Record-breaking Mega Millions jackpot is up for grabs. Why prizes have grown so large

Jennifer Sangalang, Lianna Norman and Wyatte Grantham-Philips, Florida Today
Updated ·7 min read

Things are serious now with Mega Millions! Another rollover (or two) will push the grand prize closer to a billion-dollar jackpot.

In addition, Mega Millions is close to making the Top 10 biggest jackpots of all time (see below). In three months, the pot grew from $20 million to a whopping $735 million for the Tuesday, March 12, drawing. Tuesday numbers were 2-16-31-57-64 and the Mega Ball was 24. Megaplier was 3x. Those numbers mean yet another rollover.

Now the Mega Millions jackpot for Friday as rocketed to $792 million, with a cash option of $381.8 million.

There were two big winners in Tuesday night's drawing. Tickets purchased in Massachusetts and North Carolina matched 5 for $1 million prizes.

The grand prize jumped from $687 million to the current total after no one matched all five numbers plus the Mega Ball on Friday, March 8. In case you're wondering, Friday's winning numbers were 19-20-22-47-58 and the Mega Ball was 1. Megaplier was 3x.

Mega Millions tickets start at $2 apiece. Below are some frequently asked questions about the game and lottery odds. Good luck!

How much was Mega Millions lottery jackpot for Tuesday, March 12?

an estimated $735 million with a cash option of $354.3

How much was Mega Millions lottery jackpot for Friday, March 8?

an estimated $687 million with a cash option of $333.4 million (angel numbers!)

How long has Mega Millions rolled over?

Someone won the $395 million Mega Millions jackpot with a cash option of $189 million on Friday, Dec. 8, 2023. The jackpot started at $20 million for the Tuesday, Dec. 12, drawing. Here's a snapshot of how the prize has climbed since then.

Why are lottery prizes getting bigger?

One reason we're seeing bigger lottery prizes is because of changes in how games like Mega Millions are played made a few years ago, experts say.

"These larger jackpots are by design," Jadrian Wooten, collegiate associate professor of economics at Virginia Tech, said in an email to USA TODAY.

Mega Millions was notably redesigned in 2017. Ticket prices were raised from $1 to $2 and the chances of winning the jackpot were decreased with more numbers drawn – resulting in bigger jackpots, Wooten explained.

With higher ticket prices, "some people may have played less, but others may have jumped in since the introduction of more 'smaller' prizes as well," Wooten said, then pointing to the jackpot-probability change.

"Before 2017, the first five numbers were drawn from 1 through 75 and the Mega Ball was 1 through 15," Wooten said.

"After the change, they reduced the first five numbers to 1 through 70, but increased the number of Mega Balls to 25," he said, noting that this lowered the chances of winning the Mega Millions jackpot from 1 in 258.9 million to 1 in 302.6 million.

"As the odds of winning the jackpot decrease, weekly ticket revenue increases, resulting in a larger jackpot."

Mega Millions' shift followed Powerball, which previously saw similar changes implemented in 2015.

What is the largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history?

The largest lottery prize ever climbed to $2.04 billion in November 2022. The jackpot was an estimated $1.9 billion days before the drawing, but lottery ticket sales helped it grow to more than $2 billion after updated calculations. A single ticket purchased by Edwin Castro in California won the grand prize.

Which lottery game has had more jackpots surpass $1 billion?

Mega Millions

How long do you have to cash in a winning Florida Lottery ticket?

Prizes for Florida Lottery must be claimed within 180 days (six months) from the date of the drawing. To claim a single-payment cash option, a winner has within the first 60 days after the applicable draw date to claim it.

What happens to unclaimed lottery winnings in Florida?

According to the Florida Lottery, state law requires 80% of unclaimed prize funds from expired tickets be transferred to the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund. The remaining 20% is returned to the prize pool for future drawings.

What happens to unclaimed Mega Millions money?

Should a Mega Millions ticket not be claimed within 180 days of the drawing date, "the funds to pay the unclaimed jackpot will be returned to the lottery members in their proportion of sales for the jackpot rollover series."

What are the odds of winning Mega Millions?

The odds of winning are pretty low. According to the Mega Millions site, players have a 1 in 302,575,350 chance to match all five white balls plus the gold Mega Ball. Prizes range from $2 (for matching the Mega Ball) to the grand prize jackpot, which varies.

Does the Florida Lottery reveal lottery winners? Can you stay anonymous if you win lottery in Florida?

According to Florida Lottery's website, winners cannot remain anonymous: "Florida law mandates that the Florida Lottery provide records containing information such as the winner's name, city of residence; game won, date won, and amount won to any third party who requests the information."

However, the site states, the "names of lottery winners claiming prizes of $250,000 or greater will be temporarily exempt from public disclosure for 90 days from the date the prize is claimed, unless otherwise waived by the winner."

Lottery experts and lawyers have said there are ways to remain anonymous if you win.

When did lottery jackpots hit $1 billion or more?

As of March 12, 2024, there have been nine lottery jackpots that have reached or surpassed $1 billion. Only once has a jackpot surpassed $2 billion.

What are the Top 10 largest Mega Millions jackpots ever?

According to its website, here are the Top 10 Mega Millions jackpots as of March 12, 2024:

  • 10. $543 million — July 24, 2018; California

  • 9. $648 million — Dec. 17, 2013; California and Georgia

  • 8. $656 million — March 30, 2012; Illinois, Kansas and Maryland

  • 7. $735 million — March 11, 2024? No winner yet

  • 6. $1.05 billion — Jan. 22, 2021; Michigan

  • 5. $1.08 billion — July 19, 2023; California

  • 4. $1.337 billion — July 29, 2022; Illinois

  • 3. $1.35 billion — Jan. 13, 2023; Maine

  • 2. $1.537 billion — Oct. 23, 2018; South Carolina

  • 1. $1.58 billion — Aug. 8, 2023; Florida

What are the Top 10 largest lottery jackpots ever?

The following Mega Millions and Powerball jackpots made the Top 10 biggest lottery jackpots in U.S. history, as of March 12, 2024.

Sangalang is a lead digital producer for USA TODAY Network-Florida. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram at @byjensangalang. Support local journalism. Consider subscribing to a Florida newspaper.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Anyone win Mega Millions lottery drawing for Tuesday, March 12, 2024?