Illinois Ticket Lands $533,000,000 Mega Millions Prize!
Wednesday March 11th 2026The Mega Millions jackpot had been steadily rolling up since it was last won on December 2 for $90 million in New Jersey, making plenty of runner-up millionaires along the way. But on Tuesday, March 10, one lucky Illinois player finally won the $533 million jackpot!
The All-Important Numbers
The winning Mega Millions numbers for March 10 were 16-21-30-35-65, with a gold Mega Ball of 7. Two tickets managed to land multi-million-dollar prizes by matching all five main numbers without the Mega Ball: $4 million to a Maryland ticket, and $5 million to another Illinois ticket.
The star of the draw though, was the $533 million jackpot, also won in Illinois. The cash option is estimated at a dizzying $244.2 million. After tax, the annuity would be worth roughly $310.6 million, while the cash lump sum would see the winner paid $141.8 million.
There's a possibility (a slim one, of course) that the jackpot and the $5 million Illinois win were the same player using a lottery system to cover additional Mega Balls. Wouldn't that be something!
Big Win for the Prairie State
Tuesday's Mega Millions win is the third biggest jackpot ever won in Illinois, although there have been many greater Mega Millions jackpots across the rest of the USA - this one isn't even in the top-ten.
The top two Illinois jackpots, both also Mega Millions, are $552 million won in 2024, and a mind-boggling $1.337 billion in 2022. The Cash Option alone for that one was worth $780.5 million, substantially more than the latest winner's annuity option. Still, we're sure they won't be too disappointed.
Lottery winners in Illinois are permitted to remain anonymous - an option that's becoming more and more popular in recent years. That said, the Illinois Lottery may yet disclose the store where the winning ticket was purchased, and they will often provide an anonymous winner statement when the lucky individual comes to make their claim.
The Multistate Lottery Scene
Now that the Mega Millions jackpot is back to its $50 million starting value, there aren't really any multistate lottery games out there at the moment with massive jackpots. Powerball is at $58 million and Lotto America is at $17.86 million for their upcoming draws, although Lotto America doesn't reach the same scale as the Big Two by design - it's got much better jackpot odds.
Looking for something to play in the meantime? Visit our Tickets Page to see if there's anything available online in your state or country.
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