New York CNN –
The cost of a Mega Millions ticket is more than double, but the multi-state lottery promises that the bigger price comes with better odds.
Starting in April 2025, the ticket price will increase from $2 to $5. Lottery officials announced Monday that Price will launch a “new and improved game” that includes improved odds of winning and larger prizes.
It’s the second time the ticket price has risen in Mega Millions’ 22-year history: In 2017, the price jumped from $1 to $2 — the same cost as a Powerball ticket. That’s also when Mega Millions adopted its current format of choosing six total numbers from two different pools – and when all the numbers match, including the golden Mega Ball, the player wins the jackpot.
Since those changes, the jackpot has topped the $1 billion mark six times, most recently in 2023, when a record $1.6 billion ticket was won in Florida. It’s worth noting that of the 10 biggest lottery jackpots of all time, three of them occurred this year.
Mega Millions said the ticket price increase will result in larger jackpots, as well as faster-growing jackpots. There will also be no “tie prizes,” meaning each winning ticket will be $5 more than the cost of a ticket.
Additional details about the modified game will be released in the coming months.
“We expect more billion-dollar jackpots than ever before, which means more billionaires and more millionaires will be created as the jackpots rise, plus this game will continue the important legacy of supporting great causes in the world,” said Lead Director Joshua Johnston. Everywhere Mega Millions is played.” From the Mega Millions Federation, in a statement.
Mega Millions is available to play in 45 states plus Washington, D.C. and the US Virgin Islands. Drawings take place on Tuesday and Friday nights at 11pm ET.
