The Mega Millions jackpot is the eighth-largest ever at $740 million—here are the odds you'll win – NBC Chicago

The Mega Millions jackpot has reached $740 million, the eighth-largest in the game’s history and the biggest ever in the month of December.
To win the jackpot, you must match all six winning numbers in a drawing. To play, you pick six numbers from two different pools: five numbers from 1 to 70 and one number from 1 to 25, which is the gold Mega Ball.
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But don’t expect to win, as the odds of taking home the jackpot are 1 in 302,575,350.
However, you’re much more likely to win a smaller prize, ranging from $2 to $1 million. The odds of winning any prize is 1 in 24, according to the lottery.
Here’s a look at the odds for each prize amount:
Mega Millions tickets cost $2 each (although they’ll be going up to $5 later in 2025). If there’s no winner, the jackpot will keep growing, as a portion of ticket sales is added ahead of each draw.

The next draw is Tuesday, Dec. 17 at 11 p.m. ET. If no one wins the prize, the jackpot will roll over to the next draw on Friday, Dec. 20 at 11 p.m. ET.
If you want to watch the draw live, check out the Mega Millions’ YouTube channel. Updates about winners are posted on the Mega Millions website on Wednesday and Saturday mornings after winning tickets have been verified.
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