A lottery is a form of gambling in which numbers are drawn at random to determine the winners of prizes. Lottery prizes can include cash, goods, services, real estate, and other valuables. In the United States, lotteries are regulated by state governments and operate as public enterprises. Prizes may be distributed in a lump sum or paid in annuity payments over a period of years. Many financial advisors recommend choosing the lump sum option because it provides greater control over the funds and allows you to invest the winnings in higher-return assets, such as stocks.

The casting of lots to make decisions and determine fates has a long history in human culture, including several cases in the Bible. The first recorded lotteries were used for material gain, with a promise of money or other commodities. The first recorded public lotteries to distribute prizes in the form of money were held in the Low Countries in the 15th century, to raise funds for a variety of town uses, including town fortifications and assistance to the poor.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, colonial-era America also hosted lotteries to finance a wide range of projects, from paving streets to building colleges and universities. Benjamin Franklin sponsored a lottery during the American Revolution to raise funds for cannons, and Thomas Jefferson once sponsored his own lottery to alleviate crushing debt. In the modern era, state-run lotteries have become commonplace throughout much of the world.

State lotteries have a number of characteristics in common: they establish a monopoly for themselves; designate a public agency or public corporation to run the lottery (as opposed to licensing a private firm in return for a share of ticket sales and other profits); start operations with a modest number of relatively simple games; and, due to constant pressure to increase revenues, progressively expand their size and complexity. In addition, they promote the lottery with extensive advertising, which critics charge is often deceptive and portrays the odds of winning as highly favorable.

A central argument for state lotteries is that they are a painless source of revenue: voters willingly spend their money to help support government programs, and politicians view lotteries as a convenient way to collect tax dollars without raising taxes. Despite this, critics have focused on other features of lotteries, such as the potential for compulsive gambling and their regressive impact on lower-income groups.

Because lotteries are business ventures, their advertising necessarily focuses on persuading people to spend their money on them. Critics charge that this promotional effort runs counter to the social functions of state government, arguing that promoting gambling encourages problem gamblers and has other negative consequences for vulnerable groups. They further argue that state sponsorship of the lottery diverts attention from more important issues such as education, health, and welfare. Nevertheless, the vast majority of state governments continue to operate lotteries. In fact, only one state has ever voted to abolish its lottery.