The current odds of winning any prize on Birthday Surprise are 1 in 5.8 (17.25%), recalculated from the prizes still unclaimed. That covers every prize, from the smallest up to the $10,000 top prize.

Not yet. All 3 $10,000 top prizes are still unclaimed, as of Nov 13, 2026. We estimate nearly all of the game's 3,700,350 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 #3 for odds of breaking even, with 1 in 4.53 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 1,233,444 (3 of 3 left); $1,000+ at 1 in 137,049 (24 of 24 left); $500+ at 1 in 25,172 (120 of 120 left); $100+ at 1 in 1,869 (1,833 of 1,833 left); $50+ at 1 in 399 (7,297 of 7,297 left); $20+ at 1 in 57.1 (55,486 of 55,486 left); $10+ at 1 in 20.3 (117,196 of 117,197 left); $5+ at 1 in 11.6 (135,671 of 135,671 left); $4+ at 1 in 7.95 (148,060 of 148,061 left); Free ticket at 1 in 5.74 (178,813 of 178,814 left); Free ticket at 1 in 5.8 (172,658 of 172,658 left).

The odds of winning at least your $2 back on one Birthday Surprise ticket are 1 in 4.53 (22.08%), counting free-ticket prizes. The odds of winning more than you paid are 1 in 7.95 (12.59%).

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 Nov 11, 2026 by the New Jersey Lottery.