Friday Night’s Mega Millions Drawing Marks The End Of An Era

All right. Grab your champagne flutes, loosen your bow tie, put down your purse. Gather ‘round folks, as we mark the end of an era. Everybody, together now!

Should all two-dollar tickets be forgot, 

As five bucks takes their place.

The final draw at this price point

Before the higher rates.

Yep. This is the end of an era, as Friday night’s Mega Millions drawing – estimated at $43 million, with a $20 million cash value – will be the final drawing at the $2 price point. Wake up Saturday, head over to your local Gas ‘N’ Sip, and you’re plopping down a fiver for your chance at glory.

With it will come much larger jackpots, and those one-in-a-while billion dollar prizes will, theoretically, come quicker than a New Year’s Day hangover.

So if you’re buying a Mega Millions ticket for tonight’s drawing, you may want to hold on to it as a keepsake. Heck, you might even be able to get $3 for it one day on eBay.

Powerball rises

Meanwhile, Powerball’s price point remains the same ol’ $2 for Saturday’s drawing, worth $47 million with a cash value of $21.8 million.

Nobody won Wednesday’s drawing – numbers 5, 17, 41, 64, 69, and a red Powerball of 1. There were also no Match 5 winners.

Lottery Geeks estimates 6.6 million tickets were sold for Wednesday’s drawing.

Tickets for either lottery cost $2, with most states offering the multiplier option — which impacts any prize won except the jackpot — 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. 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:

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. $1.22 billion, Mega Millions, Dec. 27, 2024, won in California
10. $1.13 billion, Mega Millions, March 26, 2024, won in New Jersey

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. $571.9 million, Mega Millions, Dec. 27, 2024, won in California