Topline
The Mega Millions jackpot rose to $754 million—the year’s second biggest lottery prize—after no tickets matched all six numbers drawn on Tuesday night, although the eventual winner will take home a much smaller payout after taxes and deductions.
The Mega Million jackpot prize rose to $754 million.
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Key Facts
If a winner emerges in the next draw, they can pick between taking the $754 million prize spread over 30 annual installments or a one-time cash payout of $352.8 million—the preferred option for most winners.
If the winner chooses the cash prize, their winnings will first drop to $268.1 million after a mandatory federal withholding of 24% is applied.
The winner would likely face a federal marginal rate as high as 37%, depending on their taxable income, further reducing the winnings to $222.3 million.
If the installments route is chosen, the winner’s annual payments of around $25.1 million would fall to $15.8 million after the 37% federal marginal rate is applied.
Depending on their home state, the winner could face additional taxes, as some states, such as New York, tax lottery winnings at 10.9%, while others, such as Texas, Florida, and California, don’t.
What To Watch For
The next Mega Millions lottery drawing is scheduled for Friday night. The Powerball jackpot currently stands at $376 million, and the next drawing is set to take place on Wednesday night.
Big Number
1-in-290.4 million. Those are the astronomical odds a Mega Millions ticket buyer will need to overcome to win the jackpot. This is a slight improvement of the competition’s even poorer previous odds of 1 in 302.5 million. Earlier this year, Mega Millions implemented major changes that also enhanced the odds of winning both the jackpot and smaller prizes.
Key Background
Last month, two Powerball ticket buyers from Missouri and Texas split the second-largest lottery prize ever after winning a $1.78 billion jackpot. The current Mega Millions jackpot has now eclipsed a $526.5 million prize won by a Powerball ticket buyer from California in March. The biggest Mega Millions prize claimed so far was a $349 million jackpot won by an Illinois resident in March.
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