The drawing for the record-breaking $1.6 billion Mega Millions jackpot is Tuesday, October 23, at 11 p.m. ET. Don’t wait until the last
minute, though: Depending on where you are playing the lottery, the
deadline to buy Mega Millions tickets arrives 15 minutes to more than an
hour before the drawing.
If your ticket has all six Mega Millions winning numbers and it’s the only winner, the $1.6 billion jackpot would be yours — though it
wouldn’t be quite so large, what with the lump sum payout coming to $904
million, before taxes are taken out.
Naturally, with the enormous $1.6 billion jackpot on the line this week, you may be wondering: How do you buy Mega Millions tickets? And,
for those of us who spend our days in front of a screen, or for people
who simply want to avoid long lines at stores selling Mega Millions
tickets, another question: Is it possible to buy Mega Millions lottery
tickets online? Here are the answers.
When you buy a subscription lottery online, it works similarly to individual Mega Millions ticket sales, though there are minimum deposits
and time commitments required with subscriptions. In Virginia, for
example, the minimum Mega Millions subscription is two weeks and a $20
deposit.
Not everyone can buy Mega Millions lottery tickets online. For one thing, you must be a resident of one of the states where online lottery
tickets are sold, and you must physically be located within that state’s
borders at the time you are buying Mega Millions tickets online. In
other words, online Mega Millions tickets are not available across state
borders.
Also, you must register with your state lottery before you can buy Mega Millions tickets (or any lottery tickets) online. To open an
account, you must enter a valid email address, physical address, date of
birth, and other personal information, plus a form of payment.
