About Mega Millions

About Mega Millions

Mega Millions lottery game is organized in the United States. It can be played in 45 states and the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Drawings take place in in Atlanta, Georgia, on every Tuesday and Friday evening at 11:00 pm ET.

Mega Millions started on September 6, 1996, and it was held only on Friday. Tuesday drawings were added later, on February 10, 1998.

How to play Mega Millions?

To play Mega Millions, you have to select 5 numbers between 1 and 70. These are the white balls or main numbers.
You also have to select a Mega Ball number between 1 and 25.
Optionally you can add Megaplier to your ticket to multiply non-jackpot prizes. More details about Megaplier are below.
You hit the jackpot, if your 5 white balls and your selected Mega Ball get drawn. To win the minimum prize, you need to hit at least the Mega Ball.

A Mega Millions ticket cost $2 per play. Megaplier option is an additional $1.

Megaplier

Megaplier is an option you can buy that multiplies non-jackpot prizes by 2, 3, 4 or 5 times. The multiplier number is a randomly selected number before each drawing. For example, the base prize for match 3 is $10. If the multiplier number is 3, then the prize is $30 for those who opted for Megaplier.

Odds of Winning and Prize Breakdown

Mega Millions prizes are fixed amounts except the jackpot. Jackpot prize differ in each drawing and it is split between the winners if there are multiple winners. If there is no winner then the jackpot prize rolls over to the next drawing, so the Mega Millions jackpot grows until it is won.

The range of white balls and Mega Ball changed several times since the beginning of the game. The last range change happened on October 31, 2017. The below table shows the odds and prizes for the actual game format.

Match Odds of Winning Prize
5 + Mega Ball 1 in 302,575,350 Jackpot
5 1 in 12,607,306 $1 million
4 + Mega Ball 1 in 931,001 $10,000
4 1 in 38,792 $500
3 + Mega Ball 1 in 14,547 $200
3 1 in 606 $10
2 + Mega Ball 1 in 693 $10
1 + Mega Ball 1 in 89 $4
0 + Mega Ball 1 in 37 $2

How to Improve My Chances of Winning the Mega Millions Jackpot

We have some tips for increasing your chances of winning the Mega Millions jackpot. You can examine which Mega Millions numbers have been drawn the most and the least frequently on the Mega Millions Number Frequency page.

Another useful statistics can be the Most Overdue Mega Millions Numbers page.

Also improves your chances if you play combinations that have not been drawn before. You can check on the Mega Millions Results Checker page whether you number combination have ever hit the jackpot