The current odds of winning any prize on Birthday Surprise are 1 in 6.16 (16.22%), recalculated from the prizes still unclaimed. That covers every prize, from the smallest up to the $10,000 top prize.

Yes. 1 of the 3 $10,000 top prizes has been claimed, and 2 are still unclaimed, as of Nov 14, 2026. We estimate about 31% of the game's 3,540,000 tickets are still unsold.

Yes. Birthday Surprise is on sale at New Jersey Lottery retailers, and the lottery hasn’t announced an end date.

Among the 8 $2 New Jersey scratch-offs on sale, Birthday Surprise ranks #6 for odds of breaking even, with 1 in 4.74 tickets winning at least the $2 ticket price back or a free ticket. Right now the $2 game with the best odds of breaking even is Nutcracker Cash, where 1 in 4.22 tickets wins at least $2 back.

Birthday Surprise has 11 prize levels. Odds are for winning that amount or more on one ticket. Current odds, from the prizes still unclaimed: $10,000 at 1 in 542,999 (2 of 3 left); $1,000+ at 1 in 120,666 (7 of 24 left); $500+ at 1 in 22,625 (39 of 120 left); $100+ at 1 in 2,301 (424 of 1,767 left); $50+ at 1 in 495 (1,721 of 7,019 left); $20+ at 1 in 67.5 (13,885 of 53,086 left); $10+ at 1 in 23.2 (30,679 of 112,114 left); $5+ at 1 in 12.8 (37,899 of 129,754 left); $4+ at 1 in 8.59 (41,753 of 141,674 left); Free ticket at 1 in 6.05 (53,111 of 170,994 left); Free ticket at 1 in 6.16 (49,749 of 165,160 left).

The odds of winning at least your $2 back on one Birthday Surprise ticket are 1 in 4.74 (21.11%), counting free-ticket prizes. The odds of winning more than you paid are 1 in 8.59 (11.64%).

Birthday Surprise costs $2 per ticket. It is sold at authorized New Jersey Lottery retailers throughout the state.

Yes — New Jersey instant games and New Jersey scratch-offs are the same thing: a paper lottery ticket you scratch to reveal whether it wins. The New Jersey Lottery lists them under "Scratch-Offs" on its own site. "Instant Games" is simply what most players in New Jersey call them, while "scratch-off" and "scratch ticket" are the terms used in other states. In New Jersey, "instant games" and "instant tickets" mean these same paper tickets you buy at a retailer — not the lottery's online games. Every game ranked on this page is the same physical ticket, whichever name you use for it.

Birthday Surprise, a $2 New Jersey scratch-off, was released on Jul 23, 2025 by the New Jersey Lottery.