You have to be in it to win it — but you’ll soon have to pay more for a chance.
Mega Millions tickets will more than double in cost next April from $2 to $5 a pop, lottery officials announced Monday, adding that the new price tag will come with higher cash prizes.
The price increase will come with greater odds of scoring bigger jackpots as part of a “mega overhaul” of the lottery launching in April 2025, Mega Millions said.
“Spending 5 bucks to become a millionaire or billionaire, that’s pretty good,” said Joshua Johnston, director of the Washington Lottery and lead director of the group that oversees Mega Millions.
Six Mega Millions players have won jackpots greater than $1 billion in the game’s history and 1,200 players have become millionaires from their winnings.
The lottery officials hope the larger jackpots and better chance of winning will draw in more customers even as ticket prices increase.
The current chance of winning the Mega Millions jackpot is about 1 in 302.6 million.
Fewer people have been regularly purchasing lotto tickets unless a massive jackpot is up for grabs.
“We expect more billion-dollar jackpots than ever before, meaning creating more billionaires and many more millionaires as the jackpots climb, plus this game will continue the important legacy of supporting great causes everywhere Mega Millions is played,” Johnston said in a statement.
The increased revenue from the drawings would increase cash flow to state lotteries, which use the revenue for a variety of government services.
The $3 increase is only the second price increase on Mega Millions tickets — which are sold in 45 states plus Washington, DC and the US Virgin Islands — since the lottery was launched more than 20 years ago in 2002.
Research shows that most Americans are OK with spending a Lincoln on scratch-offs or lotto tickets — which is about equal to — or less than — their Starbucks cup of coffee, Johnston said.
The April changes will be the first time the lottery rules have been adjusted.
The plans will also bring larger starting and faster-growing jackpots and a built-in multiplier on every game, automatically raising every non-jackpot win for matching the five white balls, Mega Millions officials said.
One of the driving factors for the updates was to make Mega Millions more attractive to possible players than its competitor, Powerball, Johnston said.
Mega Millions officials are expected to announce more details about the changes in the months ahead.
With Post wires
