Introduction

Hey there lottery enthusiast! If you‘re anything like me, you love playing Mega Millions for a shot at those giant, life-changing jackpots. Who wouldn‘t want a chance to win hundreds of millions of dollars? But to play and win at Mega Millions, it‘s important to know the game inside and out.

In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll tell you everything you need to know about how often Mega Millions drawings are held each week. I‘ll provide the key details on drawing days, ticket sales deadlines, where the drawings take place, recent changes to the game, and more. I‘ll even share tips based on my experience playing Mega Millions for years.

If you want to become an expert Mega Millions player, you‘ll find this guide contains valuable insights. Let‘s get started!

The first thing to know is that Mega Millions holds two drawings every week. Here‘s an overview of the Mega Millions drawing schedule:

• Tuesdays – Drawings are held every Tuesday evening at 11:00 PM Eastern Time.

• Fridays – Drawings also take place every Friday night at 11:00 PM Eastern Time.

So if you want a chance to win, be sure to play both Tuesdays and Fridays!

This twice-per-week drawing format has been in place since May 2013. Previously, Mega Millions only held drawings once a week on Tuesdays. But in May 2013, Mega Millions strategically added a second drawing on Fridays to increase jackpot growth.

Having two chances each week to win the Mega Millions jackpot has proven extremely successful. Many of the biggest jackpots have been won since the change.

According to statistics provided by the Mega Millions website, some of the largest jackpots hit after the switch to two drawings per week include:

• $1.537 billion – Won in October 2018 in South Carolina. This remains the world record lottery jackpot of all time!

• $656 million – Won in March 2012 in Illinois, Kansas, and Maryland. This was the first Mega Millions jackpot to top $600 million.

• $648 million – Won in December 2013 in California and Georgia.

• $543 million – Won in July 2018 in California.

• $522 million – Won in June 2019 in California.

• $516 million – Won in May 2021 in Pennsylvania.

As you can see, having two drawings per week enables Mega Millions jackpots to quickly roll to absolutely enormous amounts!

To play Mega Millions on any drawing night, you‘ll need to buy your tickets before the sales cutoff time. Here are the key deadlines you need to know:

• On Tuesday drawing nights, ticket sales end at 10:45 PM Eastern Time.

• On Friday drawing nights, sales also end at 10:45 PM Eastern Time.

The reason sales stop 15 minutes before the actual 11:00 PM drawing is to allow time for all ticket transactions to be processed and validated. Remember, any tickets bought after 10:45 PM on Tuesday or Friday will not count for that night‘s drawing.

I like to buy my Mega Millions tickets first thing in the morning on Tuesday and Friday. That way I know I‘ll make the deadline and never have to worry about missing a chance to play those enormous jackpots!

Mega Millions tickets can be purchased in 45 participating states, as well as Washington D.C. and the U.S Virgin Islands. You have several easy options:

• In stores – Buy tickets at grocery stores, gas stations, convenience stores, tobacco shops, or any other authorized lottery retailers. This option is quick and easy.

• Online – Many states allow you to create accounts on official lottery websites to purchase tickets online. Some states even offer lottery subscription services that will automatically buy you tickets for every drawing.

• Mobile apps – Download your state‘s official app to conveniently buy Mega Millions tickets right from your phone or tablet.

• Lottery machines – Some states have self-service lottery ticket vending machines that allow you to quickly purchase tickets.

• By phone – A few states permit lottery ticket orders over the phone.

Personally, I prefer to buy my Mega Millions tickets from the convenience store around the corner from my home. The staff there is really friendly and they even gave me a Mega Millions hat as a gift!

Playing Mega Millions is fun and easy. When you play, you pick 5 main numbers from 1 to 70, plus 1 Mega Ball number from 1 to 25.

Then to play:

1. Choose 5 numbers from 1-70. You can use lucky numbers, quick picks, patterns, or other strategies.

2. Pick 1 Mega Ball number from 1-25. I like to use birthday numbers for my Mega Ball!

3. Buy a ticket before the 10:45 PM deadline on Tuesday or Friday.

4. Watch the drawing that night at 11:00 PM Eastern to see if you match all 5 numbers plus the Mega Ball to win the jackpot!

Matching all six numbers wins the Mega Millions jackpot, which starts at a guaranteed minimum of $40 million. Even if you don‘t hit the jackpot, you can win smaller prizes by matching some of the numbers.

One tip based on my experience – I always add the Megaplier option for an extra $1 per ticket. It can multiply your non-jackpot winnings up to 5 times if you match all 5 main numbers but not the Mega Ball!

All Mega Millions drawings take place at the television studios of WSB-TV in Atlanta, Georgia. WSB-TV has been the home of Mega Millions drawings since the game began in 1996.

The live drawings happen in a secure room audited by accounting firm KPMG. Lottery officials use numbered balls chosen from two separate ball drawing machines to select the winning numbers.

Having a trusted drawing studio like WSB-TV adds credibility to the game. The drawing process is closely supervised to ensure complete randomness, fairness, and integrity.

As someone who likes to watch the drawings live online every Tuesday and Friday night, it‘s reassuring to know the studio and protocols used are so strictly regulated.

While the Tuesday and Friday drawing format has remained consistent, Mega Millions has added some exciting changes in recent years:

• October 2017 – The matrix changed to picking 5 numbers from 1-70 and 1 Mega Ball from 1-25. This helped increase jackpot sizes.

• October 2018 – The starting guaranteed minimum jackpot was raised from $15 million to $40 million. This generates attention-grabbing top prizes right from the start.

• April 2020 – The Megaplier option was expanded to allow non-jackpot prizes to be multiplied by up to 5 times their normal amount. This created more millionaires overnight!

• September 2020 – Mega Millions introduced the Megaplier Reward, a feature that rewards players who purchased the Megaplier with a random prize of $5, $50 or $500.

In my opinion, all of these changes have made Mega Millions an even more exciting game. The larger starting jackpots, higher Megaplier multipliers, and new Megaplier rewards are awesome bonuses!

Now let‘s look at some of the biggest Mega Millions jackpots that have been hit since the drawings increased to two per week in May 2013:

• $1.537 billion – This record jackpot, sold in South Carolina in October 2018, still stands as the world‘s largest lottery prize ever won! Can you imagine taking home that huge of a jackpot?

• $656 million -Won in March 2012 in Illinois, Kansas, and Maryland. This was the first Mega Millions jackpot to exceed $600 million.

• $648 million – Won in California and Georgia in December 2013.

• $543 million – One lucky ticket in California won this massive prize in July 2018.

• $533 million – This half billion jackpot was hit in New Jersey back in March 2018.

• $522 million – A California ticket won this enormous $522 million jackpot in June 2019.

• $516 million – Just last year in May 2021, a Pennsylvania ticket won this $516 million top prize.

As you can see, thanks to two drawings every week, Mega Millions jackpots can quickly roll up to unbelievable amounts. Who knows, get lucky and you could be the next Mega Millions billionaire!

When Tuesday and Friday nights roll around, there are plenty of ways to watch the Mega Millions drawings live:

• Television – Many networks air the drawing live at 11:00 PM Eastern. Check your local listings.

• MegaMillions.com – The official website live streams the drawings and posts results.

• YouTube – The Mega Millions YouTube channel has videos of all drawings.

• Mobile app – Download the app to watch on your phone or tablet.

• Social media – Follow Mega Millions on Facebook or Twitter to see live streams.

• Newspapers – Local papers print the winning numbers the next morning.

I like to have the Mega Millions YouTube live stream running on my laptop while I watch TV as the numbers are announced. I get pumped seeing those shiny white balls bouncing around the machine!

To wrap things up, here are some key tips to keep in mind:

• Mega Millions drawings are held every Tuesday and Friday night at 11:00 PM Eastern Time. Always play both nights!

• Ticket sales end at 10:45 PM on drawing nights. Buy before this deadline to be eligible.

• Know your state‘s options for buying tickets in stores, online, or via mobile apps.

• Drawings take place in Atlanta at the studios of WSB-TV under tight security.

• Having two drawings per week enables jackpots to skyrocket quickly to insane amounts!

So remember to play Mega Millions on Tuesdays and Fridays for your shot at winning huge life-changing jackpots. Feel free to refer back to this guide anytime you need a refresher on playing Mega Millions. And good luck!!