Americans who still dream of a really big Christmas present can keep that dream alive during Friday’s Mega Millions drawing for a jackpot worth an estimated $1.15 billion. Friday’s jackpot may be the fifth largest in the game’s history. Mega Millions tickets cost $2 each. But the odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 302,575,350, and the odds of winning a Mega Millions prize are 1 in 24, according to lottery officials. Tickets for the game are being sold in 45 states, along with Washington, DC and the US Virgin Islands.
Here’s a look at the largest American jackpots won and the states where the winning tickets were sold:
1. $2.04 billion, Powerball, November 7, 2022 (one ticket, from California)
2. $1.765 billion, Powerball, October 11, 2023 (one ticket, from California)
3. $1.602 billion, Mega Millions, August 8, 2023 (one ticket, from Florida)
4. $1.586 billion, Powerball, January 13, 2016 (three tickets, from California, Florida, Tennessee)
5. $1.537 billion, Mega Millions, October 23, 2018 (one ticket, from South Carolina)
6. $1.348 billion, Mega Millions, January 13, 2023 (one ticket, from Maine)
7. $1.337 billion, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022 (one ticket, from Illinois)
8. $1.326 billion, Powerball, April 7, 2024 (one ticket, Oregon)
9. $1.13 billion, Mega Millions, March 26, 2024 (one ticket, from New Jersey)
10. $1.08 billion, Powerball, July 19, 2023 (one ticket, from California)