Powerball, Mega Millions: These are the luckiest states for jackpot winners

If you haven’t come close to winning either the Powerball or Mega Millions jackpot, maybe it’s time to change the location of where you buy your tickets.

Of course, buying a ticket in another state won’t guarantee you luck, either.

We tracked down where the luckiest states are for Powerball and Mega Millions, the two most popular national lottery games.

Six states – Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Mississippi, Nevada and Utah – do not have state lotteries, and therefore do not sell Powerball or Mega Millions tickets. 

But the other 44 states, plus Washington, D.C., the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, do play Powerball. So, where does your state rank?

Powerball

With 39 winners, Indiana represents over 10% of all jackpot winners in this game. 

Missouri is second with 31 winners, followed by Minnesota at 22.

Florida has had 12 big winners, including a Melbourne Beach couple, Maureen Smith and David Kaltschmidt, who shared the biggest jackpot of any kind in U.S. history, dividing the $1.58 billion prize on Jan. 13, 2016, with winners from California and Tennessee. 

Just four states – Maine, North Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming – plus the U.S. Virgin Islands – have yet to sell a ticket with six matching numbers. 

Amazingly, five Powerball tickets have gone unclaimed, including a ticket worth $16 million purchased at a suburban Tampa convenience store in 2013.

Recent winner:$150 million Powerball ticket sold in California

State-by-state Powerball jackpot winners

• Indiana: 39
• Missouri: 31
• Minnesota: 22
• Kentucky: 18
• Pennsylvania: 18
• Louisiana: 17
• Wisconsin: 17
• Arizona: 13
• Florida: 12
• Kansas: 11
• New Hampshire: 11
• Washington, D.C.: 11
• New York: 11
• Nebraska: 10
• Delaware: 10
• Iowa: 9
• California: 9
• New Jersey: 8
• West Virginia: 8
• Connecticut: 8
• Rhode Island: 8
• Tennessee: 7
• South Carolina: 6
• North Carolina: 6
• Georgia: 6
• Massachusetts: 6
• New Mexico: 5
• Oregon: 5
• Idaho: 5
• Oklahoma: 4
• Montana: 4
• Michigan: 4
• Ohio: 3
• Colorado: 3
• South Dakota: 3
• Puerto Rico: 2
• Texas: 2
• Illinois: 2
• Maryland: 2
• Virginia: 1
• Arkansas: 1
• Washington: 1
• Maine: 0
• North Dakota: 0
• Vermont: 0
• Wyoming: 0
• U.S. Virgin Islands: 0

Mega Millions

When it comes to the Mega Millions, only 25 states have claimed big jackpot winners, with New York’s 37 mega-millionaires leading the way.  

California is second with 31 and Ohio recently joined New Jersey in a third-place tie with 20. The latest Ohio winner claimed a $375 million jackpot on Dec. 17.

Sadly, three winning Mega Millions jackpot tickets – all bought in New York, in 2002, 2003 and 2006 – went unclaimed. 

Recent winner:$372 million Mega Millions winning ticket sold in Ohio

State-by-state Mega Millions jackpot winners

• New York: 37
• California: 31
• New Jersey: 20
• Ohio: 20
• Georgia: 17
• Michigan: 17
• Texas: 13
• Illinois: 11
• Maryland: 11
• Virginia: 9
• Washington: 5
• Massachusetts: 3
• North Carolina: 2
• Pennsylvania: 2
• Missouri: 2
• Florida: 2
• Indiana: 2
• Arkansas: 1
• Kansas: 1
• South Carolina: 1
• Idaho: 1
• Illinois: 1
• Tennessee: 1
• New Hampshire: 1
• Rhode Island: 1