How to Play Mega Millions

To see where you can play Mega Millions, see the Where to Play Mega Millions page.
The object of Mega Millions is to choose a total of six (6) numbers and hope that the numbers drawn match the ones you chose.
The easiest and quickest way to play is to choose a "quick pick", which is set of numbers randomly selected by the lottery machine.
If you choose to specify the numbers yourself, you select five distinct numbers between 1 and 70, and one "Mega Ball" number between 1 and 24. The Mega Ball can be the same as one of the first five numbers, because it is drawn from a separate number pool from the first five numbers.
The jackpot starts at $50 million and grows each time a drawing has no jackpot winner(s).
When you play Mega Millions, you must select either the Cash Option or the Jackpot Annuity. With the Cash Option you choose to receive your portion of the Present Cash value of the advertised jackpot in one lump sum. The Jackpot Annuity awards you your portion of the full amount of the estimated jackpot, payable in 30 annual installments (over 29 years). Note: in some states you do not specify the cash option until you redeem your winning ticket.
Each play is $5.00 (or $5.00 + service fee online).
To find the nearest official lottery retailer, try the free Lottery Places app, which can find official lottery retailers in any state.
Multiplier: Your Mega Millions ticket will have a random Multiplier number printed next to each play on the ticket. (Each play has its own Multiplier that multiplies the prize for that play only.) The possible Multplier numbers are 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x, and 10x. If the numbers on a play match one of the eight ways to win a non-jackpot prize, that prize will be multiplied by the Multiplier number printed next to the play. The Jackpot is not multiplied.
Drawings are held at 11:00 pm Eastern Time on Tuesday and Friday. (10:00 pm Central; 9:00 pm Mountain; 8:00 pm Pacific).
The ticket purchase cutoff time varies by state, so check with a local lottery retailer for the precise ticket cutoff time in your state.
Check back with USA Mega to see the winning numbers!
To add USA Mega to your phone's Home screen, go to USA Mega in your phone's web browser, and the use the Add To Home Screen feature. In Safari (iPhone) it is accessed with the Share icon. In Android browsers such as Chrome, it is in the "3 dots" menu.
To see the different combinations of numbers that win, see the Ways to Win page.