Office lottery pool
The Mega Millions jackpot is estimated at $529 million
For the drawing on Tue, Nov 10, 2026. Here is how to run an office pool for it in 10 minutes, with every share, ticket and payment on one record everyone can read.
Current jackpot estimates
Estimated jackpot for Mon, Nov 9, 2026
$30,000,000
Cash value $12,900,000
The lottery's own estimate, fetched Sun Nov 8, 12:20 AM EST from www.powerball.com. Estimates change until sales close.
Estimated jackpot for Tue, Nov 10, 2026
$529,000,000
Cash value $224,200,000
The lottery's own estimate, fetched Fri Nov 6, 11:20 PM EST from www.megamillions.com. Estimates change until sales close.
Start your office pool in 10 minutes
Create the pool
Pick the game, your state, the share price and the drawing. The pool agreement is written for you in plain words.
Invite with a link or QR code
Post the invite link in the office chat, or print the pool kit with its QR code for the break room. Each person picks their shares and accepts the agreement.
Collect with payment links
Members pay you by cash or their usual payment app from the pool page and tap "I paid"; you confirm it. Money never passes through us.
Record the tickets with your camera
Buy the official tickets at a licensed retailer, then photograph each one. The numbers are read on your phone and every member sees every ticket before the drawing.
Start a poolSee an example first
Put it in writing
Most office pool arguments are about who was in and who paid. The pool agreement settles both before the drawing: shares, paying in, the lock, who claims a big prize and for whom. Print it with blanks for the pool name, members, game, state and signatures.
Download the agreement (PDF, 8 KB)Read it with the reason for each part
What would a win mean for each person?
The split calculator divides a prize by shares to the cent, with federal and state withholding. It starts from the current estimate.
See a finished pool first
The example pool is an office pool from start to finish: members, shares, the lock, the tickets, the split and every payment, on the real screens. Made-up people and money.
Office pool questions
Who claims the prize if our office pool wins?
It depends on your state's lottery. Some pay one person per ticket; others publish a group claim process, with forms for each member or a separate payment to each. The pool agreement names the member who claims (usually the Pool Admin who bought the ticket) and the members they claim for, and the locked record shows every share, so nobody has to remember who was in. Your state's page says how its lottery pays a group, with the official source.
How are taxes split in an office lottery pool?
Where one person claims for the group, that person gives the lottery IRS Form 5754 with each member's name, taxpayer ID and share, and the lottery reports each member's part to them separately, so each person pays tax only on their own share. Without it, the claimant can be taxed on the whole prize. A lottery that pays each member separately collects the same details on its own forms.
What if someone does not pay before the drawing?
Only confirmed payments count. When the pool locks before the drawing, a share nobody confirmed is either left out of that drawing or covered by the Pool Admin, whichever your agreement says. The record shows which, before the numbers are drawn.
Is an office lottery pool legal in my state?
Pools can be started on ShareTheWinning in every state that runs a lottery. Some states set limits, such as a minimum age of 21 or caps on group purchases. Your state's page shows what we found in its law and the lottery's own guidance, with sources. Facts, not legal advice.
Does ShareTheWinning buy the tickets or hold the money?
No. The Pool Admin buys the official tickets at a licensed retailer, and members pay each other by cash or a payment app. We keep the record: who is in, who paid, every ticket and every share.
Do we need a written agreement?
It is the cheapest insurance an office pool has. Ours is free, in plain words, with blanks for the pool name, the members, the game, the state and signatures. Every pool on ShareTheWinning starts from it.
Play for fun, with money you can spare. A pool shares the cost and the record of a ticket among friends. Responsible play.
Start your office pool
Free. No invite needed. Members pay each other; we never sell tickets or hold money.
