Bits & Odds

Illinois Lottery Numbers and Rules (September 2026)

Tonight's numbers, what a ticket costs in Illinois, which add-ons Illinois Lottery actually sells, and what all of that is worth — with the arithmetic shown.

Power Play is on sale in Illinois; Double Play is not, so an Illinois ticket tops out at $3 a line. At the jackpot standing after the September 16, 2026 draw, a $2 Powerball ticket bought in Illinois is worth $0.74, 37c on the dollar after Illinois's 4.95% withholding.

Multi-state games in Illinois

What is different in Illinois

Ticket price
$3 a line, all in
$2 base plus $1 each for Power Play.
Power Play
On sale — $1
Multiplies every prize below the jackpot by 2, 3, 4, 5 or 10. We make the extra dollar worth about 46c.
Double Play
Not sold here
One of the 18 jurisdictions that do not offer it; the other 30 do.
Prize structure
Fixed, as the chart
The published amounts are what you are paid — Illinois does not adjust them for sales.
State withholding
4.95%
Held back before the cheque is written, on top of 24% federal. What you finally owe is settled at filing.
Minimum age
18
Illinois Lottery's own rule. Five jurisdictions set it higher.

Rules read from powerball.com and Illinois Lottery on 2026-09-22. Withholding rates and the calculator.

Illinois Lottery's own games

Illinois Lottery runs draw games of its own, and their results are not in our database yet — we publish a game only once two independent official sources agree on every draw in its history, and we have not built that for Illinois. Rather than republish a feed we have not checked, the page says so. Illinois Lottery publishes its own results here.

What is on this page instead is the part nobody else computes: what the multi-state games are worth under Illinois's rules, which is not what they are worth under anyone else's.

Illinois lottery tools

Illinois Mega Millions rules & valueIllinois Powerball rules & value Mega Millions hot & coldPowerball hot & cold Check Mega Millions numbersCheck Powerball numbers Lottery tax calculator

Illinois lottery questions

What lottery games can you play in Illinois?
Mega Millions and Powerball, plus Illinois Lottery's own draw games and scratch tickets. We publish the multi-state analysis and the Illinois rules; Illinois Lottery's own draw games are not in our database yet.
Does Illinois sell Power Play and Double Play?
Power Play, yes — $1 a play. Double Play, no: 30 of the 48 lotteries sell it and Illinois is not one of them, so a Illinois line tops out at $3.
How much tax does Illinois withhold from lottery winnings?
4.95%, held back before the cheque is written and on top of 24% federal withholding. Withholding is not the final bill. The calculator works out what you would actually keep.
Which Illinois lottery game has the best odds?
Mega Millions, at 1 in 23.07 of winning something — though the prizes are correspondingly smaller, and winning often is not the same as winning much.
Where do these Illinois numbers come from?
The multi-state games are cross-checked against several official sources before we publish them. Every source is listed here. The Illinois rules on this page were read from powerball.com and Illinois Lottery on 2026-09-22.

About the Illinois Lottery

Illinois Lottery sells Powerball and Mega Millions alongside its own games. You must be 18 to buy a ticket, and a winning ticket has to be claimed in the jurisdiction where it was sold. illinoislottery.com

Every jurisdiction is listed on the lottery hub — including Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah, which run no lottery at all.