The Mega Millions drawing
When and where Mega Millions is drawn, how the multiplier works, how the game began and how it has changed, the biggest jackpots it has paid and how it compares with Powerball.
Time and place of the Mega Millions drawing
Every Tuesday and Friday at 11:00 p.m. ET, in Atlanta. What time that is where you live, when sales close, how the balls are drawn and what happens afterward.
Mega Millions states: where you can play in the U.S.
The 47 lotteries that sell Mega Millions and the states that don't: where you can buy online, the minimum age, and each state's sales cutoff, claim deadline and state tax.
The Mega Millions multiplier: how 2X to 10X works
Every $5 play comes with a 2X to 10X multiplier printed on the ticket. How it's assigned, how often each value comes up, what it pays and what the Megaplier was.
Mega Millions history: from The Big Game to today
It started in 1996 as The Big Game, shared by six states. How it became Mega Millions, reached 47 lotteries and started paying billion-dollar jackpots.
The biggest Mega Millions jackpots and winning states
Seven jackpots of more than $1 billion, led by the record $1.602 billion won in Florida in 2023. The top 10 with cash values, the states behind them and more.
Mega Millions historical changes: rules, price and odds
From The Big Game's $1 play to today's $5 play with a multiplier: every change to the number pools, price, starting jackpot and odds, with dates.
Mega Millions vs Powerball: the key differences
Price, number pools, odds, multipliers, drawing days and records of the two big multi-state lotteries, side by side, so you know exactly how they differ.
When and how Mega Millions is drawn
Mega Millions is drawn every Tuesday and Friday at 11:00 p.m. ET at the WSB-TV studio in Atlanta, Georgia. Two machines are used: one draws five white balls from a set of 70 and the other draws one Mega Ball from a set of 24, with lottery officials and an independent auditor watching the whole process. The details are in time and place of the drawing.
It's one drawing, and one jackpot, for 47 lotteries: 45 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The game started in 1996 as The Big Game, shared by six states; its story is in Mega Millions history, and every change to its rules, price and odds in historical changes.
Since April 2025, every play includes a multiplier printed on the ticket, and the jackpot starts at $50 million. The biggest wins, led by the record $1.602 billion of 2023, are in the biggest jackpots, and how the game stacks up against its rival in Mega Millions vs Powerball. We post the winning numbers after every drawing in results.