Mega Millions is one game with one jackpot, sold by 47 lotteries: 45 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Each lottery sells its own tickets, pays its own prizes and sets its own rules on age, sales cutoffs and claim deadlines.
Where Mega Millions is sold
You can play Mega Millions in every state except Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah, which don't sell it. Puerto Rico sells Powerball, but not Mega Millions.
Tickets are sold by each lottery's licensed retailers and, in some states, on the lottery's own website or app. A ticket belongs to the lottery that sold it: that's where any prize is claimed, under that state's rules.
Every lottery that sells Mega Millions
Online sales and age rules change from time to time, so check your state lottery's website before you play.
Buying Mega Millions online
15 states and Washington, D.C. sell Mega Millions on their own website or app: Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. You need an account with that lottery and must be inside the state when you buy.
In New York you can buy online subscriptions, from two weeks to a year of drawings. In Massachusetts, which started selling online in July 2026, you must be 21 to play online; in stores, 18 is enough.
Everywhere else, tickets are only sold in person at licensed retailers. How each option works, including services for players outside the U.S., is in where to play Mega Millions.
Minimum age to play
You must be 18 to buy Mega Millions tickets in most of the 47 jurisdictions. The exceptions are Nebraska (19) and Arizona, Iowa, Louisiana and Mississippi (21), plus online play in Massachusetts (21). The full rules are in Mega Millions rules.
Sales cutoff, claim deadline and state tax by state
The drawing is at 11:00 PM ET, but each lottery stops selling tickets for it earlier: from 9:30 PM ET in Colorado to 10:45 PM ET in many Eastern states. A ticket bought after the cutoff is for the next drawing.
Most lotteries give you 180 days from the drawing date to claim a prize; New Mexico gives 90 days and 14 lotteries give a year. In Florida, Illinois and Massachusetts, a jackpot winner who wants the cash option has to claim within 60 days of the drawing.
On prizes over $5,000, the lottery withholds 24% for federal taxes and, in most states, a share for state income tax. California doesn't tax California Lottery prizes, and Florida, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming have no income tax on them.
| State | Sales close | Time to claim | State tax withheld |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | 6:59 PM MST (7:59 PM Nov.–Mar.) | 180 days | 2.5% |
| Arkansas | 9:45 PM CT | 180 days | 3.7% |
| California | 7:45 PM PT | 180 days (jackpot: 1 year) | None |
| Colorado | 7:30 PM MT | 180 days | 4% |
| Connecticut | 10:45 PM ET | 180 days | 6.99% |
| Delaware | 9:45 PM ET | 1 year | Not withheld |
| Washington, D.C. | 10:45 PM ET | 180 days | 10.75% |
| Florida | 10:00 PM ET | 180 days (cash option: 60 days) | None |
| Georgia | 10:45 PM ET | 180 days | 4.99% |
| Idaho | 7:55 PM MT | 180 days | 5.3% |
| Illinois | 9:45 PM CT | 1 year (cash option: 60 days) | 4.95% |
| Indiana | 10:44 PM ET | 180 days | Yes |
| Iowa | 8:59 PM CT | 180 days | 3.8% |
| Kansas | 8:59 PM CT | 365 days (online tickets: 180) | 5% |
| Kentucky | 10:45 PM ET | 180 days | 3.5% |
| Louisiana | 9:00 PM CT | 180 days | 3% |
| Maine | 9:50 PM ET | 1 year | 7.15% |
| Maryland | 10:45 PM ET | 182 days | 9.5% (non-residents: 8.75%) |
| Massachusetts | 10:45 PM ET | 1 year (cash option: 60 days) | 5% |
| Michigan | 10:45 PM ET | 1 year | 4.25% |
| Minnesota | 9:00 PM CT | 1 year | 7.25% |
| Mississippi | 9:00 PM CT | 180 days | 3% |
| Missouri | 8:59 PM CT | 180 days | 4% |
| Montana | 8:00 PM MT | 6 months | 5.65% |
| Nebraska | 9:00 PM CT | 180 days | 3.5% |
| New Hampshire | 9:50 PM ET | 1 year | None |
| New Jersey | 10:45 PM ET | 1 year | 5% or 8% |
| New Mexico | 8:45 PM MT | 90 days | 6% |
| New York | 10:00 PM ET | 1 year | 10.9% |
| North Carolina | 10:45 PM ET | 180 days | 3.99% |
| North Dakota | 8:58 PM CT | 180 days | 2.5% |
| Ohio | 10:45 PM ET | 180 days | 2.75% |
| Oklahoma | 8:59 PM CT | 180 days | Yes |
| Oregon | 7:00 PM PT | 1 year | 8% |
| Pennsylvania | 9:59 PM ET | 1 year | 3.07% |
| Rhode Island | 9:50 PM ET | 1 year | 5.99% |
| South Carolina | 10:00 PM ET | 180 days | 5.21% |
| South Dakota | 9:00 PM CT | 180 days | None |
| Tennessee | 9:45 PM CT | 180 days | None |
| Texas | 9:45 PM CT | 180 days | None |
| Vermont | 9:50 PM ET | 1 year | 6% |
| Virginia | 10:45 PM ET | 180 days | 4% |
| Washington | 7:45 PM PT | 180 days | None |
| West Virginia | 9:59 PM ET | 180 days | Yes |
| Wisconsin | 9:00 PM CT | 180 days | 7.65% |
| Wyoming | 8:00 PM MT | 180 days | None |
State tax withheld is what the lottery keeps for the state before paying you: an advance on your state income tax, not the final bill, and your home state may tax the prize too. Yes means the lottery withholds state tax but there's no single official rate. In Delaware the prize is taxable, but the lottery doesn't withhold state tax. New Jersey withholds 5% on prizes over $10,000 and 8% on prizes over $500,000. Residents of New York City and Yonkers pay local tax on top, and Washington will tax income over $1 million from 2028.
The U.S. Virgin Islands Lottery doesn't publish these details for Mega Millions, so check with the lottery before you play there.
Checked on each lottery's website and with each state's tax department in October 2026. Cutoffs, deadlines and tax rates change, so check your state lottery's website before you play or claim. How claiming works is in how to claim a Mega Millions prize.
What each state does with its share
The money each lottery keeps after prizes and costs stays in its state and funds what its laws decide: education in many of them, but also seniors, veterans, parks, pensions or the general budget. State by state, it's in where Mega Millions money goes.
Frequently asked questions
What states don't have Mega Millions?
Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah don't sell Mega Millions. It's sold in the other 45 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Can I buy Mega Millions online?
Yes, from the lottery's own website or app in Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia and Washington, D.C., as long as you're inside that state. New York sells online subscriptions.
What time do Mega Millions ticket sales stop?
It depends on the state. The drawing is at 11:00 PM ET, and sales close between 9:30 PM ET in Colorado and 10:45 PM ET, the cutoff in many Eastern states. Every state's cutoff is in the table on this page.
How long do you have to claim a Mega Millions prize?
From 90 days in New Mexico to one year in states such as Illinois, New York and Pennsylvania, counted from the drawing date. Most states give 180 days.
What states don't tax Mega Millions winnings?
California doesn't tax California Lottery prizes, and Florida, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming have no income tax on lottery winnings. Federal tax still applies everywhere.
Can I play Mega Millions in a state where I don't live?
Yes. You don't have to be a resident to buy a ticket or win, but you buy and claim in the state where the ticket is sold, under its rules. Prizes are taxed by the federal government and may also be taxed by your home state: see how to claim a Mega Millions prize.
Last reviewed: . Independent information: official results are published by the lottery that runs the game.