The Ultimate Mega Millions Guide

Introduction

US Mega Millions is one of America’s leading lotteries, consistently handing out some of the world’s biggest jackpot prizes! The American Mega Millions lottery’s claim to fame is setting two world records. The first was in 2012 when a historic US$656 million jackpot prize was awarded to three lucky winners, becoming the biggest lottery prize ever for four years running.

Just a few years later in 2018, the Mega Millions jackpot prize grew to an explosive US$1.537 billion before it was snapped up by a lucky winner from South Carolina. This jackpot, the US$1.348 billion prize won on 13 January 2023, and the US$1.337 billion prize won on 29 July 2022 are currently the 3rd, 4th, and 5th biggest jackpots ever awarded to a single ticket! A new jackpot record was set on 8 August 2023 after 31 drawings without a big win by Saltines Holdings LLC from Neptune Beach, Florida who won a record-sized MEGA jackpot, of US$1.602 billion after the 32th drawing. Hopefully by reading this Ultimate Mega Millions Guide you will learn everything you’ve always wanted to know about Mega Millions, including how to win the jackpot!

Game Rules

To play the US Mega Millions lottery, you must choose five main numbers from a range of 1 to 70 as well as one Mega Ball number from a range of 1 to 24. Draws take place on Tuesdays and Fridays. The jackpot starts at US$50 million and has no limit, which means it can rise to infinite heights.

Play Mega Millions now with official tickets!

Mega Millions Prize Structure

Mega Millions offers 9 fantastic prize categories and you can win up to US$10 million in the 2nd category playing Mega Millions. Take a look at the different prize divisions and your chances of winning huge Mega Millions prizes!

What is the Multiplier?

The Multiplier was introduced as part of the game’s revamp on 8 April 2025 to replace the ‘Megaplier’ feature. Previously, you would need to opt in and manually add the Megaplier to your play. The Multiplier feature however is built-in to the cost of the ticket, and can multiply all non-jackpot prizes to even greater heights. The Multiplier number is randomly generated and can multiply your prize up to 10 times! That means if you land the second place prize of US$1 million, with a 10X multiplier attached, you can win US$10 million! Not bad for a secondary prize…

More information about the Multiplier.

Can You Play from Outside the US?

What do Nataliia from eastern Europe; N.B. from Switzerland; and B.G. from Spain all have in common? Each of them won an amazing Mega Millions prize after purchasing their tickets to the popular American lottery online. Countless other players here at TheLotter have won secondary Mega Millions prizes over the years, raising the question whether all of this is really allowed. And, it is!

Read how foreigners can legally play Mega Millions online.

Jackpots by Amount

Mega Millions awarded its largest jackpot ever in August 2023 – US$1.602 billion. The Summer of 2023 will be marked by a record-sized MEGA jackpot won by Saltines Holdings LLC from Florida after 31 drawings without one.

Read more information about the biggest Mega Millions jackpots.

Jackpots by Year

There was a jackpot winner in the first Mega Millions draw ever in 2002. The second Mega Millions jackpot was won just one week later! Listed below is a table showing the number of Mega Millions jackpots won in the lottery by year.

History

Mega Millions launched as a multi-state lottery with Friday night draws in August 1996 under the name The Big Game and the lottery’s first draw took place on 6 September 1996. In May 2002, the lottery was rebranded as Mega Millions and it continued to update and improve its game format. In January 2010, Mega Millions made a historic cross-selling agreement with Powerball, enabling participating states to sell tickets to both lotteries.

In April 2025, Mega Millions introduced exciting upgrades, including bigger starting jackpots that grow faster, better jackpot odds, and a built-in Multiplier on every play. With these enhancements, ticket prices rose.

Mega Millions has awarded historic and record jackpots, including its US$656 million prize in March 2012, its US$1.537 billion jackpot in October 2018, and a US$1.05 billion jackpot in January 2021, and the latest record-jackpot of US$1.602 billion in August 2023. Bigger and more exciting jackpots are expected in the years to come.

Click for more information about the history of the Mega Millions lottery!

Fascinating Facts

Ever since its launch, the Mega Millions lottery has provided loads of excitement for lottery players everywhere. With its huge jackpot prizes, billions of tickets sold, and countless cash prizes awarded, there’s a lot of stories and anecdotes to tell about Mega Millions!

Read more fascinating Mega Millions facts.

Mega Millions Winners at TheLotter

Nataliia from Ukraine became our biggest Mega Millions winner to date when she scooped up a US$1 million Match 5 prize in a September 2017 draw. Previously, three of our players won US$250,000 second place Mega Millions prizes. T.K. was the first in 2009, followed by N.B. from Switzerland who won in 2011. Our third US$250K winner was B.G. from Spain claimed his prize in March 2012. Many of our players have won smaller Mega Millions prizes, but the sky’s the limit how much they could win.

Meet all of our lottery winners.

Comparison with Powerball

Mega Millions and Powerball have much in common. They are both hugely popular multi-state American lotteries that have awarded jackpot prizes more than US$1 billion. Still, there are several differences between the games. How do Mega Millions and Powerball compare? Which lottery has better odds, Powerball or Mega Millions? Which game awards better prizes? In short, is it better to play Mega Millions or Powerball?

Learn how Mega Millions compares to Powerball.

Payouts / Taxes

American lotteries such as the Mega Millions give winners the opportunity to have a jackpot prize paid out in cash or annuities. You receive more when you opt to have the prize paid out in installments (“annuities”) than if you choose to take it in one lump-sum cash payment. Mega Millions taxes are deducted at source, meaning that when you win Mega Millions prizes at TheLotter, the amount you receive is after taxes have already been paid. If you are lucky enough to win the Mega Millions jackpot, your prize money will be less than the advertised jackpot because you receive that prize less taxes.

Learn about Mega Millions jackpot and annuity payouts and lottery taxation.

Play Options at TheLotter

Play Mega Millions online with official Mega Millions lottery tickets and choose your numbers manually or fill in your entries with a Quick Pick random selection. You can even use your saved favourite numbers. Purchase one-time entries or pre-order tickets for upcoming draws with a Multi-Draw Package. You’ll never miss a draw if you take out a Mega Millions Subscription. To boost your chances of winning, join a Mega Millions Syndicate or a Mega Millions Bundle. There are plenty of ways to play Mega Millions on TheLotter, so select the one that suits you and get your tickets for the next Mega Millions draw!

Need to know more?

We hope we have helped you understand all you need to know about the amazing Mega Millions lottery, which is always one of the biggest lotteries in the world. While many people would do a lot to win millions, we think playing the lotteries like Mega Millions, Powerball and EuroMillions is definitely the way to go!

If you have any further questions, please get in touch with our Customer Service Team, which is at your service around the clock via live chat, email and social media!

We wish you loads of luck and masses of fun in playing Mega Millions online!

Excited about playing American lotteries? Don’t forget about Europe! We have prepared a guide to the EuroMillions lottery that will help you get an edge when playing that lottery.

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