$1.28B Mega Millions Jackpot: Where, When To Buy Tickets In Illinois

ACROSS AMERICA — The jackpot in Friday night's Mega Millions drawing is now at $1.28 billion and could go even higher as ticket sales increase.

The cash payout for a jackpot winner would be $747.2 million for the drawing, which takes place at 10 p.m. Central.

The deadline to buy your ticket in Illinois by 9:45 p.m. If you're not sure where to get a ticket, you can find the closest store to you on the Illinois lottery website.

If no one wins the jackpot Friday, lottery officials expect the prize to swell to $1.7 million for the next drawing on Tuesday, which would eclipse the $1.5 billion prizes won in 2018 and 2016.

State lottery systems across the country use revenue from ticket sales to boost tourism, transportation and other state interests.

Although no one claimed the jackpot in Tuesday’s drawing, several players did win lower-value prizes by matching some of the winning numbers — 7-29-60-63-66. The Mega Ball number was 15 and the Megaplier number was 3x.

Those winners included a $2.9 million ticket sold in California and a $1 million winner in Illinois. Another ticket sold in Ohio is worth $3 million because it included the Megaplier.

Mega Millions tickets are available at gas stations, convenience stores and supermarkets in states where the game is played, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Only five U.S. states — Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah — haven't authorized the Mega Millions game.

The largest jackpot in U.S. history was the $1.586 billion Powerball prize shared by players from California, Florida and Tennessee on Jan. 13, 2016. A single player from South Carolina won the $1.537 billion Mega Million ticket on Oct. 23, 2018.

The jackpot has been growing since April 15, when a player in Tennessee won $20 million. Other Mega Millions jackpots claimed in 2022 were in California ($426 million on Jan. 28), New York ($128 million on March 8) and Minnesota ($110 million on April 12).

Overall chances of winning any prize are 1 in 24. The chances of winning the jackpot are much lower — about 1 in 302.5 million. For perspective, the odds of being struck by lightning are less than 1 in 1 million, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.