The Mega Millions jackpot rose to $740 million—the fourth biggest jackpot prize of the year so far—after no tickets matched all six numbers drawn on Tuesday night, although the winner will take home a much smaller payout after paying their taxes.
The Mega Millions Jackpot has now reached $740 million, making it the fourth biggest lottery prize ... [+]
If a winner emerges in the next draw, they can pick between receiving the $740 million jackpot spread over 30 annual payments or a lump sum cash prize of $366.3 million—often the popular choice.
If chosen, the lump sum payout will drop to $278.4 million after a mandatory federal tax withholding of 24% is applied.
The winner could then face a federal marginal rate as high as 37%, depending on their taxable income, further slashing their winnings to $230.8 million.
If the winner chooses the installment route, their annual payments of around $24.7 million would drop to $15.5 million, if the 37% federal marginal rate is applied.
The winner may also face additional taxes from their state of residence, as some states like New York tax lottery winnings at 10.9%, while others like Texas, Florida, and California don’t.
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1-in-302.6 million. The abysmal odds that a ticket buyer has to overcome to win the Mega Millions jackpot. This is even worse than the Powerball jackpot’s already poor odds of 1-in-292.2 million.
The next drawing for the Mega Millions jackpot is scheduled for Friday night.
In April, a single ticket sold in Oregon won a $1.3 billion Powerball jackpot, the biggest lottery prize of the year so far. The winner was later identified as Cheng “Charlie” Saephan, a Portland resident undergoing chemotherapy treatment for cancer. Saephan said he was splitting the prize with his friend Laiza Chao as the two had pooled money together to buy the lottery tickets. In March, a single ticketholder in New Jersey won a $1.13 billion jackpot which is the biggest Mega Millions prize of the year so far.
Mega Millions Jackpot Jumps To $681 Million—Here’s How Much A Winner Could Take Home After Taxes (Forbes)