Those who feel lucky on Tuesday night will have the chance to win an estimated $ 625 million jackpot in the Mega Millions lottery, the eighth largest jackpot in the history of the United States. The reward has reached such heights because there hasn’t been a winner in months.
If there is no winner again, the jackpot will only increase in the next draw on Friday night.
Each ticket costs $ 2 and the winners must match all numbers, including the Mega Ball, to take home the total sum.
The single cash option for Tuesday’s jackpot was at least $ 458 million. Taking the cash value of the fixed jackpot payment is an option preferred by most winners. Otherwise, the jackpot is distributed over 30 years.
Mega Millions winning numbers
- 12, 14, 26, 28, 33
- Mega Ball: 9
- Megaplier: 2x
Mega Millions tickets are sold in 44 states, Washington, DC and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Meanwhile, the Powerball lottery jackpot has increased to around $ 550 million, which is the 12th largest jackpot in the game in history. The winning numbers will be drawn on Wednesday night.
Even with the two jackpots combined, they are still pale in comparison to the highest jackpot, a $ 1.58 billion Powerball jackpot won by three players in 2016. The Mega Millions jackpot was last won in Wisconsin on September 15, 2020, when a single winner secured a $ 120 million ticket. The game was won five times last year, with a $ 414 million jackpot in June being the biggest jackpot, according to authorities.
The chances of winning a jackpot are minimal: 1 in 302.5 million for Mega Millions and 1 in 292.2 million for Powerball.
The following are the 10 biggest Mega Millions jackpots of all time, along with where the tickets were purchased:
- $ 1.54 billion – a winning ticket in South Carolina (October 2018)
- $ 656 million – three winning tickets in Illinois, Kansas and Maryland (March 2012)
- $ 648 million – two award tickets in California and Georgia (December 2013)
- $ 615 million – unknown if there are winners (January 2021)
- $ 543 million – a winning ticket in California (July 2018)
- $ 536 million – a winning ticket in Indiana (July 2016)
- $ 533 million – a winning ticket in New Jersey (March 2018)
- $ 522 million – a winning ticket in California (June 2019)
- $ 451 million – a winning ticket in Florida (January 2018)
- $ 437 million – a winning ticket in New York (January 2019)
The Associated Press contributed to this report.