How do I check if my Canadian lottery ticket won?
Find the draw date printed on your ticket, then compare each line of numbers against the winning numbers for that exact date. Winning numbers are posted the same evening, so you can compare a ticket with the lotto results today instead of waiting for the weekend.
Most missed prizes come from checking the wrong draw date, not from misreading a number. The faster route is to check your lottery ticket online: enter your numbers once and a checker tells you which prize tier each line matches, including the bonus number and add-on games that are easy to overlook.
What counts as a win?
On most Canadian games, matching two or three main numbers already returns a prize. You do not need the full jackpot line for a ticket to be worth something - which is exactly why unchecked tickets expire unclaimed every year.
A routine that works:
Check the draw date first, then the numbers.
Check every line on the ticket, not only the first one.
Keep the ticket until you have checked it twice; a checker result is not a claim.
For provincial games, make sure you are looking at the right province draw.
How long do I have to claim a prize?
Claim windows vary by province and by game, and they are counted in months from the draw date - so it is worth checking soon after each draw rather than saving a pile of tickets for later.