Mega Millions Ticket Price Soars as Jackpots and Odds Improve

New York, NY — The Mega Millions lottery has announced significant changes, including a ticket price increase from $2 to $5, aimed at enhancing player odds and offering bigger jackpots. The first drawing under the new pricing today features a jackpot of $54 million.

This marks the beginning of a revamped format for the 23-year-old lottery game, which operates in 45 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Joshua Johnston, the lead director of the Mega Millions Consortium, emphasized that players have expressed a desire for larger non-jackpot prizes, which the new format aims to deliver.

The price increase is only the second in the game’s history, the first occurring in 2017. The Mega Millions states that the higher ticket price will facilitate larger starting jackpots and accelerate prize growth, with anticipated average jackpots exceeding $800 million compared to the current average of $450 million.

Players can also expect changes in prize distributions under the new system. The lottery will eliminate “breakeven prizes,” meaning every winning ticket will yield a return greater than its cost. For example, players who would have previously won $2 may now earn between $10 and $50, while a former $500 prize can rise significantly to between $1,000 and $5,000.

Despite the price hike, Akshay Khanna, CEO of Jackpot.com, noted that customers frequently spend more than $5 when purchasing tickets. “While some customers may initially be surprised, we believe they’ll come to recognize the added benefits that this price increase enables,” he said. Khanna suggested that the increase is unlike a fare hike for services where customers receive the same offering but at a higher cost.

The lottery has also made adjustments to the game mechanics. By removing one gold ‘Mega Ball’ from the draw, the odds of winning any prize have improved slightly from 1 in 24 to 1 in 23. Furthermore, players’ odds of winning the Mega Millions jackpot have increased from 1 in 302.6 million to 1 in 290.5 million.

Additional changes include the elimination of certain add-ons such as the “Megaplier,” a $1 feature that increased non-jackpot payouts, and “Just the Jackpot,” a $3 ticket option strictly for jackpot plays.

Khanna is optimistic about the modifications, predicting that larger starting jackpots will attract more players and thus enhance prize amounts more rapidly, keeping participants engaged in the game.