{"id":13744,"date":"2026-03-24T11:05:59","date_gmt":"2026-03-24T11:05:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.thelotter.com\/?p=13744"},"modified":"2026-05-19T08:55:50","modified_gmt":"2026-05-19T08:55:50","slug":"vs-mega-millions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thelotter.com\/blog\/powerball\/vs-mega-millions\/","title":{"rendered":"Mega Millions and Powerball \u2013 a Comparison"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
TheLotter<\/a><\/span> \u00bb Powerball<\/a><\/span> \u00bb Mega Millions and Powerball \u2013 a Comparison<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n\n\n
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Mega Millions and Powerball \u2013 a Comparison<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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Mega Millions and Powerball are the two biggest lotteries in the world. Both games frequently offer jackpot prizes worth hundreds of millions of dollars, and sometimes significantly higher. Powerball set a world records with its US$2.04 billion<\/strong> and US$1.586 billion<\/strong> jackpot and Mega Millions is not far behind, having awarded a US$1.602 billion<\/strong> jackpot.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mega Millions<\/a> and Powerball<\/a> have much in common, but there are several differences between the games. How do Mega Millions and Powerball compare? Which lottery has better odds, Powerball or Mega Millions? Which game awards better prizes? In short, is it better to play Mega Millions or Powerball?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hopefully, you\u2019ll find answers to all of your questions in our comparison of Mega Millions and Powerball.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What’s the Difference Between Powerball and Mega Millions Rules?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The game rules of Mega Millions and Powerball are basically the same. You pick five main numbers and one additional number. If you match all the numbers drawn, you win the lottery jackpot. Secondary prizes are awarded for partial matches.
But there are differences!
Let\u2019s compare the basic information of these popular American lotteries.<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n\n

* Officially, the advertised jackpot is determined by game sales and interest rates, and it is announced prior to each draw.<\/sup><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\"What's<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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World Record Jackpots<\/h2><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Powerball and Mega Millions are famous for awarding incredible jackpot prizes, the biggest in the world by far. Today, Powerball holds the world record but before that, a Mega Millions jackpot held that claim to fame for four years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Mega Millions jackpot rose to epic proportions in March 2012, at a time when the world record stood at US$390 million<\/strong> (set by Mega Millions in March 2007). After a momentous rollover series, Mega Millions awarded a US$656 million<\/strong> jackpot on 30 March 2012, a prize shared by three winners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Powerball\u2019s record US$1.586 billion<\/strong> was split between three winners in January 2016. In October 2018, it looked like Mega Millions was on the verge of passing that amount. The Mega Millions jackpot up for grabs was advertised as US$1.6 billion<\/strong>, but after the draw took place, the final prize was actually lower than Powerball\u2019s record, and this was because ticket sales hadn\u2019t lived up to expectations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Mega Millions draw on 23 October 2018 did set one world record. The US$1.537 billion<\/strong> jackpot was won by a single player from South Carolina. This was the largest jackpot ever won by a single ticket to date, until November 2022 when a Powerball jackpot rose to a record-breaking US$2.04 billion<\/strong> and was matched by a single ticket sold in California.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more about the biggest Mega Millions jackpots ever<\/a> and the biggest Powerball lottery prizes<\/a> of all time.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Multiplier vs. Power Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Power Play in Powerball is an optional multiplier on a player\u2019s ticket available for an additional price, while the Multiplier in Mega Millions is built-in to the cost of the ticket. These multipliers enable players to be eligible for higher secondary prizes if they win. Unlike the additional number chosen by players when they fill out their ticket (Mega Ball for Mega Millions and Powerball for Powerball), the games\u2019 multipliers are selected randomly by the lotteries at the time of the draw. This is done separately from the selection of the main numbers and the additional number. In both games, the multiplier can have a value of 2, 3, 4, 5 or 10. In Powerball however, the multiplier of 10 is only available when the jackpot is under US$150 million. While the multiplier never affects the amount of the jackpot, it determines how many times the secondary prizes will be multiplied. There is one additional difference between Power Play and the Multiplier. The Multiplier multiplies all of the secondary prizes on the Mega Millions prize list. As a result, a player who wins the game\u2019s second prize could win US$10 million, if the Multiplier selected was 10x. Power Play, on the other hand, multiplies all secondary prizes except for the second prize. The maximum second prize, no matter what Power Play is selected in the draw, is US$2 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more information about the Mega Millions Multiplier<\/a> and Power Play<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Which Has Better Prizes, Powerball or Mega Millions?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Powerball has awarded a US$2.04 billion<\/strong> jackpot and Mega Millions has awarded a US$1.602 billion<\/strong> jackpot, so both lotteries are capable of producing astronomical prizes. The top secondary prizes in both games are very similar but with a slight difference. Mega Millions awards a Match-5 prize of US$1 million<\/strong>; it can grow as high as US$10 million<\/strong> with Multiplier. The Powerball Match-5 prize is also US$1 million<\/strong>; with Power Play it would be US$2 million<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In both Powerball and Mega Millions, if you match all five numbers and the additional number, you win the lottery\u2019s jackpot. All the other prize tiers in these games have exactly the same matching requirements. The prizes awarded, however, are not the same in Powerball and Mega Millions. The following table shows the differences between them:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tier<\/th>Match<\/th>Mega Millions Prize<\/th>Powerball Prize<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
1<\/td>5 + 1*<\/td>Jackpot<\/td>Jackpot<\/td><\/tr>
2<\/td>5<\/td>US$1,000,000<\/td>US$1,000,000<\/td><\/tr>
3<\/td>4 + 1<\/td>US$10,000<\/td>US$50,000<\/td><\/tr>
4<\/td>4<\/td>US$500<\/td>US$100<\/td><\/tr>
5<\/td>3 + 1<\/td>US$200<\/td>US$100<\/td><\/tr>
6<\/td>3<\/td>US$10<\/td>US$7<\/td><\/tr>
7<\/td>2 + 1<\/td>US$10<\/td>US$7<\/td><\/tr>
8<\/td>1 + 1<\/td>US$7<\/td>US$4<\/td><\/tr>
9<\/td>0 + 1<\/td>US$5<\/td>US$4<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

*In Mega Millions the additional number is called the Mega Ball. In Powerball, the extra number is called the Powerball. All secondary prizes for Mega Millions are subject to a Multiplier of 2X, 3X, 4X, 5X or 10X.<\/sub><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Which Is Easier to Win, Powerball or Mega Millions?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Both Powerball and Mega Millions have jackpots that are not easy to win, but the odds are slightly better for Mega Millions. The odds of winning Powerball are 1:292,201,338 while the odds of winning Mega Millions are 1:290,472,336. The chances of winning secondary prizes in the two lotteries are quite similar, although there are some differences. The odds of winning in Powerball and Mega Millions are slightly different because the games have different guess matrixes. In the table below, you can compare Mega Millions winning odds with those of Powerball.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tier<\/th>Match<\/th>Mega Millions Odds<\/th>Powerball Odds<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
1<\/td>5 + 1<\/td>1:290,472,336<\/td>1:292,201,338<\/td><\/tr>
2<\/td>5<\/td>1:12,629,232<\/td>1:11,688,053<\/td><\/tr>
3<\/td>4 + 1<\/td>1:839,761<\/td>1:913,129<\/td><\/tr>
4<\/td>4<\/td>1:38,859<\/td>1:36,525<\/td><\/tr>
5<\/td>3 + 1<\/td>1:13,965<\/td>1:14,494<\/td><\/tr>
6<\/td>3<\/td>1:607<\/td>1:579<\/td><\/tr>
7<\/td>2 + 1<\/td>1:665<\/td>1:701<\/td><\/tr>
8<\/td>1 + 1<\/td>1:86<\/td>1:92<\/td><\/tr>
9<\/td>0 + 1<\/td>1:35<\/td>1:38<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

And what about the odds of winning any prize in these two lotteries?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Game<\/th>Odds of Winning Any Prize<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Mega Millions<\/td>1 in 23.07<\/td><\/tr>
Powerball<\/td>1 in 24.9<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Read more information about the odds of winning Powerball<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Additional Differences Between Mega Millions and Powerball<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Here are more ways in which Mega Millions and Powerball are different from each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n