There was no jackpot winner for Mega Millions last Friday night.
That pushes the top prize to $800 million for the drawing on Tuesday, Sept. 10 at 11 p.m. ET.
As the jackpot continues to grow, it’s likely to entice more players. That includes players in states with online lotteries and courier customers.
Interestingly enough, the last Mega Millions winner was an iLottery player.
Could that be the case again with this latest large jackpot?
Illinois iLottery player wins $552 million Mega Millions jackpot
Online lottery doesn’t have a lot of jackpot history.
Retail lotteries have a much richer and longer history in that regard.
However, a landmark win took place this past June.
In what could be the first of many online jackpot winners, an Illinois iLottery player claimed the $552 million Mega Millions top prize.
It was the largest online lottery prize ever claimed. The anonymous winner spoke with the Illinois Lottery when she came forward with the winning ticket:
“I was scrolling through my emails when I saw one from the Illinois Lottery saying to check my numbers because I won a prize. In the past, I’ve won $2 here or $5 there, so I assumed it would be similar. You can’t imagine my shock and disbelief when I saw that I had won the jackpot amount of $552 million. I actually quit the app and then signed back in to double-check and make sure it was real. It was real alright, but it still feels unreal.”
The winning numbers of 19-37-40-63-69-17 came with 1 in 302,575,350 odds to win.
What state lotteries offer online Mega Millions sales?
You could be in a state with an official iLottery and not even know it.
State-run online lotteries are picking up steam. Currently, 13 different state lotteries have some form of iLottery. By the time 2026 comes around, there should be 17 states with official online lotteries.
Here’s a look at the states offering Mega Millions tickets through their iLottery:
- Connecticut
- Georgia
- Illinois
- Kentucky
- Michigan
- New Hampshire
- North Carolina
- Pennsylvania
- Virginia
- Washington D.C.
Along with these states, Maryland, New York, and North Dakota also offer subscription services for Mega Millions and other draw games.
A subscription allows a player to set up tickets for draw games over a period of time so they don’t miss out on any drawings.
On top of these options, West Virginia, Kansas, New Jersey, and Massachusetts are all in the process of setting up an iLottery in their states. They should all be available by the end of 2025.
Lottery couriers provide online sales of Mega Millions tickets
Online lottery play doesn’t necessarily have to come through an iLottery state.
Courier services offer players the opportunity to purchase retail lottery tickets through online means.
They are currently available in 20 different states, as well as Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Some couriers also sell US lottery tickets to customers in other countries.
TheLotter, one of five couriers operating in the US, touts that a player in Panama won a $30 million Florida Lotto drawing back in July 2017. In August 2015, it also sold a winning $6.5 million Oregon Megabucks ticket to an Iraqi player.
Couriers Jackpocket and Lotto.com have also highlighted their players winning multiple millions in the past.
Between Jackpocket, Lotto.com, Jackpot.com, theLotter, and Mido Lotto, the following states have courier services for lottery play:
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Connecticut
- Colorado
- Delaware
- Idaho
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- Minnesota
- Montana
- Nebraska
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- Ohio
- Oregon
- Texas
- Washington D.C.
- West Virginia
Tuesday’s Mega Millions worth $800 million
Last Friday’s Mega Millions was worth $740 million but didn’t have a winner.
The numbers were 6-23-41-49-63, with a gold Mega Ball of 25.
There were six different players that got all five white balls correct to win $1 million. One of those players added a megaplier, which was 2x, and pushed his prize to $2 million.
Tuesday’s drawing features an $800 million jackpot.
If you win and choose the annuity option, you’ll receive the prize over 30 annual payments.
The one-time, lump-sum option is worth $401.8 million.
Despite the large prize, this jackpot isn’t even the largest in the US this year. There have already been two jackpots over $1 billion in the US in 2024. They were a $1.33 billion Powerball jackpot in April and a $1.13 billion Mega Millions jackpot in March.
Photo by Charlie Neibergall / AP
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