Mega Millions jackpot is 3rd largest ever. What to know before the next drawing

On Tuesday night, the current estimated $790 million jackpot will be up for grabs.

No one has won the Mega Millions grand prize since April 15, when a ticket in Tennessee won $20 million. The current $790 million jackpot is among the top three largest Mega Millions jackpots ever, according to the lottery's records.

The cash option is $464.4 million.

The most recent numbers from the Friday, July 22 drawing were 14, 40, 60, 64 and 66. The Mega Ball was 16, and the Megaplier was 3X.

There was a Match 5 $1 million winner in Virginia and Match 5 + Megaplier $3 million winners in Delaware, New Jersey and New York.

Whether you've played before, or if this is your first time trying your luck at the lottery, here's what you need to know ahead of the next drawing on Tuesday, July 26.

When are the Mega Millions drawings?

Mega Millions drawings are Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m. Ticket sales end at 10:45 p.m. in Kentucky and Indiana.

How to play the Mega Millions

Tickets to Mega Millions cost $2 per play.

There are nine total ways to win a prize, from the jackpot to $2.

Pick five numbers from 1 to 70 and one Mega Ball number from 1 to 25.

Choose Easy Pick or Quick Pick to have the terminal randomly pick numbers for you. You win the jackpot by matching all six winning numbers in the drawing.

What's the Megaplier?

Most states offer the Megaplier feature, which increases non-jackpot prizes by two, three, four and five times.

It costs an additional $1 per play. Before each regular Mega Millions drawing, the Megaplier is drawn. From a pool of 15 balls, five are marked with "2X," three with "4X" and one with "5X."

Where to buy Mega Millions tickets

You can play Mega Millions in 47 localities: 45 states, plus the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. To find locations, search the Mega Millions website.

In Kentucky, Ohio and Indiana, you can buy a Mega Millions ticket at gas stations, convenience stores and supermarkets until 10:45 p.m. on drawing night.

In Kentucky, residents can also purchase tickets online at www.KYLottery.com.

In Ohio, residents can use Lottery Card available in Kroger, Buehler's Fresh Foods and Giant Eagle stores. It allows Ohio consumers to enter draw games on their phones and get notified and paid electronically if they win. You can also buy tickets online at www.OhioLottery.com.

What was the largest Mega Millions jackpot ever?

In 2018, one winning ticket in South Carolina sold for a $1.537 billion grand prize, which was the world's largest lottery prize ever won on a single ticket.

In January 2021, a winning ticket was sold in Michigan for $1.05 billion.

What happens if I win Mega Millions?

Mega Millions offers two options.

You can take the annuity, in which you're paid out as one immediate payment followed by 29 annual payments. Each payment is 5% bigger than the previous.

There's also the cash option, a one-time, lump-sum payment equal to all the cash in the Mega Millions jackpot prize pool.