By: Najla Alexander
NJ Lottery officials announced that the Mega Millions jackpot has reached $714 million heading into tonight’s drawing.
There have been four jackpots won this year across the country in the multi-state game, lottery officials stated. This is the ninth-highest jackpot in game history. The cash value of the prize is $334.1 million.
According to NJ Lottery officials, in 2024, a Monmouth County player won a $1.128 billion jackpot, now the sixth-largest in game history.
The top jackpots:
· $1.602 billion: Aug. 8, 2023, Florida
· $1.537 billion: Oct. 23, 2018, South Carolina
· $1.348 billion: Jan. 13, 2023, Maine
· $1.337 billion: July 29, 2022, Illinois
· $1.269 billion: Dec. 27, 2024, California
· $1.128 billion: March 26, 2024, Monmouth County, New Jersey
· $1.050 billion: Jan. 22, 2021, Michigan
· $810 million: Sept. 10, 2024, Texas
· $714 million: Current run
· $656 million: March 30, 2012, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland
· $648 million: Dec. 17, 2013, California, Georgia
Players don’t have to win the jackpot to win big. After the game rules changed in April to allow a free random multiplier, 15 New Jersey Lottery players have seen their $10,000 base prizes double, triple, or quadruple. In early October, an Ocean County player won $3 million after getting a 3X multiplier on their $1 million base prize, lottery officials stated. In June, a Bergen County player saw their $1 million prize jump to $4 million thanks to the multiplier.
Players should also be sure to check old tickets. In May, a Mercer County player uncovered a four-month-old Mega Millions ticket. After checking the numbers, the player realized it was worth $1 million, according to NJ Lottery officials.
The Mega Millions prize is just one of several notable jackpots New Jersey players are trying to capture:
· Powerball: $376 million jackpot. The next drawing is on Wednesday.
· Pick-6: Heading into Thursday’s drawing, the jackpot is $2.1 million. A Hudson County player won the $22 million jackpot on Saturday.
· Jersey Cash 5: The daily game’s jackpot is $824,000 heading into tonight’s drawing.
· Cash4Life: The daily draw game offers “for life” prizes of $1,000 a day for life and $1,000 a week for life, with cash value options of $7 million and $1 million, respectively. In 2025, one player has won the $7 million prize and five have each won $1 million, including the prize won Thursday at a Cranford Krauser’s in Union County.