This Is How Americans Would Spend One Million Dollars in Lottery Winnings

It’s the ultimate dream, winning a huge jackpot on the lottery and becoming a millionaire. What would you do if you beat the odds and won $1 million? That’s the question we asked 500 people in the US, and we got some interesting answers.

It seems like many people are well prepared for this kind of life-changing event and have already considered what they’d do with the money. It’s an exciting thought to imagine all the possibilities that open up when winning such a large sum.

The Most Popular Responses

What are the most popular answers to this question? The results may surprise you! The responses vary between men and women and depend on age too. Read on to find out the top 5 most common answers below:

Buy a House

Winning the lottery would be a dream come true for many people. And it looks like most of us have the same idea about what to do with our new-found million, regardless whether you play online lottery in Michigan or in Arizona. The most popular answer was to buy a house! Whether it’s a beachside getaway or a suburban paradise, lottery winnings would certainly make the dream of owning a home come true.

This was overwhelmingly the most popular answer across the board, and with the rising cost of housing prices, we can’t say we’re surprised by this response. Just over 64% of women and almost 36% of men said they would choose this option. And the most popular age demographic choosing this answer was the 27-42 group.

Invest it

Winning the lottery is a life-changing event and many people might be tempted to blow the jackpot on an extravagant lifestyle. But it turns out that the second most common response was the sensible option of investing it! That’s right: when given the chance, many people prefer to put their money towards something that will yield greater returns in the long run.

Interestingly this answer was more common among men with almost 23% of men opting to invest (compared to just 9.5% of women). It was also the least popular answer among the older demographic. Investing is a great way to try and keep that $1 million dollar jackpot growing.

Pay off debts

Following on with this practical theme, the third most popular answer was to use the money to pay off debts. It may not be the most exciting answer, but it’s certainly a practical one—and it looks like many people agree! For many people, paying off their student loans would be a huge weight off their shoulders.

This answer was more popular with women than with men, and over 16% of women chose to pay off their debts compared to just over 10% of men. We think this answer is a very smart financial move.

Travel the world

Next up, we have a fun one: travel the world! Winning $1 million would create an incredible once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to travel the world and experience its wonders. From exotic beaches in Thailand to ancient ruins in Peru, many people would love the chance to explore cultures and landscapes far and wide with this newfound wealth.

This answer was most common among the 27-42 year old respondents, which makes sense, seeing as these are the people most likely making up the workforce with no time to go traveling around their full-time jobs. Many people dream of packing their bags and going for the adventure of a lifetime and $1 million would certainly help!

Start a business

If you won a cool million dollars, would you start your own business? Apparently so – according to our survey results! This was the fifth most popular answer we got. With all that cash, you’d have the financial freedom to make your entrepreneurial dreams come true. Whether it is a brick-and-mortar shop or a digital venture – there are so many things you could try.

Differences in How People from Each State Answered

In 30 states, buying a house was voted by US residents as the thing they’d want the most. The second most-wanted thing is to invest in it. Some notable home-buying states include California, Pennsylvania and Michigan. Whereas the states that would invest in it include Arkansas, Minnesota and New York.

And what comes after buying a house and investing in it? It’s somewhat expected – traveling. Traveling the world is the most common answer in Arizona, Hawaii, Idaho, and three other states. Finally, residents in other states chose to retire early, fund a charity, or pay off debts. However, with rising prices, $1 million might not cover your retirement as comfortably as some of the biggest lottery payouts in US history.

Differences in How Millennials and Gen Z Answered

It’s no surprise that age impacted the answers that people gave to our survey, and we were particularly interested to see the split between Millennials and Gen Z. These two groups are at different stages in their life, so of course they have different financial priorities.

Gen Z are the youngest generation that we surveyed and for them the overwhelming answer to the question was to invest the $1 million (26%), closely followed by using the money to buy a house (23%). For millennials the top priority was to buy a house (29%) and second was to invest the cash (15%).

Something that was also interesting was that 0% of Gen Z said they would spend the jackpot on buying a luxury vehicle, hiring a private chef, or getting cosmetic surgery. Millennials seemed to agree about not hiring a private chef, but a small number said they would buy a luxury car (2%) or get a cosmetic procedure (0.82%).

Differences in How Men and Women Answered

The results of our survey were also impacted by gender. Of course, every person has their own unique goals, values, and desires, however, men overwhelmingly chose the answer of investing the $1 million jackpot (23%), closely followed by using the cash to buy a property (21%).

It’s interesting to note that the women surveyed seemed to have different priorities than the men in terms of how they would use their lottery winnings. The women were mostly in favor of using the money to buy a house (29%), and the second most popular answer was using it to pay off debts (16%).

Conclusion

Our survey respondents have some exciting ideas about how they would use a $1 million lottery win to achieve their goals. From investing in a business venture to buying property, they have thought of it all. So, if you were to win a $1 million jackpot, what would you do? The possibilities are endless!

Methodology

In March 2023, we surveyed 500 US residents and asked what they would do if they won $1 million in the lottery. The people surveyed were between the ages of 18 – 77.

Fair Use

If you would like to share any of the elements, information, or results of this study, feel free to do so. All we ask is that you cite this page or Online-Gambling.com as your source