Straight or Box in Pick Games: How Each Way Works
In a Pick game, a straight play matches only when your digits come out in the exact order drawn. A box play matches when your digits come out in any order. A box counts more orders, so it has more ways to match than a straight. How many more depends on how many of your digits repeat.
Straight: the exact order
A straight play compares your number with the result digit by digit, in order. If you play 0037 and the result is 0037, that is a straight match. 7300 is not: it has the same digits in a different order.
The odds of a straight match come from the number of possible results. A Pick 4 draws four digits from 0 to 9, so it has 10 × 10 × 10 × 10 = 10,000 possible results, and your chance of a straight match is 1 in 10,000.
Box: any order
A box play matches when the result uses the same digits as yours, in any order, and repeated digits count. Play 0037 and these 12 results all match as a box: 0037, 0073, 0307, 0370, 0703, 0730, 3007, 3070, 3700, 7003, 7030 and 7300.
Play 3211 and the digits 3, 2, 1 and 1 also make 12 orders. 1234 has 24 orders and 1112 has 4. Play 7777 and there is only 1, so for that number a box and a straight are the same thing.
| Number | Orders that match as a box | Chance of a box match (about) |
|---|---|---|
| 0037 | 12 | 1 in 833 |
| 3211 | 12 | 1 in 833 |
| 1234 | 24 | 1 in 417 |
| 1122 | 6 | 1 in 1,667 |
| 1112 | 4 | 1 in 2,500 |
| 7777 | 1 | 1 in 10,000 |
Why a box has more ways to match
A box counts every order of your digits, so the more different digits you have, the more orders there are. Four different digits make 24 orders, one pair makes 12, two pairs make 6, three of a kind makes 4, and four of a kind makes 1.
That is why a box match is more likely than a straight match for the same number, whenever the digits are not all the same. Each lottery sets its own rules for how a box is played and what it costs, and not every game offers one. The lottery's official rules are the ones that count, and each game's results page says when its current rules have no box play.
More ways to match is not the same as better value. Each lottery's rules decide what a box costs and what it pays.
Save a number and follow the draws after it
On LotteryTeller you can save a number and choose Straight (exact order), Box (any order) or both. From the moment you save it, we check the confirmed results of the draws that come after and list each match, with the draw and its date. To look back at past draws, use search.
Check a number against past results
Save a number and we check it against each confirmed result from the draws after it.
Save a numberStraight or box questions
What is the difference between straight and box?
A straight play matches only in the exact order drawn. A box play matches in any order. Some lotteries call them Exact and Any Order.
Are a box and a straight the same when all the digits are the same?
Yes. If all your digits are the same, such as 7777, there is only one order, so both match the same results.
How many orders does 0037 have as a box?
Twelve. Four digits make 24 orders, but the two zeros are interchangeable, so each number appears twice among the 24, leaving 12.
Does every game offer a box?
No. Each lottery decides. Check the game's rules on its official page; the results page of each game says when box play is not part of a game's current rules.
Results by state
More game guides
- Pick 2Two digits, from 00 to 99. In Puerto Rico it's Pega 2.
- Pick 3Three digits, from 000 to 999. You'll also see it as Cash 3, Daily 3, Play 3 or Numbers.
- Pick 4Four digits, from 0000 to 9999. It also goes by Win 4, Cash 4, Daily 4 or Play 4.
- Pick 5Five digits, from 00000 to 99999. Some lotteries name it Georgia 5, Play 5 or DC-5.
- Cash PopChoose numbers from 1 to 15. One is drawn each time, and each number has a 1 in 15 chance.
- Odds and randomnessWhere the odds come from, why draws are independent, and what a count means.
- How monitors workWhat a saved number checks, and what it does not.
- Lottery strategyWhat a strategy can change in a Pick game, and what no system can.
- GlossaryStraight, box, combo, Fireball and other Pick terms, each in a line or two.
Play for fun
Set a budget before you play and stick to it. The lottery is entertainment, not a way to make money.