Number 13

In Mega Millions under the 5/56 + 1/46 · Jun 2005 – Oct 2013 rules — 869 draws, 5 from 1–56 (an earlier era).

80times drawn · chance expected 78 +0.29σ

13draws waiting · a wait this long: 33% for any number

10.7average wait between appearances · chance says 11.2

68longest completed wait · 14% chance of one at least that long

13 is drawn as often as chance explains

Drawn 80 times in 869 draws against 77.6 expected, +0.29σ. Each draw is independent: after 13 draws away it is exactly as likely tonight as a number drawn yesterday.

Number 13, draw by draw

Drawn 80 times in 869 draws · average wait 10.7 draws · longest completed wait 68 · waiting 13 draws now

a completed wait — darker is longer the wait still running — a lower bound, not a finished gap

Where it lands in a sorted draw

Sort a draw and 13 has a favourite seat — chance gives a small number the low positions more often. That is the shape of sorting, not of the machine.

1st smallest19 · chance 28.9
2nd smallest42 · chance 34.7
3rd smallest18 · chance 14.0
4th smallest1 · chance 2.2
5th smallest0 · chance 0.1

Every position’s lane →

The company it keeps

Seen most often with these — chance gives every partner about 5.8 shared draws, and the leaders are simply the ones that came out ahead this time.

46 52 10 6 7 12

It has shared a draw with every one of the other 55 numbers; chance expected about 0.2 still unmet by now. Every pair →

How many people play it

Under the crowd model, 13 is picked about 0.92× as often as an indifferent choice — 31st most popular of 56. That changes nothing about whether it comes up, and everything about how many ways a jackpot on it would be shared.

Numbers 1–31 — the birthday zone ×1.22
The number 13, in Western markets ×0.75

The model and its sources → · What people believe about 13 →

Every draw it appeared in

Date	Wait	Position	The draw
2013-09-03	5	2nd	4 13 14 28 41
2013-08-16	29	2nd	7 13 26 36 46
2013-05-07	7	3rd	1 6 13 20 51
2013-04-12	13	3rd	1 10

What this cannot tell you

Nothing here predicts the next draw. A number’s history is a record of a fair machine’s past, and the machine keeps none of it: 13 is drawn with probability 5/56 tonight whatever it did last week.

2010-09-03	4	2nd	10 13 20 28 36
2010-08-20	4	2nd	4 13 20 29 48
2010-08-06	1	2nd	7 13 30 33 54
2010-08-03	11	2nd	4 13 20 22 56
2010-06-25	3	3rd	1 2 13 19 27
2010-06-15	1	3rd	4 12 13 21 27
2010-06-11	2	2nd	6 13 33 34 42
2010-06-04	5	2nd	12 13 15 17 50
2010-05-18	33	2nd	11 13 19 37 40
2010-01-22	5	2nd	8 13 27 28 52
2010-01-05	20	1st	13 28 39 50 55
2009-10-27	2	2nd	7 13 37 46 51
2009-10-20	1	1st	13 17 25 45 55
2009-10-16	39	2nd	10 13 18 33 51
2009-06-02	13	2nd	9 13 26 30 35
2009-04-17	3	2nd	5 13 26 35 45
2009-04-07	19	3rd	2 4 13 17 36
2009-01-30	11	1st	13 16 19 53 55
2008-12-23	1	3rd	1 8 13 27 41
2008-12-19	22	2nd	3 13 16 39 54
2008-10-03	2	1st	13 28 32 41 52
2008-09-26	3	2nd	6 13 14 31 36
2008-09-16	7	1st	13 24 39 51 52
2008-08-22	6	2nd	12 13 15 41 42
2008-08-01	1	2nd	9 13 17 18 56
2008-07-29	30	2nd	11 13 20 30 42
2008-04-15	8	2nd	12 13 27 48 50
2008-03-18	2	1st	13 15 20 25 44
2008-03-11	5	2nd	4 13 35 41 47
2008-02-22	15	3rd	7 12 13 19 22
2008-01-01	13	1st	13 16 25 30 54
2007-11-16	14	2nd	12 13 30 31 39
2007-09-28	20	2nd	4 13 20 25 33
2007-07-20	11	2nd	6 13 30 41 52
2007-06-12	7	2nd	3 13 19 31 50
2007-05-18	1	1st	13 23 24 30 44
2007-05-15	19	2nd	6 13 42 46 56
2007-03-09	27	2nd	10 13 25 42 43
2006-12-05	4	3rd	6 9 13 43 46
2006-11-21	4	2nd	7 13 20 42 47
2006-11-07	5	1st	13 22 33 51 52
2006-10-20	18	2nd	9 13 23 29 54
2006-08-18	3	3rd	5 12 13 46 50
2006-08-08	3	3rd	1 5 13 18 33
2006-07-28	3	2nd	2 13 23 32 35
2006-07-18	1	2nd	12 13 29 49 52
2006-07-14	6	1st	13 25 26 28 56
2006-06-23	7	1st	13 17 24 34 56
2006-05-30	12	2nd	2 13 28 34 45
2006-04-18	62	1st	13 14 25 34 50
2005-09-13	6	1st	13 24 44 48 52
2005-08-23	1	4th	6 7 8 13 40
2005-08-19	3	2nd	2 13 18 36 46
2005-08-09	6	1st	13 35 36 43 52
2005-07-19	1	2nd	7 13 48 51 54
2005-07-15	—	2nd	9 13 25 36 48