Mega Millions Overview
Mega Millions is America’s big jackpot game, the tickets to which cost only $1. The jackpot has a seed value of $15 million and the smaller prizes are in the range of $1 to $1 million. If players opt for the Megaplier, they can win up to $5 million.
Mega Millions is available in 44 US states, the US Virgin Islands and the District of Columbia. Since millions of US citizens play Mega Millions, the jackpot can become very large indeed. The game requires players to select six numbers and gives them the opportunity to win in nine ways.
Mega Millions Gaming Information
The game results are displayed right on the Mega Millions website shortly after the draw. The Mega Millions security team verifies sales of winning tickets on the mornings of Saturday and Wednesday and then posts information regarding the number of winners on the website. Depending on players’ state of residence, they can use texting or email services and quickly obtain results. All states that offer Mega Millions have a player information phone number, which players can use to get the required information. The draws are held at 11:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday and Friday. Winners are required to claim their prizes within 180 days to a year of the date of drawing.
The Mega Millions app, which can be downloaded absolutely free of charge, is called LotteryHUB. Players can use it to obtain draw videos, jackpot information, and winning numbers. The app also features ticket tracking tools.
Players who win a Mega Millions jackpot can either opt for an annual payout or a cash option. If players opt for the former, they will receive an initial yearly payment plus 29 yearly payments, and each payment will be 5% bigger than the previous payment. If they opt for the latter, they will receive their entire prize at the same time.
Buy Mega Millions Lottery Tickets
Players can purchase Mega Million tickets from lottery agents in the US Virgin Islands, the District of Columbia, and 44 US states. Foreigners who are visiting the US can also take part in the game. One need not be a resident of the US to take part in this lottery and win.
Residents of Illinois, Georgia, Michigan, Kentucky, North Dakota, and North Carolina must register with their state lotteries if they want to purchase tickets online. Mega Millions subscriptions can be purchased online in Virginia, New York, and New Hampshire. However, the above mentioned purchase options are available only to those who reside in these states.
Mega Millions Latest Results
| Date | Numbers | Est. Jackpot |
|---|---|---|
| 2021-07-02 | 8 31 32 34 45 19 |
US$ 72 Million |
| 2021-06-29 | 7 38 50 52 69 21 |
US$ 61 Million |
| 2021-06-25 | 17 20 42 45 65 12 |
US$ 50 Million |
| 2021-06-22 | 1 26 48 51 59 25 |
US$ 40 Million |
About Mega Millions Lottery History
The Mega Millions was created in May 2002 by the merger of the state lotteries of Ohio, New York, Maryland, Georgia, Illinois, Michigan, Massachusetts, Virginia, and New Jersey. The tickets for the brand new multi-state lottery game were sold from May 15, 2002 and the first draw was held on May 17, 2002.
Soon other states started joining the Mega Millions network. Washington started offering Mega Millions in September 2002 and Texas joined the network in December 2003. The twelfth state to join the Mega Millions was California. The network became stronger on Jan 31, 2010 when more state lotteries became a part of the Mega Millions after a deal was signed between Powerball and Mega Millions.
Mega Millions Lottery Statistics
Mega Millions has created a large number of millionaires, such as the following:
- Patricia Busking, a resident of Palos Heights in Illinois, won $393 million on Aug 11, 2017.
- Warren D of Indiana won $536 million on July 8, 2016.
- Jesus Davila Jr. of Naperville in Illinois won $265 million on Jan 16, 2015.
- March 18, 2014 saw two winning tickets worth $207 million each. The lucky winners were Cobie and Seamus Trust and an anonymous player.
- December 17, 2013 also saw two winning tickets worth $324 million each. The lucky winners were Steve Tran of Northern California and Ira Curry of Stone Mountain.
- There were three winning tickets on March 30, 2012 and each got a jackpot of $218.6 million. The lucky winners were an anonymous player from Ottawa, Merle and Patricia Butler of Red Bud in Illinois, and The Three Amigos in Milford Mill.
Americans are fond of playing the lottery. According to the North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries, American players spent more than $80 billion playing lottery games last year.
Mega Millions Prize Structure
Mega Millions offers nine opportunities to win. Players can win as little as $1 to as much as the jackpot. In addition, the Megaplier, which multiplies all non-jackpot prizes by a particular multiplier value, can also be purchased for $1. The Megaplier feature is available in most US states, enabling players to get their non-jackpot prizes multiplied by up to five times. For example, second tier winners who have just won $1 million will have their winnings multiplied by five if the Megaplier drawn turns out to be five.
Mega Millions challenges players to select a total of six numbers—five from the number range 1 - 75 and one from the number range 1 – 15. They can do so manually or use the Easy Pick feature. If players match all the six numbers, they will win the jackpot, which has a seed value of $15 million and keeps increasing by $5 million whenever the jackpot is not won and is rolled over to the next draw. The odds of winning the Mega Millions jackpot are one in 259 million.
Charitable Causes and Sponsorships
If a jackpot winner does not claim his/her prize within the time limit, each state that had contributed to the jackpot amount will get back the amount contributed. States use unclaimed lottery prizes for a variety of purposes, including funding good causes.
In addition, a CNBC report of August 2017 says that 86% of lottery winners want to save or invest their winnings and 33% want to donate the money to a charity.