(NEXSTAR) – For just the fourth time in Powerball history, the jackpot has reached an estimated value of $1.7 billion, setting up what could be a magical Christmas for a lucky winner (or winners).
Over 3 million winning tickets were sold for Monday’s drawing, yet none matched all six numbers drawn to win the grand prize, which was worth about $1.6 billion.
The Powerball jackpot now sits at an estimated $1.7 billion, with a cash value of $781.3 million, ahead of the Christmas Eve drawing, set for 10:59 p.m. ET. This is the fourth-largest lottery draw game jackpot ever available in the U.S.:
- $2.04 billion: Nov. 7, 2022; California (Powerball)
- $1.787 billion: Sept. 6, 2025; Missouri, Texas (Powerball)
- $1.765 billion: Oct. 11, 2023; California (Powerball)
- Est. $1.7 billion: Current (Powerball)
- $1.602 billion: Aug. 8, 2023; Florida (Mega Millions)
- $1.586 billion: Jan. 13, 2016; California, Florida, Tennessee (Powerball)
- $1.537 billion: Oct. 23, 2018; South Carolina (Mega Millions)
- $1.348 billion: Jan. 13, 2023; Maine (Mega Millions)
- $1.337 billion: July 29, 2022; Illinois (Mega Millions)
- $1.326 billion: April 6, 2024; Oregon (Powerball)
It’s been growing since the second-largest jackpot, a $1.787 billion pot split by two tickets in September, was won.
Should a ticket you purchased, whether for yourself or as a Christmas gift, match the numbers drawn Wednesday night, experts say the back should immediately be signed to ensure the winnings go to the rightful winner. The victory should be kept a secret for as long as possible, too, and a team of experts – a financial advisor, a tax advisor, and a lawyer is recommended – should be consulted.
They can also help you decide which payout – 30 annuitized payments or the cash lump sum – is better for you.
Regardless of which option you select, you’ll be paying taxes on it: 24% of your jackpot winning would be owed to the IRS, plus up to 37% in a federal marginal tax rate, according to USA Mega.
At best, a winner in Wednesday’s drawing will walk away with about $492.26 million in cash or $1.07 billion after the life of the annuitized payments, USA Mega’s jackpot analysis found. (While annuitized prizes always total more than the one-time cash payout, winners hardly opt for it. The last time a Powerball jackpot winner opted for the annuity payments was in March 2023.)
The interactive map shows what the total cash or annuitized payout could be in your state after local (a handful of states do not have a lottery tax) and federal taxes, per USA Mega’s analysis:
The average cash payout would be about $454 million, while the average sum of the annuitized payments would be about $989.1 million.
With just the cash prize, you could not afford to buy enough tickets to ensure you win the next Powerball jackpot.
You could, however, buy about 68.9 million Big Macs at McDonald’s. If you still need some Christmas presents, you could purchase about 302,600 unopened Furbys available on eBay. If you had a time machine, you could go back and buy all of the last-ever pennies minted in the U.S. that were sold at auction earlier this month and still have money left over (probably to cover the time machine).
You could purchase the New York Liberty, which was recently ranked as the most valuable women’s sports team in the world at $400 million. Or, you could purchase more than 9 million authentic WNBA Wilson basketballs.
While we’re talking about sports, $454 million is bigger than the 10-year contract Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes signed in 2020 by about $4 million. A cumulative $454 million prize would also give you the chance to buy some of the most valuable baseball cards in history, should they ever return to market.
First, however, you must overcome the odds – 1 in 292.2 million – and win the Powerball jackpot.
You have a roughly 1 in 24 chance of winning any prize while playing Powerball. Not including the grand prize, there are eight ways to win.
Tickets are $2 each and are sold in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Powerball drawings are held every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday at 10:59 p.m. ET.