Changes coming to Mega Millions next year: What to know about better odds, $5 tickets

(NEXSTAR) — It's been a big few years for Mega Millions. Seven of the games' top 10 jackpots have happened since 2021, including five that surpassed the $1 billion benchmark — a threshold previously only reached in 2018.

But now, Mega Millions is preparing for a massive overhaul impacting nearly every part of the game: the odds, the jackpots, game play, the payouts, and how much you'll be paying fo the ticket.

"We are creating a game that both our existing players and people new to Mega Millions will love and get excited about playing," Joshua Johnston, the lead director of the Mega Millions Consortium, said in a press release to Nexstar on Monday. "We expect more billion-dollar jackpots than ever before, meaning creating more billionaires and many more millionaires as the jackpots climb, plus this game will continue the important legacy of supporting great causes everywhere Mega Millions is played."

So what are those enhancements and when will they begin?

Before we explore the changes, we'll start with the latter: April 2025, eight years after its more recent change when the main number and the Mega Ball pools shifted.

Improving jackpot odds

While details aren't fully released, Mega Millions has confirmed that jackpot odds are set to improve. Your current odds are about 1 in 302.6 million, worse than the Powerball jackpot odds of 1 in 292.2 million. Game officials didn't say whether the number pools will change, or how these odds will improve.

A spokesperson for the Ohio Lottery — one of more than 40 that participate in Mega Millions — told Nexstar's WDTN that odds will improve to 1 in 290 million. However, a spokesperson for the South Dakota Lottery told Nexstar's KELO the odds will improve to 1 in 278.4 million.

'Bigger, faster' jackpots

Mega Millions did say the enhancements will lead to "bigger jackpots more frequently, larger starting jackpots, and faster growing jackpots."

In 2017, Mega Millions set its starting jackpot at $40 million. Since April 2020, the starting jackpots have been based on ticket sales. The current jackpot, for example, reset to $20 million. While Mega Millions did not say in its press release what the new starting jackpot will be, spokespersons for the Ohio Lottery and the South Dakota Lottery said it will shift to $50 million or beyond based on ticket sales.

The last time the jackpot was won — an $810 million prize hit by a ticket sold in Texas — it had been building since June when a $552 million jackpot was won by a ticket sold in Illinois. There have been only three jackpots won in 2024, each taking about three months to be won.

That isn't always the case. In January 2023, there were four jackpot-winning tickets sold: a $1.348 billion ticket in Maine, a $20 million ticket in New York, a $33 million ticket in Massachusetts, and a $31 million ticket, also in Massachusetts. Overall, there were 10 jackpots last year.

Mega Millions did not address whether it will be adding any additional draw days, a step that could lead to faster jackpots. Powerball, for example, has drawings three times a week and has seen seven jackpots so far this year.

Built-in multiplier

Come spring 2025, Mega Millions players will also get a built-in multiplier on every play that can improve non-jackpot wins by two-, three-, four-, five-, or ten-times, according to the press release. That could lead to a payout of up to $10 million if you match all five white balls.

A spokesperson for the South Dakota Lottery told Nexstar's KELO that the multiplier will be randomly generated for every ticket.

Currently, most states offer the Megaplier feature, which costs an additional $1 per play but can increase your payout by two-, three-, four-, or five-times, with a max payout of $5 million. It's unclear if all states will have the built-in multiplier.

Change to prizes — and ticket price

There were also no longer be "breakeven prizes" in which you win back only the cost of the ticket. That's only achievable now if you match just the Mega Millions number (unless you got the multiplier, then you would receive $4, $6, $8, or $10).

While Mega Millions also has not released how the prize scale will change, we do know how much these new enhancements will cost you: $5.

That's more than double the current base ticket price and the Powerball ticket price, both of which are $2. This marks the game's second price adjustment in its history. That does, however, mean no prize will be less than $5.

Mega Millions has not said when exactly these changes will take effect, and more details are expected in the coming months.

For now, the Mega Millions jackpot sits at an estimated $129 million with a cash value of $62.3 million. Drawings are held every Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m. ET. Tickets are $2 each, $3 with the Megaplier, and are sold in 45 states and the District of Columbia.