Mega Millions Jackpot Reaches $555 Million, 10th-Largest Ever

The Mega Millions jackpot climbed to $555 million for Friday's drawing on Nov. 13, the 10th-largest prize in the game's history, according to the Treasure Coast News and USA Today. The cash option stood at $235.2 million.

The winning numbers were 10, 22, 33, 49 and 57, with a Mega Ball of 18, according to Lohud and USA Today. Whether any ticket matched all six numbers was not immediately clear in the reports published after the drawing.

How the jackpot got this big

The jackpot has been building since the last top prize was claimed. A ticket sold in Florida won the previous jackpot, an $800 million prize, on July 28, USA Today reported. The Treasure Coast News said the top prize then reset to $50 million for the drawing on Friday, July 31, and has rolled over 30 times since.

The Friday drawing pushed the prize past a record from 2024. The Treasure Coast News reported that the $555 million jackpot ranks 10th on the list of the largest Mega Millions prizes, ahead of a $552 million jackpot won in Illinois on June 4, 2024. The largest Mega Millions jackpot ever won on a single ticket was $1.58 billion, in a drawing on Aug. 8, 2023, with final sales pushing that prize to $1.602 billion, the outlet said.

Why the prize rose over the past weeks

When no one wins, the jackpot carries over and grows with ticket sales. The Treasure Coast News listed the recent steps: $463 million for the drawing on Oct. 30, $482 million on Nov. 3, $505 million on Nov. 6 and $529 million on Nov. 10, before reaching $555 million on Nov. 13.

What it means for players

A jackpot winner has two choices, according to USA Today and Lohud: a one-time lump sum, or an immediate payment followed by annual payments that each rise by 5%. Lohud said the annuity is an immediate payment followed by 29 annual payments. If two or more tickets win in the same drawing, the prize is split equally.

The odds are steep. Lohud, citing Mega Millions, said the chance of matching all five white balls and the Mega Ball is 1 in 290,472,336.

Tickets cost $5. The Treasure Coast News said the price rose from $2 in April 2025 and that the old Megaplier add-on no longer exists. Instead, every ticket now carries a built-in multiplier of 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x or 10x that boosts non-jackpot prizes, according to USA Today and Lohud.

Players pick five white-ball numbers from 1 to 70 and one gold Mega Ball number from 1 to 24, or ask for a Quick Pick so the computer chooses. Tickets are sold at convenience stores, gas stations, grocery stores and other lottery retailers, and a handful of states allow online purchases. In New York, in-store and online sales close at 10 p.m. on the night of the draw, Lohud reported, while in New Jersey and Connecticut tickets can be bought until 10:45 p.m.

Smaller prizes still count

Non-jackpot prizes start small. According to Lohud, matching only the gold Mega Ball pays $10, $15, $20, $25 or $50 depending on the multiplier, while matching five white balls without the Mega Ball pays $2 million, $3 million, $4 million, $5 million or $10 million.

When the next drawing takes place

Mega Millions drawings are held at 11 p.m. ET on Tuesdays and Fridays. The next one is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 17, according to all three outlets. If no one hit the jackpot on Friday, the prize will carry over to that drawing. Lohud also noted that the Powerball jackpot stood at $63 million.

Around Prague, based on reporting by Treasure Coast News, Lohud, USA Today

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