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TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami) – There are 540 million reasons to play Friday night's Mega Millions lottery. That's because the $540 million jackpot is the seventh highest U.S. jackpot in history.

An estimated $1 billion in tickets have been sold since the last winning ticket was drawn in early March. This is the longest Mega Millions run without a winner.

Mega Millions jackpots start at $15 million; and roll until the jackpot is won. Players win by matching the five white ball numbers (1-75) and the golden Mega Ball number (1-15). The odds of winning are long, about 259 million to one.

If a single winning ticket is claimed, the winner can choose to take the total jackpot in annual payments over 29 years or opt for a one-time payout of about $380 million minus taxes.

The Mega Millions is very similar to Powerball but Powerball jackpots start at $40 million. Players win by matching the five white ball numbers (1-69) and the red Powerball (1-26). The odds of winning Powerball are roughly one in 292 million.

Powerball tickets cost $2 or $3 each while Mega Millions tickets are $1 or $2. Mega Millions is played in 44 U.S. states, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.