New Jersey Pick 4
New Jersey Pick 4 is a simple, fast-paced draw game with lots of depth, and some fantastic odds! Players need to choose four numbers from 0 to 9, decide on a play type and wager amount, then decide whether to use any of the optional add-ons. Read on for our comprehensive guide!
New Jersey Pick 4 Draws
New Jersey holds two Pick 4 Draws every day – the Midday draw is at 12:59 PM, while the Evening draw is at 10:57 PM (ET). We upload the winning numbers over on our NJ Pick 4 Numbers Page shortly after every result.
How to Play New Jersey Pick 4
First of all, players need to select the numbers they’ll be playing. You can choose any four-digit combo from 0000 to 9999. Picking the same number multiple times will affect your odds and prizes, but we’ll cover this mechanic later.
Next, you need to select which play type you want to use. Which one you choose determines how your numbers can actually win in Pick 4. There are five to choose from:
Straight
You win the Straight prize if your numbers match the winning numbers in the order they’re drawn.
Box
You can win the Box prize by matching the winning numbers in any order.
Straight/Box
This play type splits your bet in two, with half your money on a Straight play and half on a Box play. If your numbers match but in the wrong order, you win the Box prize. If your numbers match exactly, you win both the Straight AND the Box prizes.
Wheel
With a Wheel, every possible combination of your numbers is entered as a Straight play. This means you can win a Straight prize with any combination of your numbers. Great odds for the top prize, but the tickets are more expensive!
Pair
With Pair Plays, you only need to match two numbers to win, but they have to be in drawn-order. Decide to match either the front pair, or the back pair.
You can check the odds and prizes for each play type over on our NJ Pick 4 Prizes page.
Wager Amounts & Ticket Costs
In NJ Pick 4, you can wager either $0.50, $1, $2, $3, $4, or $5 on each play. However, the $0.50 play is unavailable for Straight/Box plays, and Wheel plays are charged differently: multiply your wager amount by the number of Ways you're playing to find out the cost of your Wheel ticket (we'll explain the "Ways" in the next section if you aren't sure).
Ways to Play
Depending on how many times you use duplicate numbers in your play, the odds, prizes, and ticket cost will change for Box, Straight/Box, and Wheel plays. Here’s why…
With those play types, players can win as long as their numbers match the winning numbers in any order. However, you can rearrange the number 0987 (for example) in 24 different ways, but 5556 can only be arranged 4 different ways. This means that the odds of winning a Box or Wheel play are 5X higher if you use all different numbers Vs. using one unique number and three duplicates.
The number of combinations you can make is known as the number of “Ways” you play. You can play 24 Ways (1234), 12 Ways (1233), 6 Ways (1122), or 4 Ways (1112) – the more Ways you play, the better your odds of winning are.
To account for this imbalance, the prizes are higher if you win a Box play with fewer Ways. For Wheel plays, the prizes stay the same regardless of the number of Ways – but more Ways means a more expensive ticket!
The Fireball Add-On
The Fireball is an optional extra for NJ Pick 4. Adding it to your play doubles the cost of your wager, and gives players much better odds of winning.
After the main Pick 4 numbers are drawn, a fourth number from 0 to 9 is also drawn. This is the Fireball number. Players who opted for the Fireball can substitute any of the winning numbers with the Fireball to create up to four new winning combinations! It’s even possible to win the main prize and a Fireball prize in the same draw, if you get really lucky with your numbers.
You can check the Pick 4 Fireball prize tiers on our NJ Pick 4 Prizes page.
The Instant Match Add-On
Instant Match is an optional mini-game that players can add to their ticket for an extra $1. It’s mostly unrelated to the main Pick 4 game, and offers players the chance to win up to $500 right there at the checkout.
If you’ve opted into Instant Match on your playslip, you’ll be assigned four random Instant Match numbers from 0 to 9 as well as your main Pick 4 numbers. Each of the Instant Match numbers will have a prize printed next to it. Winning is simple – if any of your chosen Pick 4 numbers match the Instant Match numbers, you win the prize associated with it!
You can check the Instant Match prize tiers and winning odds on our NJ Pick 4 Prizes page.