NEW JERSEY — Nearly 900 New Jersey Lottery players won prizes of at least $10,000 in 2025, including more than 60 winners who collected $1 million or more, according to year-end figures released by the Lottery.
State lottery officials said while large payouts are not uncommon, each year brings new personal stories behind the prizes. In 2025, the Lottery said it focused not only on the dollar amounts and locations of winning tickets, but also on the experiences of players whose lives were changed by their wins.
Every one of New Jersey’s 21 counties recorded at least eight winners of $10,000 or more during the year. Bergen County led the state with 118 winners, followed by Middlesex with 98, Monmouth with 90, Essex with 78 and Ocean with 70. In South Jersey, Camden County had the most winners with 41, ahead of Burlington with 32 and Cumberland with 18.
Statewide, the Lottery reported there was roughly one winner of at least $10,000 for every 10,000 residents. By that measure, Warren County had the highest concentration of winners, with about one winner for every 6,800 residents, based on population estimates.
Lottery officials said the numbers alone do not capture the full picture. Several winning stories from 2025 underscored what the Lottery calls the unpredictable nature of the games.
In April, a Warren County player visited a Phillipsburg convenience store intending to buy a Scratch-Off ticket but instead noticed a $100 bill left on the counter. “There’s a person at the ATM and two people waiting in line,” the player recalled. “I said ‘Did somebody leave this here?’” Despite being urged to keep the money, the player asked the clerk to place it in lost and found. “Everybody’s saying, ‘just keep it.’ I feel that if you take something that’s not yours, you will never get your own. Everybody looked at me like I was nuts.” Afterward, the player bought three Power 20X tickets, one of which carried a $1 million prize. “I started crying and shaking. I just truly believe it was a test from God. If I had taken the money I would have left the store without the tickets.”
In May, a Mercer County couple discovered a $1 million Mega Millions ticket months after buying it on the last day of 2024. “I was in the house and I just opened the drawer and I saw the tickets. I decided to get them checked,” one of the players said. “I scanned a ticket that said ‘winner.’” After checking the numbers online, the player said, “I couldn’t believe it! $1 million?!?”
Other notable stories included an Essex County player who won $600,000 on a Scratch-Off ticket after pulling into a convenience store to avoid a traffic dispute, and an Ocean County couple who won a $3 million Scratch-Off prize just six months after winning $1 million on another game.
In December, a $590,000 Quick Draw prize in Gloucester County was nearly lost after the ticket was thrown away. According to a Patch news report cited by the Lottery, the bar owner where the ticket was purchased reviewed security footage, traced the purchase time and recovered the ticket from a dumpster before returning it to the player.
Several major jackpots were also won in 2025. A Hudson County player claimed a $90 million Mega Millions jackpot in December, the 10th Mega Millions or Powerball jackpot won in New Jersey in the past eight years. Four Pick-6 jackpots were also claimed during the year, including a $32 million prize in Ocean County and a $22 million prize in Hudson County.
The Jersey Cash 5 game recorded 65 jackpots in 2025, with 13 players winning at least $1 million. Scratch-Off games continued to be among the Lottery’s top sellers, highlighted by a $5 million Fortune Scratch-Off prize won in Union County.
Lottery officials noted that players did not need to hit a jackpot to win big. Nearly 200 Powerball players won prizes of at least $50,000 in 2025, while 61 Mega Millions players won $10,000 or more. Sixteen players across the two games won prizes of at least $1 million, excluding jackpots.
Officials also pointed to April rule changes in Mega Millions that introduced free multipliers, boosting some prizes into the multimillion-dollar range.
A full list of 2025 winners and county-by-county data is available through the New Jersey Lottery.
