(NEXSTAR) — You’re likely familiar with Powerball and Mega Millions, the nearly nationwide lottery draw games that have produced 13 jackpots of $1 billion or more since 2016.
A new multistate lottery game expected to launch next year aims to turn winners into millionaires — for life.
Conveniently, that’s exactly what the game is called: Millionaire for Life.
The game will be facilitated by the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL), which also oversees Powerball and Lotto America, among other games. While MUSL couldn’t comment on the new game, several state lotteries have shared details about it in meetings this year.
The new game, according to the Montana Lottery, is a combination of two lottery games that already exist: Cash4Life and Lucky for Life. Both games offer the chance at $1,000 a day for life; winners of the latter can opt for $25,000 a year for life instead.
Millionaire for Life is expected to replace both games where they’re played.
The Millionaire for Life game would look similar to Mega Millions, Powerball, and other lottery draw games you’ve likely encountered. There would be two number pools, one with 58 numbers and the other with five.
To win the grand prize — “an annuity prize of $1,000,000 a year for life” — you would need to match the five numbers drawn from the first pool and one from the other. Mega Millions and Powerball are played the same, but with different matrices: 70 white balls and 24 https://www.kqzyfj.com/click-101419140-11167246 Mega Balls for Mega Millions, and 69 white balls and 26 Powerballs for Powerball.
Matching five numbers drawn from the first pool of Millionaire for Life numbers would still pay handsomely, at $100,000 a year for life, according to a document provided by the Montana Lottery. There would be seven other prize payouts: $7,500, $500, $250, $50, $25, and two tiers of $8.
Your odds of winning any prize, according to the details shared by the Montana Lottery, would be about 1 in 8.5. Your odds at the top prize would be about 1 in 22,910,580, better than the 1 in 292.2 million or 1 in 290.47 million odds for the grand prizes in Powerball and Mega Millions, respectively.
The game description notes that the grand prize “shall be determined on a pari-mutuel basis,” meaning multiple winners would end up splitting the annuitized $1 million a year prize. That means, if you and 19 other players match all six numbers drawn, you would receive just $50,000 a year for life.
There will also be a cash option for winners, the document explains. Unlike Powerball and Mega Millions, a cash option will be available for winners of the second-tier prize as well. And unlike the grand prize, winners who match the five numbers drawn from the main number pool would receive their entire prize, regardless of how many other winners there are. If there are more than 20 winners, however, there will be no annuitized payment – instead, each winner will receive one lump sum cash payment.
Meeting minutes from the Connecticut Lottery’s Legislative and Games Committee show the drawings would be held daily at 10:15 p.m. CT. Minutes from the South Dakota Lottery Commission’s September meeting list Feb. 22, 2026, as the first drawing for Millionaire for Life.
Tickets would sell for $5 per play, the same price point that Mega Millions leaped to after a game overhaul earlier this year. That’s up from the $2 per play with Cash4Life and Lucky for Life.
During a September meeting of the Montana Lottery Commission, Marketing and Sales Director Anne Charpentier said the state had seen a decrease in Mega Millions players after the cost to play rose to $5, and because there was no large jackpot available. With Millionaire for Life set to sell at the same price point, Charpentier said there are “concerns about the performance” of the game and an “opportunity to build the game portfolio.”
Other states have indicated that they intend to offer Millionaire for Life next year.
Lottery officials in Montana, Connecticut, and South Dakota have already voted in favor of offering the game when it launches. Colorado and North Dakota have proposed rule changes to end the sale of Lucky for Life and start Millionaire for Life in February 2026. Ohio has done just that, meeting minutes show.
Documents from multiple state lotteries show the final drawing for Lucky for Life is set for Feb. 21, 2026.
Additional details about the new Millionaire for Life game are expected early next year.
