


The Powerball jackpot hit a sky-high estimated $900 million jackpot following Saturday’s winner-less drawing, just as the Mega Millions hit $640 million — only the third time ever both jackpots broke $600 million simultaneously.
“Numbers like this are crazy,” said Ted Griffith, walking away from a Jamaica Plain 7-Eleven counter with his tickets Sunday morning. “I had to try my luck.”
The combined total of the major lotteries is now an estimated $1.54 billion. The next Powerball drawing will happen Monday night. The next Mega Millions takes place Tuesday.
The Powerball cash option would be $465.1 million. The Mega Millions cash prize is $328 million.
The Powerball jackpot is the game’s third largest jackpot ever, following $2.04 billion won by a California ticketholder in November 2022 and $1.586 billion won by ticketholders in California, Florida and Tennessee in 2016.
The $900 million jackpot has built up through 38 drawings, since the last winner received $252.6 million in April.
The Mega Millions jackpot is the game’s fifth largest prize, following four jackpots over $1 billion. The games highest jackpot hit $1.537 billion, awarded to a South Carolina ticketholder in 2018.
The second largest was awarded to a Maine ticketholder in January, reaching $1.35 billion.
Tuesday’s will be the 26th Mega Millions drawing since a $20 million prize was won in April.
“I don’t normally gamble really, often,” said Carol Kepler, heading in to buy a Powerball ticket. “But it’s more fun when the prizes get high.”
“As the excitement surrounding these jackpots increases, we remind people to keep the experience enjoyable by playing responsibly and within their means,” Mark William Bracken, Interim Executive Director of the Massachusetts State Lottery, said in a statement.
Players can purchase Powerball tickets for $2 until 9:50 p.m. Monday for the next drawing. Mega Millions tickets can be purchased for $2 until 10:45 p.m. Tuesday for the next drawing.