Mega Millions Ticket Prices Will Double in Price to $5, but Lottery Claims There Will Be Better Odds of Winning

Mar. 15, 2025

Stock photo of lottery machine.Photo:Lindsey Nicholson/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty

Lindsey Nicholson/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty

People will have to pay a bit more to get a chance at winning the big bucks!

Mega Millions lottery officialsannouncedon Monday, Oct. 7 that they will be doubling the price of their game to $5 a ticket in April — the second price adjustment lottery officials have made since it began.

The current odds to win a jackpot with the Mega Millions are set at 1 in 302.6 million, per theAssociated Press. Lottery officials say the price increase will allow for “improved odds to win the jackpot,” “bigger jackpots more frequently,” “larger starting jackpots” and “faster growing jackpots.”

“We are creating a game that both our existing players and people new to Mega Millions will love and get excited about playing,” said Joshua Johnston, Lead Director of the Mega Millions Consortium in a press release.

“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,” he added.

Mega Millions lottery ticket.AP Photo/Mike Stewart

AP Photo/Mike Stewart

Lottery officials are hoping that the new odds of winning will attract people — who often buy in when there’s a greater prize on the line — to play the lottery despite the increased cost, per the AP.

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Since the last time the lottery hiked its prices from $1 to $2 in 2017, Mega Millions said more than 1,200 players have become millionaires. It also noted that there have been six billion-dollar jackpot winners since it first launched in 2002.

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While the Mega Millions is upping its price, Powerball officials told AP that their price of $2 per play — in most states — is staying.

source: people.com