News writer
It's not often that major multi-state lottery draw games are changed. However, Mega Millions players around the country are now gearing up for the adjustments taking place today and debuting next week.
The last drawing for the old Mega Millions was last Friday, April 4. Sales of the new version started today, April 5, for the debut drawing scheduled for the following Tuesday, April 8.
While some players might know about a few of the modifications in place, like the increase to a $5 ticket, here we'll lay out all of the necessary information for the new Mega Millions.
Upcoming Mega Millions adjustments
Of course, the most notable change for Mega Millions is the price. Instead of a $2 ticket, every Mega Millions will cost $5 starting today.
Even though this may turn some people off of the popular draw game, the alterations come with a purpose. Creating bigger jackpots that feature better individual odds for every player were the two main factors that propelled the adjustments.
The Lead Director of the Mega Millions Consortium, Joshua Johnston, said:
We are creating a game that both our existing players and people new to Mega Millions will love and get excited about playing. We expect more billion-dollar jackpots than ever before, meaning creating more billionaires and many more millionaires as the jackpots climb; plus, this game will continue the important legacy of supporting great causes everywhere Mega Millions is played.
A couple of the incoming changes will impact the size of payouts immediately. Naturally, the $5 price point will bring in more money with each purchase, but there are several other revisions, too.
Automatic multipliers
The most notable is that multipliers can no longer be added using the Megaplier option (which is no longer available) and are automatically applied to all tickets. These built-in multipliers are now randomly assigned to every play on your ticket and range from 2x to 10x.
In total, there are five different multiplier options. These include the following:
- 2x
- 3x
- 4x
- 5x
- 10x
So, each time you purchase a new Mega Millions ticket, it will feature one of these multipliers for free. Previously, the multiplier would cost an additional $1 for each play, with the 10x variation not an option.
As opposed to having a draw to determine the number, each multiplier is randomly given based on a set of odds. Here are the provided odds for each new built-in multiplier:
- 2x - 1 in 2.1
- 3x - 1 in 3.2
- 4x - 1 in 8
- 5x - 1 in 16
- 10x - 1 in 32
While it seems players will receive the 2x and 3x more often than not, there is the chance of hitting a larger one to unlock a massive prize. Multipliers will still only be applied to non-jackpot winning tickets.
Improved odds of winning bigger prizes
Not only will every Mega Millions ticket come equipped with a multiplier now, but you will also have better odds of connecting on both jackpots and other big wins. In fact, non-jackpot totals can equal as much as $10 million in the new version. It should also be noted that jackpots now begin at $50 million within the modified game, up from the previous mark of $20 million.
Here is the updated prize structure for the new Mega Millions:
Updated Mega Millions prize structure
| Match | 2x | 3x | 4x | 5x | 10x | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5+1 | Jackpot | Jackpot | Jackpot | Jackpot | Jackpot | 1 in 290.5 million |
| 5 | $2 million | $3 million | $4 million | $5 million | $10 million | 1 in 12.6 million |
| 4+1 | $20,000 | $30,000 | $40,000 | $50,000 | $100,000 | 1 in 893,761 |
| 4 | $1,000 | $1,500 | $2,000 | $2,500 | $5,000 | 1 in 38,859.2 |
| 3+1 | $400 | $600 | $800 | $1,000 | $2,000 | 1 in 13,965 |
| 3 | $20 | $30 | $40 | $50 | $100 | 1 in 607.2 |
| 2+1 | $20 | $30 | $40 | $50 | $100 | 1 in 665 |
| 1+1 | $14 | $21 | $28 | $35 | $70 | 1 in 86.8 |
| 0+1 | $10 | $15 | $20 | $25 | $50 | 1 in 35.2 |
Odds to snag a jackpot have improved from 1 in 302 million up to 1 in 290 million, while the chance to win any prize is now 1 in 23, compared to the prior odds of 1 in 24.
One other change you may have noticed from the chart is the lack of a payout below $10. There won't be any break-even prizes going forward, with $10 listed as the smallest amount one can earn.
New $5 Mega Millions draws April 8
As mentioned, the final drawing for the current Mega Millions game took place on Friday, April 4. That means sales for the renovated version already started today on April 5. The first drawing for the new game will take place on Tuesday, April 8.
The time and schedule for Mega Millions haven't changed at all. It will continue to draw twice a week, on Tuesday and Friday nights, at 11 p.m. ET.
The draw game originally debuted in 2002 and is available in 45 states within the country, along with Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Comments