Discover How Many Numbers Are There in Different Bingo Types (2024)

The most popular bingo variation is the American bingo or 75-ball. Surprisingly, there are 552 septillion card combinations in 75-ball bingo alone, 552 followed by 24 zeros. 

There are different types of bingo apart from the traditional form. You can tell them apart by their bingo card layout. Each has a different number of balls drawn. Like 75-ball, they have millions and millions of unique number combinations.

Learn more about the different bingo types and how many numbers there are below.

Highlights of the Article

• The 90-ball bingo is called “Housie” or “Housie-Housie” in the UK.
• Bingo venues sell 90-ball cards as strips of 6 cards that contain all 90 numbers.
• A 90-ball bingo card has 24 quadrillion unique number combinations.
• The traditional form is 75-ball bingo, often called American bingo.
• The 75-ball bingo card has the highest number of unique combinations at 552 septillions.
• Over 182 quintillion combinations can be made from an 80-ball card.
• The quickest bingo to play is the 30-ball, earning the nickname “speed bingo.”

Bingo Game Styles

There are currently 4 popular bingo game styles. They have different numbers of balls drawn and card layouts. Regardless, all of them follow the same foundation of rules.

A caller leads a bingo game, operating a machine that draws random numbers. The caller will announce the numbers to the players, who will review their cards and look for the generated numbers.

The aim is to gather all numbers in the card that follow a winning pattern. When that happens, the player shouts “BINGO!” to announce their win.

90 Ball Bingo

The 90-ball bingo is the British version. Bingo is more commonly called “Housie” or “Housie-Housie,” and is an accepted form of gambling in the UK. Based on its name, there are 90 balls in this type of bingo that ranges from 1 to 90.

Its card layout has a 9×3 grid with 4 blank spots for each row, making way to only 5 digits per row. 

The card has a total of 15 digits and 12 blank spaces. Bingo venues sell 90-ball cards as strips of 6 cards containing all 90 numbers. This setup gives players higher odds of winning.

There are 24 quadrillion combinations produced from a 90-ball bingo card. In perspective, that is 24 followed by 15 zeros or 24 multiplied by 1,000, raised to the power of 5. The exact value is 24,069,639,359,475,000.

Putting things into perspective, if a player thinks of printing all the unique 90-ball cards, it will take them more than 700 million years to print each card per second. 

There are 3 main winning patterns in 90-ball bingo:

One-line pattern – This pattern covers all 5 digits on any row and ticket. When achieved, players usually shout “Line!” instead of the usual “Bingo!”

Two lines pattern – Must cover all 5 digits on 2 rows in 1 ticket. A player must still declare they achieved a one-line pattern when they do, but there are only winners once 2 lines get covered.

Full house pattern – This is called the coverall, where all 15 numbers on all 3 rows of 1 ticket are covered. The largest prizes and jackpots usually come from achieving this type of pattern. 

75 Ball bingo

This is the traditional way of bingo, also called American bingo. It utilizes 75 numbers ranging from 1 to 75. 6 and 4 are the most frequent number drawn in traditional bingo.

Its card has a 5×5 layout that houses 74 numbers. The middle square is a free space. The columns are designated with the letters “BINGO,” respectively, and holds a different range of numbers each:

The 75-ball bingo card has the highest number of unique card combinations out of all bingo variations. There are 552 septillion unique card combinations for 75-ball bingo cards. That is 552 multiplied by 1,000, raised to the eighth power.That number is incomprehensible to the simple human mind. Even if someone prints 1 trillion 75-ball bingo cards per second, printing them all will take millions of years. 

Several winning patterns are also played in 75-ball bingo, such as:

• Bingo lines: This is the pattern with the highest odds of winning. It must cover a single row or column horizontally, vertically, or diagonally.
• Bingo letters: The numbers must form a specific letter on the card. X, L, N, and Z are the most commonly used letters.
• Bingo numbers: A number must form on the card. The most common numbers to use are 0, 7, and 13. 
• Bingo shapes: There are many variations for this type of winning pattern:
  • Clover
  • Diamond
  • Tic Tac Toe
  • Hollow diamond
  • Small diamond and 4 corners 
• Blackout: This is also referred to as coverall, where all of the numbers must be drawn. This pattern produces the most prizes and jackpots.

80 Ball bingo

This is an emerging variation of bingo. It was initially called “shutterboard” bingo because callers shut a window over the number they drew. It consists of 80 balls ranging from 1 to 80.

It has a 4×4 card layout that comprises 16 numbers. An 80-ball bingo card is also recognizable because it uses colors to divide the card into 4 groups:

The card layout of 80-ball bingo is deceiving. Most people assume that the number of unique cards would be low. However, the number of possible unique combinations from an 80-ball bingo card is over 182 quintillion or 182,818,479,414,274,560,000.

There are 4 winning patterns in 80-ball bingo:

• Any one line – It can be one diagonal, horizontal, or vertical line in any part of the card.
• Four corners – There are 2 possible variations of this winning pattern. The first is the outer corner, while the other refers to the inner corner. The latter creates a 2×2 square in the middle.
• Two lines – This can be any 2 horizontal, diagonal, or vertical lines in any part of the card. It depends on whether the rules must be the same or whether any 2 line variation is accepted. 
• Three lines – The numbers must form 3 horizontal, diagonal, or vertical lines in any part of the card.
• Four lines – This creates the blackout or full-house where all the numbers get covered.

30 Ball bingo

Players call it “speed bingo” because it is the fastest variation. With only 30 balls ranging from 1 to 30, it is quick to win. Plus, players can participate in numerous games within a short time.

It has a 3×3 card layout that only has 9 numbers, which has 1.7 million possible unique number combinations in its card. 

To succeed in 30-ball bingo, the player must mark off all numbers on the card. This is the only way of winning this bingo variation.

Final Thoughts

Bingo is centuries old, but it is still an enjoyable game in numerous forms.

The traditional 75-ball bingo and 90-ball bingo are still thriving, with emerging variations like 30-ball and 80-ball. They follow the same foundation in rules but differ in card layout, winning patterns, and number of balls. 

Before, playing bingo meant going to bingo halls. However, the game remains relevant as it was able to catch up to digitalization. Today, online bingo games are accessible through an application or website, making bingo a timeless game.