Mega Millions players are checking their tickets once again, as the jackpot for the lottery game has climbed to $441 million for Tuesday night’s drawing.
No one has won the Mega Millions jackpot since Jan. 31, when it was $31 million. Now, the jackpot has risen to its highest amount since a winner took home $1.35 billion on Jan. 13.
While a giant jackpot may sound like life-changing money, the chances of winning a Mega Millions jackpot are incredibly slim. The odds stand at about one in 302 million.
However, if someone is lucky enough to overcome the odds, the estimated $385 million would only be distributed if they choose the annuity option, which distributes the prize over 29 annual payments.
If the winner chooses the lump sum option, the popular pick, they’ll get $237.2 million before federal and state taxes.
Why are lottery jackpots growing so large?: Here’s what experts have to say
Mega Millions winning numbers for April 11, 2023
The winning numbers for the Tuesday night drawing were 31 35 53 54 55, Mega Ball: 24 and Megaplier was 3X.
What are my chances of winning Mega Millions?
A $441 million jackpot might be tempting, but the odds of taking home a top prize are extremely slim.
- The odds of winning the jackpot are 302,575,350 to 1.
- The odds to match all five white balls are 12,607,306 to 1.
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How do I play Mega Millions?
To enter play Mega Millions, players pick six numbers – or choose to have the lottery machine generate a random “Easy Pick” or “Quick Pick”:
- Five numbers will go from 1 to 70 (white balls)
- One number can be picked from 1 to 25 (gold Mega Ball)
If your ticket matches all six of the winning numbers from the drawing, you’ll win the jackpot. There are also smaller prizes depending on how many balls your numbers match.
The cost to play Mega Millions is $2 a ticket. You can add the Megaplier for $1, which will increase the amount of your potential prize up to five times the original prize (except for the jackpot).
Mega Millions can be played in 45 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
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What was biggest Mega Millions jackpot?
Here are the 10 highest jackpots ever since the Mega Millions began in 1996:
- $1.537 billion, Oct. 23, 2018: Won in South Carolina
- $1.348 billion, Jan. 13, 2023: Won in Maine
- $1.337 billion: July 29, 2022: Illinois
- $1.05 billion, Jan. 22, 2021: Won in Michigan
- $656 million, March 30, 2012: Three winners in Illinois, Kansas, Maryland
- $648 million, Dec. 17, 2013: Two winners in California, Georgia
- $543 million, July 24, 2018: Won in California
- $536 million, July 8, 20116: Won in Indiana
- $533 million: March 30, 2018: Won in New Jersey
- $522 million: June 7, 2019: Won in California
Largest lottery prizes in US history
Here are the largest lottery prizes in U.S. history, across Mega Millions and Powerball.
- $2.04 billion, Powerball, Nov. 7, 2022: Won in California.
- $1.586 billion, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016: Three winners in California, Florida, and Tennessee.
- $1.537 billion, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018: Won in South Carolina.
- $1.348 billion, Mega Millions, Jan. 13, 2023: Won in Maine.
- $1.337 billion, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022: Won in Illinois.
- $1.05 billion, Mega Millions, Jan. 22, 2021: Won in Michigan.
- $768.4 million, Powerball, March 27, 2019: Won in Wisconsin.
- $758.7 million, Powerball, Aug. 23, 2017: Won in Massachusetts.
- $754.6 million, Powerball, Feb. 6, 2023: Won in Washington.
- $730 million, Powerball, Jan. 20, 2021: Won in Maryland.
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