How much does a Powerball ticket cost? $2 — but almost nobody pays exactly $2 anymore. Between add-ons, multi-draw options, and Mega Millions' move to $5, the real answer to "how much is a lottery ticket" is a menu. Here's the full 2026 price list for every major US lottery game, what each add-on actually buys, and how the per-ticket math compares across games.
Powerball: $2 base, up to $4 loaded
- Base play: $2 — five numbers plus the Powerball.
- + $1 Power Play — multiplies non-jackpot prizes 2×–10×; the full multiplier rules decide whether it's your dollar.
- + $1 Double Play (select states) — enters your numbers in a second $10M-top-prize drawing; usually the better-value add-on.
- Fully loaded: $4 per play where both add-ons are sold.
Mega Millions: $5, multiplier included
Since the April 2025 overhaul, Mega Millions costs $5 per play — the old $1 Megaplier add-on is gone because a 2×–10× multiplier is built into every ticket, and the minimum prize is $10. Whether the 150% price hike bought players anything is the subject of our one-year-later review; how it stacks against Powerball per dollar is in Powerball vs Mega Millions.
The rest of the menu
- Lucky for Life / Cash4Life: $2 — the nightly "$1,000 a day for life" games.
- Lotto America: $1 (+$1 All Star Bonus multiplier) — the budget multi-state jackpot game.
- State lotto games: mostly $1–$2 — Cash 5/Fantasy 5-style games are typically $1, the best odds-per-dollar in the lottery.
- Pick 3 / Pick 4: from $0.50 in many states, standard $1 — with the price scaling the prize (a 50¢ straight pays half the $1 prize). Bet types in our straight vs box guide.
- Keno: usually $1 per draw, multipliable and playable across up to 20–30 consecutive rapid draws on one ticket — see how Keno pricing works.
- Scratch-offs: $1 to $50, where the price literally changes the game — higher price points return a larger share as prizes (60–65% at $1 vs 75–80% at $30–$50).
Multi-draw, subscriptions, and couriers
- Multi-draw tickets multiply the price, not the odds: 10 Powerball draws on one ticket = $20, same 1-in-292M per draw.
- iLottery states sell at face value online — no markup in official apps.
- Courier apps add service fees on top of face value — the comparison shows a $20 order can cost meaningfully more than $20.
- Cash is king at the counter: about half of states ban credit-card lottery sales, and where allowed your bank may treat it as a cash advance.
Price vs value: the 30-second version
Ticket price and expected value aren't the same thing. A $5 Mega Millions play isn't "worse" than a $2 Powerball play because it costs more — it's worse or better depending on odds, prize structure, and jackpot size at the moment. The stable rules: scratch-off payout percentage rises with price; small-jackpot state games return the most winners per dollar; and no price point escapes the house edge — the honest strategy guide covers what actually moves the needle.
Bottom line
Powerball $2 (up to $4 with both add-ons), Mega Millions $5 with the multiplier baked in, lifetime games $2, Lotto America $1, most state draw games $1–$2, digit games from 50¢, scratchers $1–$50. Prices are set nationally for the multi-state games and per-state for the rest — and the latest jackpots those dollars are chasing are on our results homepage right now.
Prices are set by the lotteries and can change with game rules. Play responsibly — 1-800-GAMBLER.