[Math] Probability of winning a prize in a raffle (that each person can only win once)

binomial-coefficientsprobabilityproblem solving

There is a raffle coming up.

4000 tickets have been sold, and there are 10 prizes to win.
I have bought 8 tickets. What are the odds I will win a prize?

Note: each person can only win once. There is no limit as to how many tickets one person can buy. So out of the 4000 tickets, one person can own 1000 tickets. Another person can own just 1 ticket.

Is there a way to calculate my probability of winning or odds of winning?

Best Answer

The probability of you winning a prize depends on the number of people attending the raffle and the number of tickets they bought and who wins the other prizes. For example, if the number of people is less than 10 (including yourself), then you are sure to win. Since the event that you win a prize is not an independent events, we cannot generate a general solution to this problem.