lottoland review - Lottorate compare world lotteries

They offer subscriptions, multidraw options and also a nice jackpot 'hunt' facility whereby players can bet on a specific jackpot until it is hit, at which time their regular bet placement stops being active. There's also a great bit of functionality which allows you to queue a bet until the jackpot hits a certain amount.

The syndicates they offer on some lottos aren't really 'syndicates' (well, we doubt they are, at least) but function in exactly the same way as a normal syndicate would. In effect, for your 'bet' you get multiple numbers of lines for a fraction of the payout returns. We didn't spend too long on the pricing of syndicate bets but it looks like it runs to a similar margin to normal bets.

Their double jackpot 'option' sounds interesting but actually pays out lower value to players. This option doubles (only) the jackpot, which makes the jackpots even bigger yes, but means that players are only getting the added value of the extra jackpot payout and none of the other prize levels for the extra cost. I'd pass on 'doubling up' and just bet two lines... After all, you have 2x the odds of hitting the jackpot with two lines and you'll not get 'that' much more fun out of €100m than €50m!

Similarly, the numbershield option they offer is an interesting variant that some players may like though its value is questionable at best. It basically works out that if you pay a bit more (50-70%), then you'll not share your jackpot with anyone else. The odds of sharing a jackpot vary quite considerably by lotto, as we have seen in our lotto reviews themselves. In some situations it could be a reasonable 'bet' but generally not. Maybe one to think about on big Powerball jackpots or the Australian lottos but otherwise, not the greatest value.

The margin they make on lottery bets needs to cover the costs of insuring or hedging jackpots, administration, gaming taxes and marketing costs. If a €1 lotto has around 50c of margin in it for the operator (even after covering the cost of insuring the jackpot), then there should be plenty of margin to cover these costs. In this sense, charging more than the equivalent ticket cost seems a bit excessive, even if they do dress it up as an 'intermediary fee' between two of their own companies! The added cost on top of a normal line cost for the player varies a little by lotto (megamillions costs are particularly high...). But, in general, the 'added cost' of a line to players on Lottoland is around 120% of its normal value, i.e a line bet that would cost €1 if bought as a ticket locally would cost around €1.20 at Lottoland. Note that subscription bets are discounted nicely so you can get very close to the 'normal' cost (see below).

US jackpots whose headline amounts are based on an annuity payment are discounted for cash if won, as they would in the US too (though slightly less than the 40% Lottoland deduct). We were a little bit surprised though, that in Lottoland's Terms and Conditions the company 'retains 35% withholdings of the highest two prize categories [for the big US lotteries Powerball and Megamillions] because it is intended to put the player in the same position as if they had played the underlying lottery'. This seems a bit mean given that US taxes are not payable or paid out by Lottoland on these bets.

As lottery suppliers go, the sign up bonuses of 5 free line bets are a little better than some but not much. As betting companies go (and Lottoland is one of these), the sign up bonuses aren't at all exciting. The 5 free line offer, for example, is similar to a bookmaker or casino's 'deposit and bet £10 to get £10 free' type of bonuses where most gaming companies offer more. That said, it is more difficult on a lotto site to 'play through' the matched bonus money several times, as specified by most casino, betting and gaming companies. In fact, Lottoland often require just the one 'play through' on their bonus money before it may be withdrawn - this is actually very good. Overall, sign up bonuses are nothing too exciting and would expect a bit more value...

After a detailed lottoland review, we rate the company pretty highly on trust, not least because of its UK Gambling Commission licence, something which is not easy to qualify for. Financially, the company hedges or insures the lottery jackpots. As an example, let's say a £10m jackpot had odds of 50m to 1 and one betline was sold for £1, the 'value' of that jackpot to users on that bet is 20p (or a return of 20% of their stake). The insurance company would charge, say 25p to insure the ticket and would pay out on a winning bet line. With lottoland we tend to believe and trust in these insurance policies, even if they don't help themselves by describing them as 'complex hedging measures and instruments' in their Terms & Conditions. The reason for this is that hedging and insurance is something that the UK Gambling Commission would require proof of before granting their licence. Moreover, there are published articles relating to multimillion jackpot winners Lottoland, including a record €90m win, which gives plenty of confidence. We only wish that Lottoland would at least publish the names of all insurers and/or show the non commercial details of these 'instruments'.That way, players could have full confidence in the 'guaranteed' payout promotional copy.