By Todd Northrop
After a run of 31 drawings without a jackpot winner, the 32nd drawing of the multi-state Mega Millions game produced a single $1.58 billion winner last night when one lottery ticket sold in Florida matched all five numbers plus the Mega Ball.
It was the 8th time a lottery jackpot had grown to more than $1 billion, and the seventh time a single ticket won $1 billion or more.
The winner of the unimaginable haul will choose between being paid $1.58 billion in 30 annually-increasing payments over 29 years or the lump-sum cash value of $783.3 million.
The whopping jackpot is the third-largest the world has ever seen, and the largest in Mega Millions game history.
According to USA Mega's Mega Millions Jackpot Analysis, after all taxes are paid, the winner either will receive $996.5 million by the end of 29 years, or $493.5 million in cash all at once. Because Florida has no state taxes on lottery prizes, the winner only has federal taxes to worry about.
However, both annuity and cash jackpot values are still estimates, and according to a statement released by the Mega Millions group, the actual number may turn out to be larger once all sales are accounted for.
Per Florida law, the winner has 180 days from the date of the drawing to come forward to claim the prize, but only sixty days if they want the cash option. The winner will have to claim the prize in person at the Florida Lottery headquarters in Tallahassee.
The winning ticket — which was a quick pick, according to the Florida Lottery — was sold at the Publix grocery store at 630 Atlantic Boulevard in Neptune Beach, roughly 15 miles east of Jacksonville. The retailer will receive a $100,000 bonus commission for selling the jackpot-winning Mega Millions ticket.
The Mega Millions winning numbers for Tuesday, August 8, 2023, were 13, 19, 20, 32, and 33, with Mega Ball number 14. The Megaplier was 2.
It's hard to imagine the winner getting much sleep Tuesday night, as they try to process winning such an unimaginably huge lottery jackpot awarded to a single ticket — the one they're holding in their hand.
Millions of lottery players in the USA and around the world are wondering what they are planning to do with all that loot.
What is the first thing you would do?
The public eventually will find out the identity of the winner, although Florida does have partial privacy laws that allow a winner to delay release of their information for a period of 90 days following the claim.
Lottery Post maintains a list of every state's anonymity policies for lottery winners, and Lottery Post published a comprehensive video presentation about each state's anonymity laws.
Fortunately, even if you didn't win the jackpot, the Mega Millions game still offers another 8 ways to win lower-tier prizes.
In addition to the jackpot winner, 7 lucky players matched the first 5 numbers for a $1,000,000 prize: 1 from California, 1 from Florida, 1 from North Carolina, 1 from Pennsylvania, 2 from Texas, and 1 from West Virginia.
Two of the second prize-winning tickets — the tickets sold in Florida and North Carolina — were purchased with the Megaplier option for an extra $1, multiplying their prizes to $2 million because the Megaplier number 2 was drawn.
The California second prize winner will claim a prize of $3,383,371 because unlike all the other Mega Millions states, California awards all prizes on a pari-mutuel basis, meaning the prizes will change each drawing based on the number of tickets sold and the number of tickets that won at each prize level.
166 tickets matched four white numbers plus the Mega Ball and won $10,000. Of those tickets, 28 were purchased with the Megaplier option, increasing the prize to $20,000, and 29 were sold in California, where the prize was $9,246 this drawing.
In total, more than 7 million tickets won prizes across the game's nine prize tiers in Friday's drawing. Apart from the jackpot, there were $45 million in prizes awarded last night.
A complete list of payouts for all prizes and the official drawing video can be found at USA Mega's Mega Millions Drawing Information page, as well as at Lottery Post's Mega Millions Prize Payouts page.
The record-holder for the world's largest lottery jackpot was a $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot in Nov. 2022, won by a single ticket sold in California. The incredibly lucky winner was Edwin Castro, who claimed the prize in February of 2023, providing minimal public information about himself. What little is known about Castro comes from public filings, and includes the purchase of a house or two, as well as being the subject of dubious lawsuits that are unfortunately predictable these days.
The odds of winning the Mega Millions jackpot are 1 in 302.6 million.
Had no one matched all of the numbers drawn lottery officials said the next jackpot would have reached $1.8 billion.
With the jackpot being won Tuesday, the next Mega Millions annuity jackpot estimate for Friday's drawing is reset to its starting point of $20 million.
Mega Millions is currently offered for sale in 45 states, plus Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Drawings are Tuesdays and Fridays at 11:00 pm Eastern Time. Tickets cost $2 each.
The Mega Millions winning numbers are published at USA Mega (www.usamega.com) minutes after the drawing takes place.
Top 25 United States lottery jackpots of all time
Friday's $1.58 billion Mega Millions jackpot stands as the third-largest lottery jackpot of all time in the United States — and the world.
- Powerball: $2.0401 billion, Nov. 7, 2022 (40 rollovers, starting at $20 million) - California
- Powerball: $1.5864 billion, Jan. 13, 2016 (19 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - California, Florida, Tennessee
- Mega Millions: $1.58 billion, Aug. 8, 2023 (31 rollovers, starting at $20 million) - Florida
- Mega Millions: $1.537 billion, Oct. 23, 2018 (25 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - South Carolina
- Mega Millions: $1.348 billion, Jan. 13, 2023 (25 rollovers, starting at $20 million) - Maine
- Mega Millions: $1.337 billion, Jul. 29, 2022 (29 rollovers, starting at $20 million) - Illinois
- Powerball: $1.0798 billion, Jul. 19, 2023 (38 rollovers, starting at $20 million) - California
- Mega Millions: $1.05 billion, Jan. 22, 2021 (36 rollovers, starting at $20 million) - Michigan
- Powerball: $768.4 million, Mar. 27, 2019 (25 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - Wisconsin
- Powerball: $758.7 million, Aug. 23, 2017 (20 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - Massachusetts
- Powerball: $754.6 million, Feb. 6, 2023 (33 rollovers, starting at $20 million) - Washington
- Powerball: $731.1 million, Jan. 20, 2021 (35 rollovers, starting at $20 million) - Maryland
- Powerball: $699.8 million, Oct. 4, 2021 (40 rollovers, starting at $20 million) - California
- Powerball: $687.8 million, Oct. 27, 2018 (21 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - Iowa, New York
- Mega Millions: $656 million, Mar. 30, 2012 (18 rollovers, starting at $12 million) - Illinois, Kansas, Maryland
- Mega Millions: $648 million, Dec. 17, 2013 (21 rollovers, starting at $12 million) - California, Georgia
- Powerball: $632.6 million, Jan 5, 2022 (39 rollovers, starting at $20 million) - California, Wisconsin
- Powerball: $590.5 million, May 18, 2013 (13 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - Florida
- Powerball: $587.5 million, Nov. 28, 2012 (15 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - Arizona, Missouri
- Powerball: $564.1 million, Feb. 11, 2015 (20 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - North Carolina, Puerto Rico, Texas
- Powerball: $559.7 million, Jan. 6, 2018 (20 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - New Hampshire
- Mega Millions: $543 million, Jul. 24, 2018 (22 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - California
- Mega Millions: $536 million, Jul. 8, 2016 (34 rollovers, starting at $15 million) - Indiana
- Mega Millions: $533 million, Mar. 30, 2018 (23 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - New Jersey
- Mega Millions: $522 million, Jun. 7, 2019 (24 rollovers, starting at $40 million) - California
For those keeping score, the number of jackpots in the top 25, by lottery game, are:
- Powerball: 14
- Mega Millions: 11
Top 25 cash value jackpots
The Friday Mega Millions jackpot ranks as the 4th-largest cash value in world history.
- Powerball: $997.6 million cash, Nov. 7, 2022 ($2.0401 billion annuity) - California
- Powerball: $983.5 million cash, Jan. 13, 2016 ($1.5864 billion annuity) - California, Florida, Tennessee
- Mega Millions: $877.8 million cash, Oct. 23, 2018 ($1.537 billion annuity) - South Carolina
- Mega Millions: $783.3 million cash, Aug. 8, 2023 ($1.58 billion annuity) - Florida
- Mega Millions: $780.5 million cash, Jul. 29, 2022 ($1.337 billion annuity) - Illinois
- Mega Millions: $776.6 million cash, Jan. 22, 2021 ($1.05 billion annuity) - Michigan
- Mega Millions: $723.5 million cash, Jan. 13, 2023 ($1.348 billion annuity) - Maine
- Powerball: $558.1 million cash, Jul. 19, 2023 ($1.0798 billion annuity) - California
- Powerball: $546.8 million cash, Jan. 20, 2021 ($731.1 million annuity) - Maryland
- Powerball: $496 million cash, Oct. 4, 2021 ($699.8 million annuity) - California
- Powerball: $480.5 million cash, Aug. 23, 2017 ($758.7 million annuity) - Massachusetts
- Powerball: $477 million cash, Mar. 27, 2019 ($768.4 million annuity) - Wisconsin
- Mega Millions: $471 million cash, Mar. 30, 2012 ($656 million annuity) - Illinois, Kansas, Maryland
- Powerball: $450.2 million cash, Jan. 5, 2022 ($632.6 million annuity) - California, Wisconsin
- Powerball: $407.2 million cash, Feb. 6, 2023 ($754.6 million annuity) - Washington
- Powerball: $396.2 million cash, Oct. 27, 2018 ($687.8 million annuity) - Iowa, New York
- Powerball: $384.7 million cash, Nov. 28, 2012 ($587.5 million annuity) - Arizona, Missouri
- Powerball: $381.1 million cash, Feb. 11, 2015 ($564.1 million annuity) - North Carolina, Puerto Rico, Texas
- Mega Millions: $378 million cash, Jul. 8, 2016 ($536 million annuity) - Indiana
- Powerball: $370.9 million cash, May 18, 2013 ($590.5 million annuity) - Florida
- Powerball: $352 million cash, Jan. 6, 2018 ($559.7 million annuity) - New Hampshire
- Mega Millions: $349.3 million cash, May 21, 2021 ($516 million annuity) - Pennsylvania
- Mega Millions: $347.6 million cash, Dec. 17, 2013 ($648 million annuity) - California, Georgia
- Powerball: $341.7 million cash, Jul. 30, 2016 ($487 million annuity) - New Hampshire
- Mega Millions: $340 million cash, Jun. 7, 2019 ($522 million annuity) - California
The number of cash value jackpots in the top 25, by lottery game, are:
- Powerball: 15
- Mega Millions: 10
Well congrats to the winner(s). May luck and blessings be with me next time. Looks like i can save some money for a few weeks at least.
This is the fourth jackpot winning MegaMillions ticket sold in Florida and the first at a Publix.
While Publix is the largest lottery retailer in Florida, 7 Eleven has sold two of the other three jackpot winners.
I'm in Florida but it wasn't me.... I wouldn't be posting this if it was..... G5
I wonder what the media is going to do??? Which Publix will they descend upon??
There are two Publix's on Atlantic Boulevard in Neptune Beach. One is at Seminole Shoppes and the other is right beside it in Neptune Beach Plaza.... G5
Since I have the exact address in the story, I'm sure they'll figure it out.
MANY MANY CONGRATULATIONS to the winner... It's nice to see other states than California as the Jackpot winner....
Congrats to whoever is the winner of that huge jackpot. Always budget your money to succeed in your new life. I will say great time to win Powerball tonight. No one will care about that amount. 🤞🤞
Congrats to the lucky ticket purchaser/holder. Enjoy your newly acquired wealth for many years to come. While I am a bit envious, I also know you have some serious work to undertake before the big collection date. Good luck.
Publix always gets a lot of winners you always see the fantasy 5 winners comming from Publix
Congrats to the big winner and While I too am a bit green with envy, it can be said that I won't lose any sleep over the seemingly infinite number of sleepless nights you'll face in the coming weeks
least it wasnt calfornia all that money wow one winner
Not a 1st, Publix was the winner of the $694mil by lady name Gloria some years ago in Jacksonville
I was ready to finally enlist the help of the Lottery Lawyer Kurt D Panouses, alas it was not my time yet.
I was hoping for it too. Will I be in Friday? I sure will.
Congrats to the winner
Wow congrats to the winner in Florida!
Suck it California, you all LOST!
Mental illness is real folks...Look no further than this post.
FL Lottery states it was a qp nbr
WOW!! Check that out a large state (population) winner again! The 3rd largest state in the union FLORIDA , who saw that coming? This guy did
. All the people down voting my previous comments (either delusional or work for the lottery) and just like i said the CALIFORNIA/BIG STATE Mega Millions/Powerball game. My state was winning more when the lottery had the old rules but now the new rules allow for bigger jackpots but less winners and they are usually in a large state. The lottery has become Halle Berry nice to look at but unattainable by the average guy (read little states).
6 of the 7 secondary winner were from big states with WV being the exception. I wonder who said that would happen? This guy did
I think the small states should boycott the National games like Mega Millions and the Powerball because they WILL lose more than they are going to win. If they played their local lottery games those jackpots will increase and somebody winning from that state will most likely win. I PICKED MY NAME VERY CAREFULLY
Congrats to the winner or winners if it is a group. Yet another Quick Pick ticket wins a major prize. The best "system" would seem to be get quick picks
The winner is an older couple, one born in 1932, the other in 1933. They have three grandchildren, ages 13, 14, and 20. The 14 year old is the stand out.
It's easy to win the lottery in you're an older couple in Florida.
has it ever occurred to you that some people are just sick 2 death of some extra negative commentary?!?
i picked my nose very carefully.
good one.
Thankz to Ole Stat$talker... anutha Billionaire iz born..
Ya Welcome
Wow,they must have their computers for issuing winnings blocked out in upper northeast,tri states.i purchased 50 dollars worth for that drawing as i'm a retired military and follow lottery but only got one number out of a hundred numbers.time to have a different hobby.
boo,again!
I bought 6 lines and matched 2 numbers. Even so, I keep trying and have bought my ticket for Friday.
I had my two MM tickets QP - matched zero digits 🤣🤣
But we never give up - consistency, we were told, pays off at some point.
Got my tonight PB ticket and my Friday MM ticket.
Since when was 20M cheapskate?? I will have 6.2M after taxes.
Good luck to all with PB tonight.
Last night's MEGAMILLIONS Winners are legit and not like the ones alluded to in the previous post.
YO. WORD UP. JUST HEARD THE WORD IS NEWS WILL SOON DROP REGARDING A HUGE POWERBALL JACKPOT THAT WAS WON IN JERSEY A FEW YEARS AGO. WE'RE TOLD IT WILL BE MORE SENSATIONAL THAN TIPTON. WE ALL ASKED WHO DROPPED THIS, IT WASN'T THE TWITTER BIRD, ITS BEEN X'ED OUT, SOMETHING STOMPED ON HIS LITTLE ASS, SMASHED, RUBBED OUT. WE'RE TOLD TO STAY TUNED, GREED HAS LET THE CAT OUT OF THE BAG. GREED & HIS BUDDY AVARICE WILL DESTROY EVERYTIME.
ChrissyMissy
It's not California ok
yes POWERBALL is higher now!
ones who pick their nose get COVID a lot.
U r correct bcuz know someone who does that and got Covid 3 times
don't touch nothing she touches
800 million goes back to the house if lump sum is taken. Nothing but a scam
weekly world news and national enquirer should hire you.
I wouldn't call it a scam.
Especially when one is buying a ticket knowing from the start that X amount will "go back to the house"
It's a choice. A personal choice.
If one doesn't like the terms, they just don't play.
🥵🥵🥵🥵🥵
Congrats! all your sweet dreams have become reality! Jacksonville area has been lucky [must be something the St John river water :)
[though it was rather sad for millions of people around the country who'd chipped in to grow the pot for months, then one lucky person came in to get it all .:), but anyway, yall would have another chance to go at it probably in about 3 or 4 months ;)
I prefer to consider it truth and not negative commentary. NOTHING I SAID WAS A LIE! People love lies and comforting words and hate truth. That sounds biblical in the end times people will love lies and hate truth.
On to the the next LIE! SQUIRREL! The Powerball is increasing pretty quickly, go buy a ticket and enrich some other predetermined winner.
I got hired, and was told to bring your momma with me.
We haven't had a new fantastical "inside scoop" story teller in a while. There use to be a guy years ago that claimed he worked for some unknown lottery.
* California got 2nd prize this time around, and that's ok. As for grabbing the top prize: it's as Yoda once said " it will be!"
* It's gonna happen whether you like it like it or not. You can't have Californian lottery players taking their hard earned millions and simply handing it over to a player or players in another State & thinking that's ok, we gonna want it back. Get real will ya.
Are you arguing with yourself?
* Aah, yeah. Especially when l get a thumbs down for speaking the truth. I always speak to myself when l want solid advice.
You don't have to be
CrAzY 
to be a lottery player, but it helps.
You continue to fail to understand the mathematical probabilities of hundreds of times more sales in those states.
"Wasn't me"....
I stopped believing in coincidences a long time ago.
Don't understand
can u break it down?
I built an algorithm. Every lottery doesn't matter which one uses a sequence of 2 sets of 2 digit numbers which builds out a column of 6; 2 digit numbers. You will have a constant and a coefficient.
It's still a work in progress but just know if they don't won't you to win, you will not win. Why do you think the cut off time is at 10:00 p.m. eastern and the "dRaW" is at 11:00 eastern??? I'm no math mathematician by any sorts, just a pissed off FF that's tired of working 2 jobs. It really sucks when they mess with the matrix. When you put 58 they put 05, 08. When you put 14 they put 41, when you put 19 they put 10. But at least I get the Powerball or Mega Ball every draw. So I at least win my money back.
the truth is out there. trust no one. in space, no one can hear you scream.
California secondary prize was not too shabby, they did bettOR (sic) than Megaplier players this time around.
Why is it that when only one ticket wins a big jackpot like this $1.58 Billion some people say that it's not fair for only one ticket to take it all?
I bet they would be upset if they were the winner and had to share with three or four other winners.
Go figure
The final jackpot tally for Tuesday's big drawing was $1.602 billion, with a cash option of $794.2 million. The updated amount makes the jackpot #2 in history, second only to last November's $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot. See the Aug. 8 Mega Millions Drawing Detail page at USA Mega for all the details and official drawing video.
Including duplicate tickets, 57% percent of all the MM combos were sold so based on sales, only one winning ticket was expected. The July 29, 2022 $1.28 Billion jackpot had twice as many tickets sold. It's possible sales for the billion dollar jackpots are down because there is usually only one winning ticket.
Both Michigan and Massachusetts discontinued games where when jackpots reached a prize level, the excess money was paid out to secondary prizes. It wasn't the same as having multiple jackpot winners, but more players benefited by winning more on secondary prizes.
Wonder if the same people saying "it's not fair for only one ticket to take it all" said the same about the WinFall games?
You continue to fail to understand that i think the lottery system is run by corrupted people it doesn't matter the math. Every organization from the governments to corporations throughout the world has corruption in it and you want to tell me the lottery which controls billions is the only exception. Don't make me horse laugh! Delusion is for men not women.
I'd have no problems sharing the jackpot with a few people.
CORRECTION: Delusion is for women not men.
delusion is for you.
I concur; if they want you to win you will and more than likely they don't want you to win. So the question is who are the people they want to win and why?? $1.6 Billion Dollar Question - With the technology we have in 2023 why does the lottery commission have to wait a whole hour after the cut-off time before the numbers are PRESENTED? Asked and answered. They could start those machines 5 minutes after the cut-off time and roll out those numbers. But they wont, i also believe the odds are astronomical because they are a moving target that is more elusive than the 1 in 292M or 1 in 302M advertised.
What is the purpose of rigging a lottery drawing by the government and how exactly could they do this. They want it hit to collect the taxes one would think. You think it is rigged for certain states to win it. Not logical at all. You see the balls bouncing around in a plastic drum. How could they ever know what those are going to be ahead of time in such a short span of time between drawings how would they know what combinations are covered or not when then can still be purchased minutes before the drawing.
classic case of someone who needs to eat more vegetables
There is a cabal of elites who are connected to Epstein Island and other Pedo islands (yes there is more than one island) across the world so they can R ((ape)) underage youth. There are elites that are involved with kidnapping people across the world to steal body parts and enslave especially women to sell on the black market. There are elites in the US and around the world trying to sabotage the US dollar with artificial inflation and the pushing of BRICS so they can usher in a digital currency in the US and than later issue a global digital currency to control the actions and movements of the people. But you don't think they can control simple lotteries where BILLIONS and BILLIONS of dollars are at stake ?????? i have been playing and studying the games for decades and yes i have seen some highly suspicious things that i will not discuss.
But you ask what is the purpose of rigging a lottery drawing ?? I'll quote the movie character Frank Lopez from Scarface on this one: "DON'T UNDERESTIMATE THE OTHER GUY'S GREED!" If some people could steal a penny from you e.g. Credit Card companies with their 0.005% increase while insignificant to the individual it will become millions and hundreds of millions over the decades when you add up all their customers.
wow. tell us more.
"You think it is rigged for certain states to win it."
Considering Florida and California have no state tax on lottery winnings, it makes no sense to rig a MM or PB drawing to benefit either state. Several states collect over 8% in state taxes and it's over 10% in a couple.
They don't want the facts to get in the way of their conspiracy theories.
Men follow women so delusion gets both genders in the end.
Anyway....
Congratulations to the winner!
May you live a long life and enjoy your lottery win!
I'd be OK with that. I have my ticket for tonight.
NO STORYTELLING HERE BUDDY. Y'ALL GONNA BE SURPRISED! SURPRISE SURPRISE SURPRISE (A LA GOMER PYLE} THEY BE SAYING NAW, NAW, NAW. I DON'T BELIEVE IT. YES. YES. YES. GONNA BE SOME FACE PALMING AND JAW DROPPING IN THE OLD TOWN TONIGHT. JUST STAY TUNED.
you said this 8 days ago. in all that time, have you eaten a single vegetable?
I am not your buddy. I only associate with vegetarians. You would be less frantic if you ate your greens.
Hopefully this winner is a bit smarter than the idiot who won the $2B jackpot in California & didn't even have the sense to move out of LA, let alone out of Califailure.
Crazy that the mm once again Florida last night. interesting. Must be the combo system.