Jul 24, 2018, 12:20 pm

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Second jackpot increase since Saturday

By Todd Northrop

For the second time in two days, the multi-state Mega Millions lottery jackpot has been raised due to surging ticket sales for a chance to win a half-billion dollars.

If one person wins tonight's Mega Millions jackpot, they will now have the option of taking home a $522 million annuity prize paid in 30 installments over 29 years, or a lump-sum cash payout of $308.1 million.

With millions of people dreaming about what they could do with that kind of money, United States lotteries are printing lottery tickets at a breakneck pace.

Anyone looking to play Mega Millions in tonight's drawing and has not yet purchased their tickets should not hesitate to get to the store right away.

If you're not sure where to buy your tickets, or you're looking for a store with a shorter line, head right over to the Lottery Places website to download the free app on your phone or Windows 10 computer. Lottery Places is the only app on the market that will locate lottery retailers in every state and jurisdiction throughout the United States, as well as Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and the United Kingdom.

Michigan residents have the easiest time obtaining their tickets, since the state offers Mega Millions lottery tickets for sale on their website.

Due to the overwhelming demand to see the winning numbers tonight after the drawing, players are advised to first check USA Mega (www.usamega.com) because that website is more likely than most to be up and running.

Tonight's jackpot started at $40 million on May 8, 2018, and is the result of 22 drawings with no jackpot winner.

When nobody won the latest drawing on Friday night, the initial estimate for tonight's drawing was established at $493 million. Monday, that estimate was raised to $512 million. Now, less than 24 hours after that, lottery officials again raised the official estimate to $522 million.

According to the Texas Lottery, if nobody wins tonight, the new Mega Millions jackpot for the Friday night drawing will be $630 million. And who knows how big it will grow by draw time.

Mega Millions jackpots start at $40 million and roll until the jackpot is won. Players win the jackpot by matching five numbers from a field of 70 numbers and one Mega Ball number from a field of 25 numbers. Drawings are conducted each Tuesday and Friday at 11:00 pm Eastern Time.

Tickets for the game cost $2 each. For an additional $1 per play, the Megaplier option will multiply any non-jackpot prize won on a ticket by 2 to 5 times, depending on the multiplier number drawn that evening.

The only state that does not offer the Megaplier is California, because state law banning fixed lottery prize amounts is not compatible with the fixed nature of the Megaplier payouts.

In many states, Mega Millions also offers an optional $3 wager called Just the Jackpot that allows players to receive two entries for a chance to win the game's jackpot prize only.

Lottery players can see an after-tax analysis of the current Mega Millions jackpot by visiting USA Mega's Jackpot Analysis page.

Mega Millions features nine different prize levels, ranging from $2 all the way up to the jackpot. Players can win even if they just match one number — the Mega Ball number.

Mega Millions lottery results are published within minutes of the drawing at USA Mega (www.usamega.com). The USA Mega website provides lottery players in-depth information about the United States's two biggest multi-state lottery games, Mega Millions and Powerball.

Top 25 United States lottery jackpots of all time

Tuesday's Mega Millions jackpot currently stands as the 11th-largest lottery jackpot of all time in the United States. That position may rise before the drawing, as lotteries are typically conservative in their initial estimates, and brisk sales may push the jackpot estimate higher by draw time.

Powerball: $1.5864 billion, Jan. 13, 2016 - California, Florida, Tennessee Powerball: $758.7 million, Aug. 23, 2017 - Massachusetts Mega Millions: $656 million, Mar. 30, 2012 - Illinois, Kansas, Maryland Mega Millions: $636 million, Dec. 17, 2013 - California, Georgia Powerball: $590.5 million, May 18, 2013 - Florida Powerball: $587.5 million, Nov. 28, 2012 - Arizona, Missouri Powerball: $564.1 million, Feb. 11, 2015 - North Carolina, Puerto Rico, Texas Powerball: $559.7 million, Jan. 6, 2018 - New Hampshire Mega Millions: $536 million, Jul. 8, 2016 - Indiana Mega Millions: $533 million, Mar. 30, 2018 - New Jersey Mega Millions: $522 million, Jul. 24, 2018 - Preliminary estimate, not won yet Powerball: $487 million, Jul. 30, 2016 - New Hampshire Powerball: $456.7 million, Mar. 17, 2018 - Pennsylvania Mega Millions: $451 million, Jan. 5, 2018 - Florida Powerball: $448.4 million, Aug. 7, 2013 - Minnesota, New Jersey (2) Powerball: $447.8 million, Jun. 10, 2017 - California Powerball: $435.3 million, Feb. 22, 2017 - Indiana Powerball: $429.6 million, May 7, 2016 - New Jersey Powerball: $425.3 million, Feb. 19, 2014 - California Powerball: $420.9 million, Nov. 26, 2016 - Tennessee Mega Millions: $414 million, Mar. 18, 2014 - Florida, Maryland Powerball: $399.4 million, Sep. 18, 2013 - South Carolina Mega Millions: $393 million, Aug. 11, 2017 - Illinois Mega Millions: $390 million, Mar. 6, 2007 - Georgia, New Jersey Mega Millions: $380 million, Jan. 4, 2011 - Idaho, Washington

For those keeping score, the number of jackpots in the top 25, by lottery game, are:

Powerball: 15

Mega Millions: 10

Top 25 cash value jackpots

Since many lottery winners collect their winnings in cash, the lump-sum payout is an important measure of what a winning ticket could be worth.

Looking at the cash value, the upcoming Mega Millions jackpot ranks as the 12th-largest cash value in U.S. history.

Powerball: $983.5 million cash, Jan. 13, 2016 ($1.5864 billion annuity) - California, Florida, Tennessee Powerball: $480.5 million cash, Aug. 23, 2017 ($758.7 million annuity) - Massachusetts Mega Millions: $471 million cash, Mar. 30, 2012 ($656 million annuity) - Illinois, Kansas, Maryland Powerball: $384.7 million cash, Nov. 28, 2012 ($587.5 million annuity) - Arizona, Missouri Powerball: $381.1 million cash, Feb. 11, 2015 ($564.1 million annuity) - North Carolina, Puerto Rico, Texas Mega Millions: $378 million cash, Jul. 8, 2016 ($536 million annuity) - Indiana Powerball: $370.9 million cash, May 18, 2013 ($590.5 million annuity) - Florida Powerball: $352 million cash, Jan. 6, 2018 ($559.7 million annuity) - New Hampshire Mega Millions: $347.6 million cash, Dec. 17, 2013 ($636 million annuity) - California, Georgia Powerball: $336.8 million cash, Jul. 30, 2016 ($487 million annuity) - New Hampshire Mega Millions: $324 million cash, Mar. 30, 2018 ($533 million annuity) - New Jersey Mega Millions: $308.1 million cash, Jul. 24, 2018 ($522 million annuity) - Preliminary estimate, not won yet Powerball: $284 million cash, May 7, 2016 ($429.6 million annuity) - New Jersey Mega Millions: $281.9 million cash, Jan. 5, 2018 ($451 million annuity) - Florida Powerball: $279.1 million cash, Jun. 10, 2017 ($447.8 million annuity) - California Powerball: $273.9 million cash, Mar. 17, 2018 ($456.7 million annuity) - Pennsylvania Powerball: $263.5 million cash, Feb. 22, 2017 ($435.3 million annuity) - Indiana Powerball: $258.2 million cash, Aug. 7, 2013 ($448.4 million annuity) - Minnesota, New Jersey (2) Powerball: $254.7 million cash, Nov. 26, 2016 ($420.9 million annuity) - Tennessee Mega Millions: $246.5 million cash, Aug. 11, 2017 ($393 million annuity) - Illinois Mega Millions: $240 million cash, Jan. 4, 2011 ($380 million annuity) - Idaho, Washington Mega Millions: $233.1 million cash, Mar. 6, 2007 ($390 million annuity) - Georgia, New Jersey Mega Millions: $230.9 million cash, Mar. 18, 2014 ($414 million annuity) - Florida, Maryland Powerball: $227.8 million cash, Feb. 19, 2014 ($425.3 million annuity) - California Powerball: $224.7 million cash, Aug. 15, 2012 ($337 million annuity) - Michigan

The number of cash value jackpots in the top 25, by lottery game, are: