FAQ
Questions people ask
Short answers about tickets, shares, payments, results, disputes and privacy. If yours is missing, ask a person.
Does ShareTheWinning buy the tickets?
No. The Pool Admin buys the official ticket at a retailer in a state where the pool is allowed and records it here with a photo. We never sell tickets, play online for you, or hold money.
How is a prize split?
By the shares in the locked snapshot. If the pool wins $200 and you hold 2 of 16 shares, your share is $25.00. Odd cents go to the largest remainders so the total always matches the prize exactly.
What if the admin bought more or fewer plays than the pot?
The pool shows the difference and the admin must choose: buy more, refund the difference by shares, roll it over (if the agreement allows), or treat extra as a gift or reimburse themselves first (if the agreement allows). The choice is logged for everyone.
What happens when results come in?
Once two official sources agree, we publish the drawing and check every play. Fixed prizes post automatically. Jackpots and prizes that depend on ticket sales always wait for a person to confirm the official amount.
Who actually pays whom?
The admin holds the ticket and claims the prize per the agreement. The ledger shows what the admin owes each member. The admin records a payment, the member confirms it, and the round closes when every line is settled.
What if someone disagrees about a payment?
Either side taps "Not yet" or "Dispute". The round goes on hold, nothing is deleted, and a person at ShareTheWinning reviews it with both of you. The outcome is written to the record.
Can the admin change the record?
No. After the lock, members, shares and contributions are frozen. Every later change is a new entry with who, what and when. The full record is one tap from the pool page.
What about a big win?
For a jackpot or any prize above the state threshold, the round freezes and we preserve an export bundle: snapshot, agreement, ticket photos with their fingerprints, plays, the official result and the matches. That bundle is what you bring to the lottery and to your lawyer.
Is my ticket photo public?
Never. Originals are stored privately for the pool and only members can view them. Nothing identifying is ever shared outside the pool without your consent.
Can I leave a pool?
Yes, before the pool locks. After the lock your shares are part of that drawing. You can mute a pool chat at any time.
Can we run a pool in my state?
Every state's page answers two things first: what we found about private pools in its law and the lottery's own guidance, with the source, and whether pool creation is open on ShareTheWinning there. Pools can be created in every state that runs a lottery; the five states with no lottery stay closed. Facts, not legal advice. Pools in your state
What does it cost?
Nothing. No invite needed. We will never take a cut of tickets or prizes.
Try it with your pool
Free. No invite needed. The example pool shows every screen first, with made-up people and money.
