Buying a lottery ticket is one of the worst investments someone could possibly make, with virtually no chance of any return and no guarantee about how the money spent on the lotteries is used.

Rather harshly described as a tax on the poor and stupid, the lottery is a poor use of personal finances because the odds of winning are so long. For the UK lottery, the chance of winning the jackpot is 14 million to 1, while the chance of winning anything at all is nearly 57 to 1. How many people would really risk their money on these sorts of odds?

The odds of a jackpot win in the UK are nearly double the length of winning the Australian lottery but just one twelfth of the American Mega Millions lottery. Would you really risk your money on a bet if you only had one chance in nearly 176,000,000 of winning?

There are far better things to do with your money like investing in property or simply opening a savings account. Even if you invest in a bond or take a gamble on the stock market, you're still likely to come out better than playing the lottery.

The lottery can't be considered an investment because it's a matter of luck if you get any return. There's no way to predict the market (results) and every chance of losing.

Instead of an investment, playing the lottery should only be treated like a bit of fun. If you lose, you can afford it; if you win, it's a bonus. It shouldn't be taken seriously because like any other form of gambling or betting it can become addictive.

Furthermore, the lottery doesn't use all the money it makes wisely enough. If the companies or the governments who run the lotteries used the money to improve life for everyone, there might be some justification for playing the lottery. But not all money is given to good causes, not all profits are used to benefit the majority of society and the public who play the lottery have no say in how it is spent.

All of this makes the lottery a bad use of money. The only good thing that comes out of it is for that lucky handful who people who have big winnings, but even then large amounts of money don't guarantee happiness.

Learn more about this author, Ben Hughes.
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