How to Play the Revamped Mega Millions as Jackpot Soars to $650 Million

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(NEXSTAR) — The Mega Millions jackpot continues to swell, now reaching a historic milestone as one of the largest prizes ever offered in the game’s history after no one claimed Friday’s draw.

This prize has been accumulating since June when a lucky ticket holder in Virginia snagged a $348 million jackpot. This win was notable as it was the first substantial jackpot since Mega Millions underwent significant changes earlier this year.

Currently, the jackpot stands at an impressive $650 million, with a cash option of $304.1 million as of Tuesday morning. This makes it the most considerable jackpot since the game’s modifications in April. Following the increase after Friday’s draw, it has overtaken a previous $648 million prize shared between winners in California and Georgia back in 2013, placing it as the 10th largest jackpot in Mega Millions’ history.

$1.602 billion: Aug. 8, 2023; Florida
$1.537 billion: Oct. 23, 2018; South Carolina
$1.348 billion: Jan. 13, 2023; Maine
$1.337 billion: July 29, 2022; Illinois
$1.269 billion: Dec. 27, 2024; California
$1.128 billion: March 26, 2024; New Jersey
$1.050 billion: Jan. 22, 2021; Michigan
$810 million: Sept. 10, 2024; Texas
$656 million: Mar. 30, 2012; Illinois, Kansas, and Maryland
Est. $650 million: Current

If the jackpot increases by over $6 million before Tuesday’s drawing, it could surpass the $656 million prize that was divided among three ticket holders in 2012, elevating it to the ninth-largest jackpot recorded. For context, this current jackpot is also ranked as the 20th largest when considering both Powerball and Mega Millions lotteries.

Considering a win? Here’s what to know about choosing between a cash payout and an annuity if you hit the Mega Millions or Powerball jackpot.

Game overhaul changed how you play Mega Millions

Roughly a year ago, Mega Millions officials indicated changes were afoot for the nationally played lottery game. Those changes were unveiled earlier this year and enacted in April.

There are now fewer Mega Ball numbers — 24 instead of 25 — to select from, which improves your odds of winning any Mega Millions payout from 1 in 24 to 1 in 23. Officials have also removed the Megaplier (and the Just the Jackpot option available in some states) and replaced it with a built-in random multiplier.

If you win any non-jackpot prize, it is automatically multiplied by 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x or 10x, depending on the built-in multiplier. That, in turn, increased the non-jackpot prize payout range to $10 to $10 million, up from $2 to $1 million. (The base prize is technically $5, but the built-in multiplier will at least double that.)

You can see the new prizes below compared to the current payouts:

The new Mega Millions prize matrix that took effect on April 8, 2025. (Mega Millions)

The increased payouts are partially thanks to the rise in the cost of playing Mega Millions. A line of Mega Millions numbers will now set you back $5.

After the current jackpot is eventually won, the grand prize will reset to $50 million, a large increase over the previous starting point of $20 million.

Just like your odds of winning any payout have increased, so have your odds of winning the jackpot. Instead of having a roughly 1 in 302.58 million chance of hitting the Mega Millions jackpot, your odds are now about 1 in 290.47 million.

All in all, the changes were intended to improve odds, make the jackpot grow faster, and promote larger prizes, officials said.

As of early October, marking six months since the updates, officials said non-jackpot prizes have totaled $344.4 million for Mega Millions players. Players who had matched only the Mega Ball — which earns you the lowest possible payout of $10 — won $134 million over the same time frame.

“That’s nearly twice the $78.3 million total that would have been awarded across ALL eight non-jackpot prize tiers in the old game matrix, from the $1 million level on down,” officials said in a press release.

If you’re ready to try your luck at the jackpot, or any other Mega Millions payout, the next drawing is set for 11 p.m. ET on Tuesday. Tickets are $5 each and are sold in 45 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.