News writer
Nobody won the $714 million Mega Millions jackpot last night, bumping up the prize yet again for Friday's draw on Halloween. The winning numbers were white balls 2, 19, 33, 53, and 61, and the gold Mega Ball 14.
The new jackpot will be $754 million, which is comparable to the top 10 all-time highs. Meanwhile, more players are winning smaller prizes all over the country.
It's in the top 10
Friday's jackpot, which has rolled over 35 times since June 27, is steadily climbing into the top 10 Mega Millions jackpots of all time, ranking between eighth and ninth. See the top 10 jackpots below.
1. $1.602 billion, Aug. 8, 2023, was won in Florida.
2. $1.537 billion, Oct. 23, 2018, was won in South Carolina.
3. $1.348 billion, Jan. 13, 2023, was won in Maine.
4. $1.337 billion, July 29, 2022, was won in Illinois.
5. $1.22 billion, Dec. 27, 2024, was won in California.
6. $1.128 billion, March 26, 2024, was won in New Jersey.
7. $1.050 billion, Jan. 22, 2021, was won in Michigan.
8. $810 million, Sept. 10, 2024, was won in Texas.
9. $656 million, March 30, 2012, was split between three tickets in Illinois, Kansas, and Maryland.
10. $648 million, Dec. 17, 2013, was split between two tickets in California and Georgia.
At the rate the current jackpot is climbing, if nobody wins on Friday, it could surpass eighth place in the next rollover, or the one after, depending on how many people purchase tickets. The last jackpot, at $348 million, was won by a Virginia Lottery player.
To win, a player has to match all five white balls drawn and the gold Mega Ball. Odds of winning the grand prize are 1 in 290,472,336.
The small wins are huge
According to Mega Millions, 502,089 tickets won prizes across all tiers in the latest drawing. Nationwide, winnings amounted to about $10.1 million. Eight tickets won the third-tier prize by matching four white balls plus the Mega Ball.
Three players from Illinois, South Carolina, and Texas won this tier with a 2X automatic multiplier applied, winning $20,000. Three players from Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Texas won with a 3X multiplier, taking home $30,000, while two players from Massachusetts and New York won with the 4X multiplier for $40,000.
For months, the jackpot climb has been making big winners across the country. More than 10.5 million tickets have won prizes at every level, with prizes soaring to $251 million. These include seventeen second-tier prizes wherein players matched all five white balls, winning between $2 million and $10 million, and 238 third-tier prizes ranging from $20,000 to $100,000.
More people tend to play during high jackpot runs. As long as there are no winners, the grand prize keeps jacking up, sending needed revenue to retailers and states, and increasing the number of overall wins on all tiers.
Halloween luck?
The next drawing is on Friday, October 31, at 11 p.m. Eastern time. According to Mega Millions, there have been six game drawings in the game's history that landed on Halloween, but none of them have produced grand prize winners.
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