What are the winning Mega Millions numbers for Friday, May 1, 2026? Jackpot and prize money
A Mega Millions jackpot of nearly $180 million was on the line in the lottery’s latest drawing. Check out the winning numbers.
The Mega Millions jackpot is close to reaching $200 million, after rolling over again on Friday night.
What were the winning Mega Millions numbers for Friday, May 1?
The winning white balls were 16-21-27-41-61. The gold Mega Ball was 24.
Watch the latest Mega Millions drawing:
What is the Mega Millions jackpot now?
Heading into Friday’s drawing, the Mega Million jackpot sat at an estimated $178 million, with a cash option of $79.6 million. After no tickets landed the top prize, however, the pot has now grown to an estimated $195 million, with an $86.3 million cash option. These figures are all pre-tax.
When is the next drawing?
The next Mega Millions drawing is scheduled to take place at 11:00 p.m. ET/8:00 p.m. PT on Tuesday, May 5, 2026.
How to play Mega Millions
A single Mega Millions ticket costs $5. To play, select five numbers between 1 and 70 for the white balls, and one number from 1 to 24 for the gold Mega Ball. There are nine ways to win a prize, ranging from recovering your initial buy-in to the jackpot. For non-jackpot prizes, players are randomly assigned a multiplier, which can increase their prize up to 10-fold, at no extra cost.
Winners of the grand prize have two options:
• Receive an annuity payment spread over 30 annual instalments that grow 5% each year.
• Opt for the lump-sum cash option, which is significantly smaller but paid up front.
Every Mega Millions prize combination:
- 5 white balls + Mega Ball: Jackpot
- 5 white balls: $2 million-$10 million
- 4 white balls + Mega Ball: $20,000-$100,000
- 4 white balls: $1,000-$5,000
- 3 white balls + Mega Ball: $400-$2,000
- 3 white balls: $20-$100
- 2 white balls + Mega Ball: $20-$100
- 1 white balls + Mega Ball: $14-$70
- Mega Ball: $10-$50
When was the last Mega Millions jackpot win?
It is now 14 drawings since the Mega Millions jackpot was last won: On March 17, a single ticket bought in Ohio landed a $60 million prize (with a $27.1 million cash option).
What are your chances of winning the Mega Millions jackpot?
Per Mega Millions organizers, a single ticket has a one in 290,472,336 chance of claiming the jackpot.
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