 entry is almost the same:

• Pick 3 Exact: Dh2,500 × 1/1,000 = Dh2.50 back per Dh5
• Pick 3 Any 6: Dh425 × 6/1,000 = Dh2.55
• Pick 4 Exact: Dh25,000 × 1/10,000 = Dh2.50
• Pick 4 Any 24: Dh1,000 × 24/10,000 = Dh2.40

One quirk in the published figures: the rules label them "RTP excluding VAT", but they match the prizes divided by the full Dh5 price, VAT included. Measured against the Dh4.76 pre-VAT price, the basis Lucky Day's 42.62 per cent uses, Pick 3 and Pick 4 return about 50 to 54 per cent.

Choosing Any over Exact does not improve your long-run value. It swaps a rare, larger prize for a more frequent, smaller one. In Pick 4 the Any bets actually return slightly less (48 per cent against 50 per cent). In Pick 3 they return slightly more (51 per cent against 50 per cent).

The numbers you choose also decide which bets you can make. A Pick 3 player who picks a birthday digit pattern like 1-1-2 can only play Exact or Any 3. Players picking three different digits can only play Exact or Any 6.

What do the odds mean over a year?

The daily rhythm is what sets these games apart. Here is what a year of daily play adds up to, in illustrative calculations from the published odds, not records of real players:

One Dh5 entry every day for a year — Result

• Total staked — Dh1,825
• Expected prize money at 50 per cent — about Dh912
• Chance of at least one Pick 3 Exact win — about 31 per cent
• Chance of at least one Pick 4 Exact win — about 4 per cent
• Chance of at least one Pick 3 Any 6 win — about 89 per cent

Read the last line carefully. A Pick 3 Any 6 player will very likely win at least once in a year, and still expects to get back only about half of the Dh1,825 they put in. Frequent small wins are not the same as coming out ahead.

When are the Pick 3 and Pick 4 draws?

Every evening at 9:30pm UAE time, seven days a week. The rules of both games state that ticket sales close two minutes before the draw (9:28pm) and that sales for the next draw open as soon as the current one ends. Results are published on the official results pages.

Players can also buy the same numbers for several draws in advance. The game pages offer 1, 3, 5, 12 or 25 consecutive draws, and the maximum spend is Dh2,500 per transaction: 25 draws of 20 entries each. Our UAE Lottery draw schedule covers every game's timetable.

Where can I buy Pick 3 and Pick 4 tickets?

Both games are sold online at theuaelottery.ae, where buying requires an account; registration is open to UAE residents aged 18 and over, and players must be physically in the UAE when they play. The official FAQ says authorised retailers "sell Lucky Day and Pick 3", so Pick 4 is not on the retail list. Retail buyers must be physically in the UAE and at least 18. Our Retail Express guide lists the ADNOC stations and the Musaffah shop.

The retail limit fits Pick 3 neatly. The FAQ says retail prizes "up to and including AED 2,500" are paid in cash in store, which is exactly the Pick 3 Exact prize. A Pick 4 Exact win of Dh25,000 on an online ticket is credited to the player's account automatically, subject to validation checks, since only online prizes of Dh100,000 or more need a separate claim. Our prize claim guide sets out each route.

Is Pick 3 legal in the UAE?

Yes. It is run by The Game LLC, which holds the UAE's only lottery licence from the federal regulator, the GCGRA. No UAE tax is taken from prizes, as our tax guide explains. Daily games are built for repeat play, so set a budget before you start. Our responsible gaming guide covers deposit limits and where to get support.

FAQ

What time is the Pick 3 draw in the UAE? 9:30pm UAE time every evening. Sales close at 9:28pm.

How much does Pick 3 cost? Dh5 per entry, including 5 per cent VAT.

What is the Pick 3 top prize? Dh2,500 for matching all three digits in exact order. The odds are 1 in 1,000.

What does "Any 24" mean in Pick 4? You chose four different digits and win Dh1,000 if they are drawn in any of the 24 possible orders. The odds are 1 in 416.67.

Can I buy Pick 4 at a petrol station? The official FAQ lists only Lucky Day and Pick 3 at authorised retailers, so Pick 4 is sold online.

Which UAE Lottery game has the best payout rate? Among the draw games, Pick 3 and Pick 4 (48 to 51 per cent) return more than Lucky Day (42.62 per cent plus its Lucky Chance prizes), on the operator's published figures. Every game still returns less than you stake over time.

Further reading

• How to claim a UAE Lottery prize
• UAE Lottery draw schedule 2026
• UAE Lottery Quick 5 explained
• UAE Lottery rules explained
• Where to buy UAE Lottery tickets in person

Sources

• The UAE Lottery, "Pick 3" game page and rules, version V1.0.0 (accessed 17 October 2026): https://www.theuaelottery.ae/lottery/pick3
• The UAE Lottery, "Pick 4" game page and rules, version V1.0.0 (accessed 17 October 2026): https://www.theuaelottery.ae/lottery/pick4
• The UAE Lottery, homepage game cards and winners feed (accessed 17 October 2026): https://www.theuaelottery.ae/
• The UAE Lottery, "FAQs" (accessed 17 October 2026): https://www.theuaelottery.ae/faq
• The UAE Lottery, "Terms and Conditions", version 20260225 (accessed 17 October 2026): https://www.theuaelottery.ae/Terms-and-Conditions
• Gaming Intelligence, "The UAE Lottery launches new Pick 3 daily draw game" (6 June 2025): https://www.gamingintelligence.com/sectors/lottery-sectors/214822-the-uae-lottery-launches-new-pick-3-daily-draw-game/
• Gaming Intelligence, "The UAE Lottery launches new Pick 4 daily draw game" (23 September 2025): https://www.gamingintelligence.com/markets/asia/220032-the-uae-lottery-launches-new-pick-4-daily-draw-game/
• GCGRA, "Our Licensees" (accessed 17 October 2026): https://www.gcgra.gov.ae/en/licensing/our-licensees/
• The UAE Lottery, "Lucky Day" game rules, version V2.3 (accessed 17 October 2026): https://www.theuaelottery.ae/lottery/luckyday
• Khaleej Times, "Tickets from Dh2: UAE Lottery launches new online game with chance to win every 2 mins" (13 February 2026): https://www.khaleejtimes.com/uae/tickets-from-dh2-uae-lottery-launches-new-online-game-with-chance-to-win-every-2-mins
• Gulf News, "UAE Lottery launches instant game: Spend from Dh1, win up to Dh60,000 every minute" (15 September 2025): https://gulfnews.com/uae/uae-lottery-launches-instant-game-spend-from-dh1-win-up-to-dh60000-every-minute-1.500269987