Mega Millions Jackpot Climbs To Over $300 Million On Decision Day

As the polls close on the West Coast and a nation waits to see who its leader will be, lottery numbers will be drawn

Last updated: November 5, 2024

1 min

It’s Decision Day in America, as millions of people across the country will choose … whether or not to buy a ticket for Tuesday’s Mega Millions jackpot, which sits at an estimated $303 million (with a cash value of $141.8 million).

Oh, yes, right, there’s also a presidential election, but whoever wins that can’t make you an instant multi-millionaire.

The Mega Millions drawing will take place at 11 p.m. ET, which means ticket-holders will almost certainly know if they won the lottery sooner than Kamala Harris or Donald Trump will know if they won the White House.

The only thing that the 2024 presidential election has taught me is that it would be cheaper, less annoying, and can’t be any worse to select the new President by random lottery. There’s no way that could possibly lead to more stupid than we’ve suffered over the past 12 months.
— Jeff Terry (@nuclear94) November 4, 2024

What we do know is nobody won last Friday’s drawing — with winning numbers 11, 22, 42, 46, and 51, with a gold Mega Ball of 4 — and no one matched all five white balls. Translation: Zero millionaires crowned last Friday, despite 15.6 million tickets sold, by Lottery Geeks’ estimates.

Powerball back up to $75M

Nobody took home the Powerball jackpot Monday either — winning numbers were 6, 18, 33, 48, and 53, with a red Powerball of 21 — pushing Wednesday’s jackpot to an estimated $75 million, with a $35.4 million cash value.

There was one California player who hit all five white balls Monday, winning $1 million. Lottery Geeks estimates some 6.8 million tickets were sold for the draw.

Tickets for either lottery cost $2, with most states offering a prize multiplier option for an additional $1.

Both Powerball and Mega Millions are legal in all states except Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, and Utah. Tickets for both draw games are also sold in Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands, while in Puerto Rico, customers can buy tickets for Powerball, but not for Mega Millions.

All-time biggest jackpots

Here is a list of the all-time top 10 U.S. lottery jackpots:

$2.04 billion, Powerball, Nov. 7, 2022, won in California
$1.76 billion, Powerball, Oct. 11, 2023, won in California
$1.6 billion, Mega Millions, Aug. 8, 2023, won in Florida
$1.59 billion, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016, won in California, Florida, and Tennessee
$1.54 billion, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018, won in South Carolina
$1.35 billion, Mega Millions, Jan. 13, 2023, won in Maine
$1.34 billion, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022, won in Illinois
$1.33 billion, Powerball, April 6, 2024, won in Oregon
$1.13 billion, Mega Millions, March 26, 2024, won in New Jersey
$1.08 billion, Powerball, July 19, 2023, won in California

And here’s the all-time top 10 by lump-sum cash value:

$997.6 million, Powerball, Nov. 7, 2022, won in California
$983.5 million, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016, won in California, Florida, and Tennessee
$877.8 million, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018, won in South Carolina
$794.2 million, Mega Millions, Aug. 8, 2023, won in Florida
$780.5 million, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022, won in Illinois
$776.6 million, Mega Millions, Jan. 22, 2021, won in Michigan
$774.1 million, Powerball, Oct. 11, 2023, won in California
$723.5 million, Mega Millions, Jan. 13, 2023, won in Maine
$621 million, Powerball, April 6, 2024, won in Oregon
$558.1 million, Powerball, July 19, 2023, won in California