By Todd Northrop
A rush of ticket sales for the half-billion-dollar Mega Millions jackpot has prompted lottery officials to revise their estimate for the Friday night drawing to $521 million.
The all-important lump-sum cash value is now estimated to be a staggering $317.2 million.
Friday's drawing will be the 24th since Mega Millions had a winner. The current jackpot run-up started on Jan. 9 as a $40 million grand prize.
According to the Maryland Lottery, if nobody wins the Friday jackpot, the jackpot for Tuesday, April 3 will be $612 million, making it the 3rd-largest in Mega Millions history and the 5th-largest in U.S. jackpot history. (See the top-25 cash and annuity jackpots below.)
Lottery players seeking to check the winning numbers Friday night are urged to use USA Mega (www.usamega.com). State lottery Web sites are normally sluggish or brought to a standstill during busy periods, while USA Mega normally remains responsive.
Mega Millions drawing results will be posted immediately after the 11:00 pm drawing at USA Mega. The number of winners and new jackpot will be announced after all participating states have reported their data, which normally occurs within a few hours after the drawing.
Tickets will remain on sale typically until 10:45 pm Eastern Time on Friday, although players should check with a lottery retailer in their state for the exact sales cutoff time. (Every state is different.) Players are strongly advised not to wait until the last minute.
The odds of winning the jackpot are approximately 1 in 302 million. The odds of winning any of the Mega Millions prizes are 1 in 24.
Mega Millions tickets cost $2 each. For an extra $1 per ticket players can purchase the Megaplier option, which multiplies any non-jackpot won by up to 5 times, depending on the Megaplier number drawn that evening.
The only state that does not offer the Megaplier is California, because state law banning fixed lottery prize amounts is not compatible with the fixed nature of the Megaplier payouts.
Lottery players can see an after-tax analysis of the current Mega Millions jackpot by visiting USA Mega's Jackpot Analysis page.
Mega Millions features nine different prize levels, ranging from $2 all the way up to the jackpot. Players can win even if they just match one number — the Mega Ball number.
Top 25 United States lottery jackpots of all time
Friday's Mega Millions jackpot currently stands as the 7th-largest lottery jackpot of all time in the United States.
- Powerball: $1.5864 billion, Jan. 13, 2016 - California, Florida, Tennessee
- Powerball: $758.7 million, Aug. 23, 2017 - Massachusetts
- Mega Millions: $656 million, Mar. 30, 2012 - Illinois, Kansas, Maryland
- Mega Millions: $636 million, Dec. 17, 2013 - California, Georgia
- Powerball: $590.5 million, May 18, 2013 - Florida
- Powerball: $587.5 million, Nov. 28, 2012 - Arizona, Missouri
- Powerball: $564.1 million, Feb. 11, 2015 - North Carolina, Puerto Rico, Texas
- Powerball: $559.7 million, Jan. 6, 2018 - New Hampshire
- Mega Millions: $536 million, Jul. 8, 2016 - Indiana
- Mega Millions: $521 million, Mar. 30, 2018 - Preliminary estimate, not won yet
- Powerball: $487 million, Jul. 30, 2016 - New Hampshire
- Powerball: $456.7 million, Mar. 17, 2018 - Pennsylvania
- Mega Millions: $451 million, Jan. 5, 2018 - Florida
- Powerball: $448.4 million, Aug. 7, 2013 - Minnesota, New Jersey (2)
- Powerball: $447.8 million, Jun. 10, 2017 - California
- Powerball: $435.3 million, Feb. 22, 2017 - Indiana
- Powerball: $429.6 million, May 7, 2016 - New Jersey
- Powerball: $425.3 million, Feb. 19, 2014 - California
- Powerball: $420.9 million, Nov. 26, 2016 - Tennessee
- Mega Millions: $414 million, Mar. 18, 2014 - Florida, Maryland
- Powerball: $399.4 million, Sep. 18, 2013 - South Carolina
- Mega Millions: $393 million, Aug. 11, 2017 - Illinois
- Mega Millions: $390 million, Mar. 6, 2007 - Georgia, New Jersey
- Mega Millions: $380 million, Jan. 4, 2011 - Idaho, Washington
- Powerball: $365 million, Feb. 18, 2006 - Nebraska
For those keeping score, the number of jackpots in the top 25, by lottery game, are:
- Powerball: 16
- Mega Millions: 9
Top 25 cash value jackpots
Since many lottery winners collect their winnings in cash, the lump-sum payout is an important measure of what a winning ticket could be worth.
Looking at the cash value, the upcoming Mega Millions jackpot ranks as the 11th-largest cash value in U.S. history.
- Powerball: $983.5 million cash, Jan. 13, 2016 ($1.5864 billion annuity) - California, Florida, Tennessee
- Powerball: $480.5 million cash, Aug. 23, 2017 ($758.7 million annuity) - Massachusetts
- Mega Millions: $471 million cash, Mar. 30, 2012 ($656 million annuity) - Illinois, Kansas, Maryland
- 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: $347.6 million cash, Dec. 17, 2013 ($636 million annuity) - California, Georgia
- Powerball: $336.8 million cash, Jul. 30, 2016 ($487 million annuity) - New Hampshire
- Mega Millions: $317.2 million cash, Mar. 30, 2018 ($521 million annuity) - Preliminary estimate, not won yet
- Powerball: $284 million cash, May 7, 2016 ($429.6 million annuity) - New Jersey
- Mega Millions: $281.9 million cash, Jan. 5, 2018 ($451 million annuity) - Florida
- Powerball: $279.1 million cash, Jun. 10, 2017 ($447.8 million annuity) - California
- Powerball: $273.9 million cash, Mar. 17, 2018 ($456.7 million annuity) - Pennsylvania
- Powerball: $263.5 million cash, Feb. 22, 2017 ($435.3 million annuity) - Indiana
- Powerball: $258.2 million cash, Aug. 7, 2013 ($448.4 million annuity) - Minnesota, New Jersey (2)
- Powerball: $254.7 million cash, Nov. 26, 2016 ($420.9 million annuity) - Tennessee
- Mega Millions: $246.5 million cash, Aug. 11, 2017 ($393 million annuity) - Illinois
- Mega Millions: $240 million cash, Jan. 4, 2011 ($380 million annuity) - Idaho, Washington
- Mega Millions: $233.1 million cash, Mar. 6, 2007 ($390 million annuity) - Georgia, New Jersey
- Mega Millions: $230.9 million cash, Mar. 18, 2014 ($414 million annuity) - Florida, Maryland
- Powerball: $227.8 million cash, Feb. 19, 2014 ($425.3 million annuity) - California
- Powerball: $224.7 million cash, Aug. 15, 2012 ($337 million annuity) - Michigan
- Powerball: $223.3 million cash, Sep. 18, 2013 ($399.4 million annuity) - South Carolina
The number of cash value jackpots in the top 25, by lottery game, are:
- Powerball: 16
- Mega Millions: 9
I guess the time to strike is now! No better time than the present! That's why we call it a gift. The future is not certain.
Good luck everyone!
The thirty-year annuity would be tempting if I was forty years younger. I will be satisfied with the lump-sum cash value. Most of us here could do so much good with $317.2 million.
LP and USAMEGA could see a lot of traffic tonight.
By the way, most banks will probably be closed this Saturday due to it being Easter weekend. We cannot get to our safety deposit boxes until Monday.
<looking at the homepage of the MM>
HMMMMM???...... "$521 Million ...Cash option: $31 Million"
Do you see a mistake? Or are you overwhelmed with the numbers and amounts of cash?
I couldn't resist LOL
www.megamillions.com/
Take a look
Now I see said the blind man. There was not a mistake on USAMega but on a website I rarely use. Thanks.
A Cadillac. A gas guzzler. You will be visiting the gas station often.
At least you will have a very comfortable ride. Enjoy!
Cadillac ??? LOLOLOL..come awwwn Music,put yer bifocals on.. That's a Bentley.. besides,DPOLY1 never posts anything else
a Bentley? This is even worse. A foreign car.
I am bullish on America.
thanks for the help CDanaT.
I see your Bentley and raise you one of these
Who bothers using that website?
A Bentley Mulsanne actually!
Affordable if I win the Jackpot!
I sat in the back seat of one exactly like this one in Pittsburgh!
HEY HEY, be nice
!!!!!..It's a heck of ALOT better than that darn Powerball site 
ps... they corrected the main page to 317 million
Obviously you have never been in a Bentley ...............
The people that sell and maintain them live right here in Pennsylvania!
I don't think that I could get out of that one LOL!
I'd be stuck!
I wrote to the megamillions.com staff and asked them to publish the cash value in its accurate form ($317.2 million, rather than leaving the decimal off like they do currently), and while they said they would not being publishing the full precision, I was happy to have received such a quick response.
I think at this point it is "standard" to show the cash value with one decimal precision, but unfortunately the official Mega Millions website will not do it.
Good point music*. My bank is never open on Saturday's except for drive through, so my safe deposit box cannot be accessed.
..are you overwhelmed with the numbers and amount of cash? Hardly.l embrace the challenge to be swirling around in millons of dollars.l would be satisfied with a 2-3 way split. I could live with that.
For some reason l don't trust those hinges on the saucer section. What if it jams, better have WD40 handy.
dpoly1, You are correct when you write, "Obviously you have never been in a Bentley..." Good for Pennsylvania for having those jobs. I have ridden in a Cady and it is very comfortable.
For filming a horror movie, yeah. Notice the middle section of the house. Huge window eyes above and a mouth below to devour someone.No thanks.
According to our wonderful Texas Lottery site, Should the jackpot roll tonight, the estimated jackpot for next Tuesday would be $612 Million.
http://www.txlottery.org/export/sites/lottery/Documents/news_releases/2018/03-30-18_MM-Jackpot_Alert_press_release.pdf
DPoly, how did it feel to sit in the back of a Mulsanne? If you bought one, would you drive it yourself or hire a chauffeur?
This particular car happens to be a Rolls Royce.
I thought MegaMillions is payed out over 25 years?
To me, it's more than I could handle.
I want to live and enjoy it peacefully, not hiring 5 accountants, 3 lawyers, and 30 security cams. 
A cool 5 to 10 mill is enough for me. 
Isn't that the way it's suppose to be? 
As if on cue, My lottery dream home is on HGTV
"Obviously you have never been in a Bentley ."
Neither have I, but that doesn't keep me from knowing that they're not American cars. But it's nice to know that you won't have to go to a different state when you need a tune up.
"Should the jackpot roll tonight, the estimated jackpot for next Tuesday would be $612 Million."
And it will almost certainly finish higher than that, but the big question is will a roll lead to a new record, or is jackpot fatigue so bad that we're still not at th epoint where it will jump $125 million or more?
"more than I could handle."
Fell free to PM me if you win, and we'll discuss how much of the excess I can take off your hands.
Re: Bentley
Bentley
British manufacturer of luxury automobiles
BentleyMotors.com
Bentley Motors Limited is a British manufacturer and marketer of luxury cars and SUVs—and a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG since 1998. en.wikipedia.org
David Lee Edwards paid for a Bentley that an older friend picked out. The friend got the salesman to reduce the price from $260,000.00 to $240,000.00 LOL. David might have purchased one for himself as well.
Maybe dreaming big is a key to the jackpot.
Jack in the box.
When you claim your prize you will have to decide whether to take Annuity which is paid out over thirty years. Or take the Cash Lump Sum. This is State specific. My advice comes from California.
Both Megamillions and Power Ball have similar rules.
fellini, Stay with Lottery Post and USAMega and you will learn a lot.
David Lee' jackpot Check acceptance speech was " emotional" for him. Telling the general public that he was an ex con, and he wanted to be a great caretaker of this new wealth. Then he flew off the Vegas to celebrate and lost himself along the way. Within days of landing there, he called up his attorney telling him to get " another advance" on his money to the tune of * l think 200K.
Reason: We, the future Mrs and him were having too much of a great time, and in order for this Greatness to continue, an infusion of More Money was necessary. When l first heard of DLE, he had just purchased his medieval swords, and had bought his lil pumpkin a Hummer.He's is a story that stands out there as " Do Not Do This If You Come Into Money."
l just got back from visiting a store or two in my neighboring cities to purchase MM tickets.l can tell you in all honesty that there was zero excitement for this jackpot. Apart from California having multiple outlets selling lottery tickets- there was No long lines as in the Past. Anyways: Lets take a deep breath and win this thing.Greatness awaits!
Roll, baby, roll!
I would like another shot at the big jackpot too Redd!-weshar75
What's going on with this announcement of winner/rollover? It's like it will never be known!
A state has screwed up and is holding the rest hostage.
That state IT department right now:
None of the state lotteries so far have reported they have any winners. So that's a good sign.
How do you know this? Was it on the news? Maybe one of Tipton's relatives hacked the servers/computer system in Atlanta...just saying.
Could ransomware have hit the Megamillion system like it did the city of Atlanta?
Almost 8am and still no results to whether there was a winner or not?! The Russians must have hacked Mega Millions
