5 Changes Coming to the Mega Millions Lottery in 2025
Written by
Kristopher Kane
Edited by
Levi Leidy
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Millions of Americans play Mega Millions, making it one of the country’s most popular lotteries. Big changes are coming soon that fans of the lottery will want to know about. Beginning in April 2025, updates promise to improve the playing experience, pay out more substantial prizes and even provide slightly better odds of winning. Keep reading for an in-depth look at the changes coming to Mega Millions next year, what they mean and why these changes are being made.
Ticket Cost and Jackpots on the Rise
The first big change is in the cost of a Mega Millions ticket. As you probably expect, the price is going up, but the amount might surprise you. The cost per ticket is more than doubling, from $2 to $5. Though this is only the second time in the 28-year history of Mega Millions that ticket prices have increased, it’s not likely to be welcome news to many.
It’s not all bad news. The second change softens the blow of the price increase by making jackpots grow faster and get bigger than ever. The new ticket prices will help fuel both the growth and the total amount of these jackpots moving forward, leading to more exciting lottery draws, more winners and larger payouts.
The changes are a response to research done by the consortium that controls the Mega Millions lottery. The findings of these studies suggest players would be willing to pay more for larger prizes and bigger jackpots. Though these conclusions are untested, the controlling consortium hopes the changes will make the Mega Millions lottery even more popular.
Enhanced Odds and Exciting Multipliers
You might think that with bigger jackpots, your odds of winning would decrease, but that’s not the case. The third change is an increased chance of winning.
Mega Millions is increasing the odds you’ll have a winning lottery ticket by reducing the number of gold Mega Balls used when winning numbers are drawn. This improves the odds from 1 in 25 to 1 in 24.
The fourth change is another that players will be happy about: the introduction of a built-in award multiplier that kicks in to improve any winnings. Players have had the option of paying an additional $1 for the multiplier feature, but it will be included in the ticket price.
In today’s game, if a player matches three white balls and the Mega Ball, they win $200. Under the new system, that prize would start at $400 and could be boosted even more by the multiplier effect. Multipliers range from 2X to 10X, which could yield up to $10 million.
Bigger Entry Prizes and No More Break-Even Awards
Many players have had the experience of breaking even, but this “not winning, but not losing” consolation prize is going away. In the current system, you have to match the Mega Ball to win $2, which is the cost of a ticket. In the fifth change, players who match the Mega Ball will receive a minimum of $10.
A National Game With a New Matrix
Mega Millions tickets are sold nationwide and are available in 45 states, Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Players can’t access the full details of the planned new prize matrix yet. Closer to the April 2025 rollout, the Mega Millions consortium will release the information showing all prize tiers.
The goal of the Mega Millions Consortium is to reinvigorate the game and draw in more players with changes that make the lottery more attractive. The higher-value prizes and more frequent winnings players can anticipate are likely to be a significant draw.
Today’s Numbers
You don’t need research to know that players will be happy that a lottery is paying out more and more often, but whether these positives will outweigh the increased ticket price in their minds is unknown. Is the more-than-double new price of a Mega Millions ticket worth it?
If you do feel a new level of anticipation of the bigger, more frequent winnings, there’s still a caveat: No lottery is ever designed to lose money, which would-be players on a budget would do well to remember.
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