(Article has been updated to correct the Mega Millions Consortium is under management of Mega Millions decisions, not the Multi-State Lottery Association)
Big changes are coming to Mega Millions in 2025.
According to new information from the Texas Lottery, those adjustments will take effect starting April 8.
The current format of Mega Millions will hold its final drawing on April 5.
Following that drawing, the price of a Mega Millions ticket will jump from $2 to $5. The game will also feature new odds, prize structure, and multiplier format.
These changes will definitely have an impact on sales totals, both for retail lotteries and states with online lotteries.
Updated odds matrix for new $5 Mega Millions
In June, PlayiLottery obtained information on proposed changes to Mega Millions, one of the most popular lottery draw games, once the decision around a ticket price increase took place.
At that time, we learned that the game would be cutting down the total number of gold Mega Ball options, while appearing to decrease the number of white balls, too. That was based on the odds listed to win each available prize option at the time.
It appears those odds have changed again, based on documentation from the Texas Lottery.
The information from Texas indicates that the white balls for Mega Millions will remain from 1-70, but the gold Mega Ball options will decrease from 25 to 24. That will slightly improve the odds of winning the jackpot prize. These decisions would come from the Mega Millions Consortium.
The game will still include the automatic multiplier that ranges from 1x to 10x.
Based on that information, here’s what the new odds for Mega Millions look like:
| Mega Millions Winning Numbers (White Balls+Gold Ball) | $2 Ticket Odds | $5 Ticket Odds | $5 Ticket Prize (1X-10X) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5+1 | 1 in 302.6 million | 1 in 290.5 million | Progressive |
| 5+0 | 1 in 12.6 million | 1 in 12.6 million | $1-$10 million |
| 4+1 | 1 in 931,001 | 1 in 893,761 | $10,000-$100,000 |
| 4+0 | 1 in 38,792 | 1 in 38,859 | $500-$5,000 |
| 3+1 | 1 in 14,547 | 1 in 13,965 | $200-$2,000 |
| 3+0 | 1 in 606 | 1 in 607 | $10-$100 |
| 2+1 | 1 in 693 | 1 in 665 | $10-$100 |
| 1+1 | 1 in 89 | 1 in 86 | $7-$70 |
| 0+1 | 1 in 37 | 1 in 35 | $5-$50 |
| Odds to win any prize | 1 in 24 | 1 in 23.07 |
Automatic multiplier average is 3x
Once the Mega Millions format changes, multipliers will no longer cost $1.
The feature will be automatically added to your ticket. Each line you play will have the potential of being multiplied by 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x, or 10x.
When your ticket receives a multiplier, it will be based on a field of 32 options. Each level has the following odds:
- 2x: 1 in 2.13
- 3x: 1 in 3.2
- 4x: 1 in 8
- 5x: 1 in 16
- 10x: 1 in 32
Based on this, the average value of a multiplier will be 3x.
Photo by Nam Y. Huh / AP
About the Author
