Cash value worth more than a half-billion dollars

By Todd Northrop

After 34 drawings without a jackpot winner, the multi-state Mega Millions lottery game now boasts a swelling jackpot of three-quarters of a billion dollars that could instantly put someone among the wealthiest people on the planet.

When nobody won Tuesday night's grand prize, the Mega Millions jackpot grew to an estimated $750 million — the largest since a $1.5 billion Mega Millions jackpot from an Oct. 2018 drawing was claimed anonymously by a South Carolina player.

The next Mega Millions drawing is on Friday night at 11:00 pm Eastern Time (8:00 pm Pacific).

Friday's $750 million Mega Millions jackpot is the 2nd-largest in the game's history, and the 5th-largest United States lottery jackpot of all time (see full list below).

The lump-sum cash value of $550.6 million is the 3rd-largest on the all-time US lottery jackpot cash value list.

The current jackpot run-up started on Sept. 18 as a $20 million grand prize — it has been 4 months since Mega Millions has had a jackpot winner.

Lottery players wondering what all the cash will look like in their bank account after federal and state taxes are taken out can see an after-tax analysis of the current Mega Millions jackpot by visiting USA Mega's Jackpot Analysis page.

The rush of ticket sales over the next few days likely will propel the jackpot to an even higher amount before the drawing takes place Friday. Lottery Post and USA Mega will update the jackpot tallies displayed if such an increase occurs.

In Tuesday night's Mega Millions drawing, there was no jackpot winner, but 9 lucky players matched the first 5 numbers for a $1,000,000 prize: 1 from California, 2 from Florida, 1 from Georgia, 1 from Illinois, 1 from Missouri, 1 from New Jersey, 1 from Texas, and 1 from Washington.

One of the second-prize winners from Florida purchased their ticket with the Megaplier option for an extra $1 per play, increasing their prize to $2 million because the Megaplier number drawn was 2.

The Megaplier option is not available in California, because the fixed nature of the prize increase offered with the Megaplier is not compatible with California's pari-mutuel payouts. By law, California awards all lottery prizes on a pari-mutuel basis, meaning the prizes will change each drawing based on the number of tickets sold and the number of tickets that won at each prize level.

Also, a total of 116 tickets matched four of the first five numbers plus the Mega Ball to win a $10,000 prize. Of those tickets, 20 were purchased with the Megaplier option, increasing the prize to $20,000, and 15 were sold in California, where the prize awarded this drawing is $8,558.

The Mega Millions winning numbers for Tuesday, January 12, 2021, were 12, 14, 26, 28, and 33, with Mega Ball number 9. The Megaplier number was 2.

The complete payout information and official drawing video for Tuesday's drawing can be found at USA Mega's Mega Millions Drawing Information page.

Following the Tuesday drawing, the Mega Millions annuity jackpot estimate was raised $125 million from its previous amount of $625 million. The cash value was raised by $91.8 million from its previous amount of $458.8 million.

Mega Millions tickets cost $2 each. For an extra $1 per ticket players can purchase the Megaplier option, which multiplies any non-jackpot won by up to 5 times, depending on the Megaplier number drawn that evening.

Mega Millions is currently offered for sale in 45 states, plus Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Drawings are Tuesdays and Fridays at 11:00 pm Eastern Time.

To find the nearest lottery retailer to buy your tickets, head over to the Lottery Places website to download the free app on your iOS or Android phone or Windows computer. Lottery Places is the only app on the market that will locate lottery retailers in every state and jurisdiction throughout the United States.

Some states offer direct online sales too.  Michigan residents can bypass the store completely and buy Mega Millions tickets and Powerball tickets online.  Texas residents can buy Mega Millions tickets and Powerball tickets online too.  Oregon residents have options to buy Mega Millions tickets and Powerball tickets online as well.  Note that some of these links will only work properly for residents of the states mentioned.

Players outside the USA can use a reputable butler service to buy their Mega Millions tickets.

Mega Millions lottery results are published within minutes of the drawing at USA Mega (www.usamega.com).  The USA Mega Web site provides lottery players in-depth information about the United States's two biggest multi-state lottery games, Mega Millions and Mega Millions.

Top 25 United States lottery jackpots of all time

Friday's Mega Millions jackpot currently stands as the 5th-largest lottery jackpot of all time in the United States, and the 2nd-largest Mega Millions jackpot ever.  Brisk sales will likely push the jackpot estimate higher by draw time.

If nobody wins Tuesday, it's anyone's guess how high it will go.

1. Powerball: $1.5864 billion, Jan. 13, 2016 (19 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - California, Florida, Tennessee
2. Mega Millions: $1.537 billion, Oct. 23, 2018 (25 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - South Carolina
3. Powerball: $768.4 million, Mar. 27, 2019 (25 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - Wisconsin
4. Powerball: $758.7 million, Aug. 23, 2017 (20 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - Massachusetts
5. Mega Millions: $750 million, Jan. 15, 2021 (34 rollovers, starting at $20 million) - Preliminary estimate, not won yet
6. Powerball: $687.8 million, Oct. 27, 2018 (21 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - Iowa, New York
7. Mega Millions: $656 million, Mar. 30, 2012 (18 rollovers, starting at $12 million) - Illinois, Kansas, Maryland
8. Mega Millions: $636 million, Dec. 17, 2013 (21 rollovers, starting at $12 million) - California, Georgia
9. Powerball: $590.5 million, May 18, 2013 (13 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - Florida
10. Powerball: $587.5 million, Nov. 28, 2012 (15 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - Arizona, Missouri
11. Powerball: $564.1 million, Feb. 11, 2015 (20 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - North Carolina, Puerto Rico, Texas
12. Powerball: $559.7 million, Jan. 6, 2018 (20 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - New Hampshire
13. Powerball: $550 million, Jan. 13, 2021 (33 rollovers, starting at $20 million) - Preliminary estimate, not won yet
14. Mega Millions: $543 million, Jul. 24, 2018 (22 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - California
15. Mega Millions: $536 million, Jul. 8, 2016 (34 rollovers, starting at $15 million) - Indiana
16. Mega Millions: $533 million, Mar. 30, 2018 (23 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - New Jersey
17. Mega Millions: $522 million, Jun. 7, 2019 (24 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - California
18. Powerball: $487 million, Jul. 30, 2016 (23 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - New Hampshire
19. Powerball: $456.7 million, Mar. 17, 2018 (19 rollovers, starting at $15 million) - Pennsylvania
20. Mega Millions: $451 million, Jan. 5, 2018 (23 rollovers, starting at $15 million) - Florida
21. Powerball: $448.4 million, Aug. 7, 2013 (12 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - Minnesota, New Jersey (2)
22. Powerball: $447.8 million, Jun. 10, 2017 (19 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - California
23. Powerball: $435.3 million, Feb. 22, 2017 (18 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - Indiana
24. Powerball: $429.6 million, May 7, 2016 (18 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - New Jersey
25. Powerball: $425.3 million, Feb. 19, 2014 (15 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - California

For those keeping score, the number of jackpots in the top 25, by lottery game, are:

• Powerball: 16
• Mega Millions: 9

Top 25 cash value jackpots

Since many lottery winners collect their winnings in cash, the lump-sum payout is an important measure of what a winning ticket could be worth.

Looking at the cash value, the upcoming Mega Millions jackpot ranks as the 6th-largest cash value in U.S. history.

1. Powerball: $983.5 million cash, Jan. 13, 2016 ($1.5864 billion annuity) - California, Florida, Tennessee
2. Mega Millions: $877.8 million cash, Oct. 23, 2018 ($1.537 billion annuity) - South Carolina
3. Mega Millions: $550.6 million cash, Jan. 15, 2021 ($750 million annuity) - Preliminary estimate, not won yet
4. Powerball: $480.5 million cash, Aug. 23, 2017 ($758.7 million annuity) - Massachusetts
5. Powerball: $476.9 million cash, Mar. 27, 2019 ($768.4 million annuity) - Wisconsin
6. Mega Millions: $471 million cash, Mar. 30, 2012 ($656 million annuity) - Illinois, Kansas, Maryland
7. Powerball: $411.4 million cash, Jan. 13, 2021 ($550 million annuity) - Preliminary estimate, not won yet
8. Powerball: $396.2 million cash, Oct. 27, 2018 ($687.8 million annuity) - Iowa, New York
9. Powerball: $384.7 million cash, Nov. 28, 2012 ($587.5 million annuity) - Arizona, Missouri
10. Powerball: $381.1 million cash, Feb. 11, 2015 ($564.1 million annuity) - North Carolina, Puerto Rico, Texas
11. Mega Millions: $378 million cash, Jul. 8, 2016 ($536 million annuity) - Indiana
12. Powerball: $370.9 million cash, May 18, 2013 ($590.5 million annuity) - Florida
13. Powerball: $352 million cash, Jan. 6, 2018 ($559.7 million annuity) - New Hampshire
14. Mega Millions: $347.6 million cash, Dec. 17, 2013 ($636 million annuity) - California, Georgia
15. Mega Millions: $340 million cash, Jun. 7, 2019 ($522 million annuity) - California
16. Powerball: $336.8 million cash, Jul. 30, 2016 ($487 million annuity) - New Hampshire
17. Mega Millions: $324 million cash, Mar. 30, 2018 ($533 million annuity) - New Jersey
18. Mega Millions: $320.5 million cash, Jul. 24, 2018 ($543 million annuity) - California
19. Mega Millions: $319.9 million cash, Jun. 9, 2020 ($414 million annuity) - Arizona
20. Powerball: $284 million cash, May 7, 2016 ($429.6 million annuity) - New Jersey
21. Mega Millions: $281.9 million cash, Jan. 5, 2018 ($451 million annuity) - Florida
22. Powerball: $279.1 million cash, Jun. 10, 2017 ($447.8 million annuity) - California
23. Powerball: $276.5 million cash, Jan. 29, 2020 ($396.9 million annuity) - Florida
24. Powerball: $273.9 million cash, Mar. 17, 2018 ($456.7 million annuity) - Pennsylvania
25. Powerball: $263.5 million cash, Feb. 22, 2017 ($435.3 million annuity) - Indiana

The number of cash value jackpots in the top 25, by lottery game, are:

• Powerball: 15
• Mega Millions: 10