Mega Millions, Powerball jackpots both top $400 million
The winning Mega Millions numbers drawn Tuesday were 1, 42, 47, 64, and 70, and the Mega Ball number was 22. The jackpot was $361 million. There is a one-time cash option of $225 million.
Mega Millions tickets are $2. Lottery officials announced early Wednesday that no winning tickets were sold for that jackpot. The new one will be $418 million, with a cash option of $261 million. The drawing will be Friday night.
There will a drawing Wednesday night for Powerball's estimated jackpot of $440 million. It wasn't clear early Wednesday whether this is the first time both games' jackpots were over the $400 million mark.
The odds of winning one of the jackpots is roughly one in 259 million for Mega Millions and one in 292 million for Powerball. And the chances of winning both, for those of you thinking really big? Roughly one in 75 quadrillion -- that's 15 zeros -- according to data scientists at Allstate.
To understand how unlikely those odds are, it's worth comparing them to the probability of other unlikely events. Americans are much more likely to get struck by lightning (odds of one in 13,500) or to die in a car accident (one in 645).
The average American spends about $200 a year on lottery tickets, although residents of some states spend far more. According to a study by LendEDU, the average Massachusetts resident spends $735 annually on lottery tickets. Rhode Islanders spend $514 a year. Those in Delaware or New York are likely spending about $400 a year, or $33 per month.
