If you’ve ever bought a Powerball or Mega Millions ticket, you may have fantasized about winning the jackpot. After all, those eye-popping sums encourage more people to buy tickets and boost the odds of a big prize. But the truth is that you’re no more likely to win a jackpot now than you were 10 years ago.

The jackpot prize comes from lottery ticket sales, and most of that money goes to winners. According to Smart Asset, approximately 60% of the total prize pool is distributed to winners, with states keeping the rest for operational and advertising costs. The remaining amount of the jackpot is from the interest that accumulates over time on investments made by the lottery’s organizers with its accumulated prize money.

When a winner claims the prize, they can either choose to take a lump sum or annuitize the payout, receiving 30 payments over 29 years. Choosing the annuity option gives winners around twice as much money, but it requires more discipline to avoid squandering their winnings or making bad investment decisions.

Depending on state law, winners can also choose to sell all or a portion of their future yearly payments to investment firms. For example, in New York, the Lottery asks seven different bond brokers to quote a package of bonds that will pay each winner’s yearly payment. The Lottery then selects the best price for that package and transfers it to a prize-payment account, which the winner can access when they need the funds.