Powerball vs Mega Millions

Side by side

Rules and prices change. Check the official sites for the current format.

The price changes the answer

If you spend $10, you get five Powerball plays but only two Mega Millions plays. Jackpot chance is proportional to plays, so five Powerball plays give you 5 in 292 million while two Mega Millions plays give 2 in 290 million. That is a 2.5 times better jackpot chance for Powerball, for the same money. If you are choosing purely on jackpot chance per dollar, Powerball wins.

Prizes and multipliers

Powerball offers an optional Power Play multiplier for $1 more. Mega Millions includes a multiplier of up to 10x in its $5 price. Both games have a $1 million base second prize: Powerball's doubles to $2 million with Power Play, while Mega Millions' can be multiplied by up to 10x, to $10 million. Mega Millions' built-in multiplier raises smaller prizes on every ticket, which some players like, but also helps explain the higher price.

Jackpot size

Mega Millions starts at $50 million, Powerball at $20 million. In practice, both games routinely reach hundreds of millions, and the jackpot size depends on sales and rollovers. A bigger jackpot never improves your odds. It only attracts more tickets, which raises the chance of sharing.

Expected value

Both games return less than half of their sales as prizes on average, so both have a negative expected value. Even at extreme jackpots, once the cash option, tax and likely sharing are included, a ticket is rarely worth its price. See our lottery expected value calculator to test a jackpot.

So which should you play?

• For jackpot chance per dollar, Powerball.
• For the best chance of winning something on any single play, Mega Millions by a small margin.
• For the simplest ticket, Mega Millions, with no add-on to choose.
• For the best odds of all, a smaller game. See which lottery has the best odds.

A $20 budget, compared

With $20 you can buy ten Powerball plays or four Mega Millions plays. The jackpot chance for ten Powerball plays is 10 in 292,201,338, about 1 in 29.2 million. For four Mega Millions plays it is 4 in 290,472,336, about 1 in 72.6 million. The Powerball buyer has about 2.5 times the jackpot chance and about 2.5 times the number of chances to win small prizes, though Mega Millions' built-in multiplier raises each smaller prize. Expected value per dollar is below 1 in both. If your goal is simply the biggest dream per dollar, Powerball is the better choice. If you prefer fewer, richer tickets, Mega Millions is the way.

Other factors people weigh

• Draw days: Powerball three nights a week, Mega Millions two. That affects how often you may be tempted to play.
• Availability: both are widely sold in the US, with a few states missing one or the other.
• Jackpot size: both can reach hundreds of millions or more. The cash option is about half for both.
• Spending: a $5 ticket makes it easy to spend $25 in one visit. Know your limit.

What neither game offers

Neither is a way to make money, and neither is the best deal available. Smaller games with fewer combinations give far better chances of winning something. See which lottery has the best odds, and the guide to choosing the best lottery.