Top-15 All-Time Mega Millions Jackpot Of $489 Million Up For Grabs Tuesday Night

There have been 17 draws since the last Mega Millions win, to keep building the jackpot to the near-$500-million at which it now stands.

By Eric Raskin

Last updated: May 28, 2024

2 min

The extended Memorial Day holiday weekend is over and it produced no jackpot winners in either Powerball or Mega Millions, boosting the values of both grand prizes for their mid-week draws.

It starts with Mega Millions on Tuesday, with an estimated jackpot of $489 million (cash option: $226.4 million). If a winner is crowned, they would claim the 15th largest jackpot in the 22-year history of the Mega Millions game.

We have now crossed two months since the last time someone went a perfect 6-for-6 in Mega Millions, when a New Jersey-based player hit for $1.13 billion on March 26. There have been 17 draws since then to keep building the jackpot from its $20 million starting point to the near-half-billion dollars at which it now stands.

The Powerball jackpot is considerably smaller for Wednesday’s drawing, now at an estimated $143 million (cash value: $66.8 million) after a streak of nine contests without a grand prize claimed since a win in Florida on May 6.

Big states, big bucks

Four new millionaires were crowned over the long weekend, all in states that rank among the nation’s four largest by population. Two players in Texas, one in California, and one in New York hit for between $1 million and $3 million.

Friday’s Mega Millions game, with an estimated $453 million jackpot, saw a run of high numbers pulled: 46, 54, 56, 67, and 70, with the gold Mega Ball 16.

Two customers hit all five white balls but whiffed on the gold ball. One in California earned an even million bucks before taxes, while a player in Texas played the Megaplier (3x, in this case) to win $3 million.

A total of 769,493 tickets at least won their money back, and Lottery Geeks estimates nearly 18.5 million tickets were sold — down slightly from the 19.36 million estimated for the previous draw.

for my birthday, everybody has to play mega millions. if you win, you’re legally obligated to give me a million (or 35 million since i’m old as dirt now)
— lasagna del ray (@tinapeeler) May 28, 2024

In Powerball on Saturday, with an estimated $121 million jackpot, a player in Texas matched the white balls of 6, 33, 35, 36, and 64 but missed the red Powerball of 24, earning $1 million.

Monday’s Powerball draw, for an estimated $131 million, saw a New York player dressed to the nines with the correct white balls 9, 30, 39, 49, and 59, but missing the red Powerball of 21. The Power Play multiplier was a generous 5x, but this customer didn’t play it and therefore pocketed $1 million before taxes instead of $5 million.

Tickets for either lottery cost $2, with an option in some states to pay an extra $1 for the Power Play or Megaplier. Both lotteries are legal in 45 of 50 states — all but Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, and Utah. Mega Millions tickets can also be purchased in Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands, while Powerball services those two jurisdictions plus Puerto Rico.

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