Mega Millions Cracks $250M, Powerball Nearing $100M For Weekend Drawings

Three major lottery drawings, zero jackpots hit, and zero Match 5 millionaires.

It was a decidedly slow week in Mega Millions and Powerball — but that just means bigger jackpots as players hope to find good fortune this weekend.

Mega Millions is up to an estimated $251 million for Friday night (cash option: $118.7 million) following a run of 12 straight drawings without a jackpot winner.

The winless streak in Powerball is only half as long, but after six in a row with no grand prize, the estimated jackpot for Saturday night is $91 million (cash value: $43.7 million).

Millions more playing Mega Millions

Mega Millions’ winning numbers on Tuesday, when the jackpot was at an estimated $226 million, were 5, 35, 42, 58, and 66, with a gold Mega Ball of 22.

The largest prize won was a meager $20,000, for hitting four white balls and the gold ball while playing the $2x Megaplier.

Lottery Geeks estimates 14.8 million tickets were purchased for Tuesday’s contest.

On Wednesday in Powerball, with an estimated jackpot of $76 million at stake, the winning numbers were 24, 27, 32, 47, and 66, with a red Powerball of 26.

As was the case in Tuesday’s Mega Millions and Monday’s Powerball, the best anyone did was pair everything except for one of the white balls. With a 2x Power Play multiplier, that meant on Wednesday one ticket was worth $100,000.

By Lottery Geeks’ calculations, an estimated 7.5 million tickets were sold for Powerball on Wednesday — almost exactly half as many as were sold for the previous day’s Mega Millions.

Tickets for either lottery cost $2, with an option to play the multiplier for $1 more in most states. Both Powerball and Mega Millions tickets are available in every state except Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, and Utah. Mega Millions tickets are also sold in Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands, while Powerball tickets can be purchased in Puerto Rico in addition to those two jurisdictions.

All-Time Biggest Jackpots

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

1. $2.04 billion, Powerball, Nov. 7, 2022, won in California
2. $1.76 billion, Powerball, Oct. 11, 2023, won in California
3. $1.6 billion, Mega Millions, Aug. 8, 2023, won in Florida
4. $1.59 billion, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016, won in California, Florida, and Tennessee
5. $1.54 billion, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018, won in South Carolina
6. $1.35 billion, Mega Millions, Jan. 13, 2023, won in Maine
7. $1.34 billion, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022, won in Illinois
8. $1.33 billion, Powerball, April 6, 2024, won in Oregon
9. $1.13 billion, Mega Millions, March 26, 2024, won in New Jersey
10. $1.08 billion, Powerball, July 19, 2023, won in California

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

1. $997.6 million, Powerball, Nov. 7, 2022, won in California
2. $983.5 million, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016, won in California, Florida, and Tennessee
3. $877.8 million, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018, won in South Carolina
4. $794.2 million, Mega Millions, Aug. 8, 2023, won in Florida
5. $780.5 million, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022, won in Illinois
6. $776.6 million, Mega Millions, Jan. 22, 2021, won in Michigan
7. $774.1 million, Powerball, Oct. 11, 2023, won in California
8. $723.5 million, Mega Millions, Jan. 13, 2023, won in Maine
9. $621 million, Powerball, April 6, 2024, won in Oregon
10. $558.1 million, Powerball, July 19, 2023, won in California