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They say you have to spend money to make money, but what if the lottery beats you to it? Mega Millions players across the country are clutching their tickets a little tighter tonight as one of the biggest game overhauls in years officially goes live.
While fans are excited about the promise of faster jackpots and bigger prizes, some longtime players are eyeing the $5 ticket price and wondering: is this a mega upgrade or a sneaky jackpot heist in disguise?
Mega changes take place tonight
In October 2024, officials for the Mega Millions multi-state draw game announced the game would be going under a mega makeover. The anticipation and excitement for these changes have been high, which makes it seem like forever ago that the announcement was made.
After six months of waiting, these new changes take effect during tonight's first drawing under the new game rules. The final draw of the old game took place on Friday, April 4, 2025. Now, the first draw under the new prize structure takes place tonight, April 8, at 11:00 p.m. EST.
What are the new changes to Mega Millions?
For those who haven't heard about these changes to the Mega Millions game, it starts with an increase in the price of the ticket. Instead of $2 per play, each single wager will cost players $5.
Previously, players could add on the Megaplier option for an additional $1. However, the new Mega Millions will include a multiplier for every play at the time of purchase. These multipliers can be either 2X, 3X, 4X, 5X, or 10X for any non-jackpot prizes.
Speaking of prizes, the minimum amount a player can win is $10, up from $2 previously, and the max for a non-jackpot win is now $10 million, up from $1 million previously.
Some other changes include jackpots starting out at $50 million (up from $20 million), which is expected to lead to jackpots growing faster and getting to higher dollar amounts more frequently. The new game will also feature 24 Mega Balls instead of the old 25, which improves the overall odds of winning the jackpot from 1 in 302.6 million to 1 in 290.5 million. The overall odds of winning any prize also improved from 1 in 24 to 1 in 23.
When was the last Mega Millions change of this magnitude?
It has been a while since Mega Millions has seen an overhaul this big in the multi-state draw game. The last time changes like this took place was in October 2017, when officials increased the starting jackpots from $15 million to $40 million.
In addition, they also doubled the price of the ticket from $1 to $2. Mega Millions players also could add on the Megaplier option for $1, which would multiply any non-jackpot winning tickets.
The number matrix was also changed at that time, which saw it go from 5/75 + 1/15 to 5/70 +1/25. This move actually increased the odds of winning the jackpot to 1 in 302.6 million.
What can players expect based on previous changes?
In the past, big changes to Mega Millions have led to bigger jackpots, higher ticket sales, and increased excitement around the game. This is especially true for the early months after the change took place.
In 2017, sales spiked after the revamp was launched. Players were chasing the higher starting jackpots and the allure of the big rollovers.
It also led to some of the biggest jackpots in the game's history, including the $1.6 billion jackpot won in August 2023. Since those changes took place in 2017, there have been seven jackpots that have climbed over $1 billion.
With these new game changes, players could expect even more momentum. We have built-in multipliers, higher starting jackpots, and better odds now. All of that leads to more anticipation and possibly even faster climbs to that billion-dollar mark.
Enjoy playing the lottery, and please remember to play responsibly.
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