USAOver the years, there have been some massive slot machine wins. If you’re one of our curious readers who has wondered how often people have won a jackpot playing slots, this article is for you.
While this information is by no means crucial for those who love playing slots, it is certainly exciting to see what your potential winnings could be when you’re out gambling.
So, let’s get to it.
| Name | Winning amount | Jackpot | Casino |
| Ethan Miller | $39.7 million | Megabucks | Excalibur Casino, Las Vegas |
| Cynthia Jay Brennan | $34.9 Million | Megabucks | Desert Inn, Las Vegas |
| Anonymous (a retired 67-year-old flight attendant) | $27.6 Million | Megabucks | Palace Station Casino, Las Vegas |
| Anonymous (a Finnish poker player) | $27.5 Million | Mega Fortune slot, by NetEnt | PAF.com |
| Johanna Heundl | $22.6 million | Megabucks | Bally’s, Las Vegas |
| Anonymous(a business consultant) | $21.3 Million | Megabucks | Caesars Palace, Las Vegas |
| Elmer Sherwin | $21.1 Million | Megabucks | Cannery Casino & Hotel, Las Vegas |
| Jon Heywood | $20.8 Million | Mega Moolah | Betway |
| Anonymous | $17.3 Million | Megabucks | M Resort, Henderson |
| Anonymous | $14.3 Million | Megabucks | Rampart Casino, Las Vegas: |
What are the biggest Slot Jackpot Wins of all time?
First, it’s important to understand what we mean when we say biggest slot win of all time. We are specifically referring to the biggest wins in terms of cash. We’re not focusing on slots related to other types of winnings, such as a crypto jackpot.
We’re also ordering our wins by date, not by amount won so that you can see how often people were taking home a massive prize jackpot.
Top 10 Biggest Slot Machine Wins - Descending order
2003 - Excalibur Casino, Las Vegas: $39.7 Million
Coming in at first place on our list is the biggest jackpot win of all time. Ethan Miller, a software engineer, hit 1 in 16,700,000 odds when he won $39.7 million at the Excalibur Casino in Las Vegas. Can you guess which big jackpot he won? That’s right, a Megabucks jackpot.
He supposedly only spent around $100 on the machines before walking away with the biggest casino jackpot in world history. Not a bad turnaround at all.
2000 - Desert Inn, Las Vegas: $34.9 Million
Taking the second position in our list of massive wins is a cocktail waitress by the name of Cynthia Jay Brennan. During a visit to the Desert Inn in Las Vegas, Cynthia surprised everyone with a huge jackpot win of $34.9 million.
This win comes in at second place in terms of biggest overall wins, but we’ll get to the biggest win in a bit.
1998 - Palace Station Casino, Las Vegas: $27.6 Million
Third on the list, we have a retired 67-year-old flight attendant with a huge prize of $27.6 million during a trip to Palace Station Casino in Las Vegas. The slot machine in question was a Megabucks slot machine – which will come up a few times in this list.
Supposedly she only planned on spending about $100 during her trip but overshot that target by about $200 more. While we would never encourage breaking your budgetary rules, it certainly worked out for this 67-year-old who walked away with the biggest paycheck of her life.
2013 - PAF.com, Online: $27.5 Million (€17.8 million)
The fourth win on the list that wasn’t at a physical casino went into the hands of a forty-year-old Finnish poker player. While he seemed a veteran of casino games, we don’t think he expected to end his night with a whopping $27.5 million win playing the Mega Fortune slot machine game by NetEnt online.
Supposedly the player only spent around 25 cents before hitting it beyond big.
2002 - Bally’s, Las Vegas: $22.6 Million
Talk about blessings that come as you grow older, Johanna Heundl slammed a huge win with a Megabucks slot while visiting Bally’s in Las Vegas. Her win surmounted to a whopping $22.6 million, which might not be the biggest win on the list, but it’s certainly enough to start ticking everything off your bucket list.
At the time of her win, Johanna Heundl was 74 years old and had only spent $170 on the Megabucks slots that changed her life forever.
1999 - Caesars Palace, Las Vegas: $21.3 Million
Up next is another giant win breaking the $20 million mark. During a trip to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas – arguably one of the most famous casinos in the world – a 49-year-old business consultant from Illinois received jackpot alarm bells with a $21.3 million win playing on Megabucks slots.
Whether the player was a regular visitor finally receiving their massive payday, or simply a visitor popping in to see the sites, there’s no denying it must have been one of the best days of their life.
2005 - Cannery Casino & Hotel, Las Vegas: $21.1 Million
Talk about immense luck regarding a grand prize, next up is a WWII veteran named Elmer Sherwin. Not only did he win more than $20 million, but it wasn’t the first time he walked away with life-changing money from a famous Megabucks slot machine.
The first time he had a huge win was at the Mirage Hotel & Casino where he bagged $4.6 million. Years later, in 2005, he went to the Cannery Casino & Hotel in Las Vegas and walked out with $21.1 million. Which game did he play? The same Megabucks slot game both times.
2013 - Betway, Online: $20.8 Million (£13.2 Million)
Jon Heywood
Up next, and the second to last lucky winner on our list was a British soldier, Jon Heywood. While playing the Mega Moolah progressive slot online at Betway, Jon managed a $20.8 million win after having spent 25p.
His winnings were in pounds, but at the time, it was worth $20.8 million, which certainly isn’t bad for a night of online games of chance.
2012 - M Resort, Henderson: $17.3 Million
If you’re wondering whether you can get something for nothing, the answer is most certainly yes. In 2012, a woman – who preferred to remain anonymous – walked out with $17.3 million after using free credit to play.
The win happened at the M Resort Spa Casino in Henderson and was on a Megabucks slot machine.
2014, Rampart Casino, Las Vegas: $14.3 Million
Last on our list and the latest massive jackpot winner comes from another anonymous winner while they were visiting Rampart Casino in Las Vegas. We don’t think the name of the slot machine in question will surprise you because yes, it’s Megabucks once again.
While their big win doesn’t even come in at half the amount of some of the others on this list, it’s still life-changing money to walk away with at the end of a night out. As we said, the winner chose to remain anonymous, but they supposedly spent no more than $20 before hitting it big.
Takeaway on The Biggest Slot Machine Wins
And that’s it for our largest slot machine win list of all time dating all the way back to 1998. As you can see, most of the jackpots and biggest wins of all time happened on the Megabucks slot machines in Las Vegas, which is certainly something to consider.
Now you might wonder why there aren’t any big wins after 2014. Keep in mind that we only put the 10 biggest wins on our list, but there are still plenty of winners every year that walk away with massive amounts of money – though it might only be single-figure millions.
It is certainly still possible to win big when you’re out playing slot machines, and even better, you can do it from the comfort of your home nowadays.
If you’re planning on hitting the slots soon to attempt to rival the largest jackpot on this list and to win big, don’t forget to gamble responsibly. Always stick to your budget, and always seek assistance if you feel a gambling addiction forming.
While we always encourage going for the jackpot, we also want you to prioritize responsibility.