Powerball US 2025

Do you want to be rich for life with just a $2 ticket? Ticket of gigantic opportunity, for just two dollars! The Powerball jackpot has reached a record of $1.58 Billion. Tickets are $2 per play and $3 per power play. The Powerball is a lottery played across 47 US states and jurisdictions each Wednesday and Saturday. Powerball is one of the biggest lottery games in the United States and regularly boasts eight, nine or even ten-figure jackpots. With tickets being $2 per play, this lottery has given its players immense unimaginable wealth from lucky jackpot stories. Powerball was born from Lotto America. Lotto America was phased out in 1992 and Powerball was born. The first drawing took place on Saturday April 22nd 1992, with a two-drum draw machine and new ball sets being introduced. Read on to discover more about how this multi-state game called Powerball is one of the most popular and exciting lotteries in the world

Important Facts of Powerball

• Powerball Jackpot amount is uncapped
• It’s played in 47 states
•  Jackpot could go as high as 7 or 8 figures
• The draw is held twice a week

 

Powerball: How to play and Win

Powerball game is easy and straight forward to play, Choose 5 out of 69 numbers for the white balls; then choose 1 out of 26 numbers for the Powerball. Use a play slip to choose your own numbers or request an "easy pick" from the counter clerk and the lotto terminal will choose the numbers for you. Play more than one drawing by marking the "multi-draw" box on the play slip for up to 10 consecutive drawings.

Below are simple step by step outline of how you can play Powerball Lottery:

• Pick up a Powerball play slip at your favorite Lottery Retailer near you at $2 per play. Purchase your tickets by the cut-off time in your state or online. This ranges from 6:45 pm PST in Washington to 10 pm EST in New York and Florida.
• Choose your numbers on a play slip or let the lottery terminal randomly pick your numbers.
• Choose five main numbers between 1 and 69. Also select a Powerball number between 1 and 26.
• Choose whether to add Power Play, offering the chance to multiply non-jackpot prizes.
• Play the same set of numbers in multiple drawings! Select the number of consecutive drawings you want to play in the Multi-Draw or Advance Play section of your play slip or tell the retailer how many drawings you wish to play.
• Hand your marked play slip to the store clerk and you will receive a ticket with your Powerball numbers on it.
• Watch the Powerball drawing on your local television station or check lottery sites the following day to see if got the lucky winning  Powerball winning number.

Powerball Drawing Days/Time

Powerball draws consists of two draws per week which are conducted on Wednesday and Saturday bearing a similarity to Lotto America. Drawings are conducted by the Multi-State Lottery Association.

Powerball Participating States

The following 47 states participate in Powerball Lotteries;

Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming and the Virgin Islands.

Winning Options for Powerball

The jackpot starts at $40 million and grows until it's won, with the prize fund increasing after each draw without a top prize winner. There is no upper limit set for the Powerball jackpot.

For a top prize to be won, a Powerball lottery player must match all five main numbers and the Powerball number. The game also offers an additional feature called the Power Play option

Power Play Option

Power Play is an option you can add to your ticket that multiplies the value of the non-jackpot prizes you win. A Power Play number is drawn ahead of the main numbers and everyone who choses Power Play and who wins a non-jackpot prize has it multiplied by that figure. The only exception is the Match 5 prize of $1 million, which becomes $2 million for Power Play ticket holders, no matter which number is drawn.

How to Add Power Play to your Ticket

You add Power Play when you buy a Powerball ticket by checking the box on your playslip and paying an additional $1 per line. You cannot play it separately and you cannot choose it later. Power Play Multipliers

The Power Play can provide 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x or 10x the value of non-jackpot prizes, although the 10x multiplier is only available when the jackpot is worth less than $150 million.

Below is a breakdown of the Powerball cash  options available to Powerball players.

Power Play Winning Options

For an additional $1 per play, players can multiply any non-jackpot prize by matching the Power Play Number. Prizes can increase by 2x, 3x, 4x or even 5x their original value.

Below is a table that details the total value of a prize when the All Star Bonus Number is matched:

Powerball Winning Odds

For each Powerball prize, there are varying odds of matching the winning draw. The Powerball odds are outlined in the table below. Obviously, the odd of winning the ultimate Jackpot which is matching correctly the five jackpot numbers with the Powerball will be the highest.

 Powerball Payout

Claim period varies from state to state from 90 to 365 days. Look on your ticket for the claiming period for the respective state.

Jackpot winners can receive their prize as either lump cash or annuity payment. To claim lump cash, the winner has to claim their prize within 60 days of results otherwise they will have to take their prize as an annuity. A player has 60 days from the date they claim their prize to choose the "cash" option or the "annuity" option. If the player selects the "cash" option, the prize will be a single cash payment equal to the amount available to the lottery for the jackpot prize pool. The "cash" prize is estimated to be approximately one-half of the estimated jackpots, depending on current interest rates. If the player chooses an annuity, it will be paid over 29 years, and the annual payment will be increased by a rate as determined by lottery officials.

The steps needed to claim your cash prize are outlined below

• Sign the ticket straightaway and complete the information on the back of the ticket.
• Simply present your winning ticket to your favorite lottery retailer or mail the signed/completed ticket to the lottery office of the State.
• A player may also download and print a Prize Claim Form from State Lottery website or pick up a form from a lottery retailer, complete and sign the form, and send it along with the signed winning ticket to the Lottery Office of their respective  State
• Include a copy of your ID along with the Prize Claim Form and winning ticket.
• Mailing of tickets is at owner risk and so registered mail is highly recommended.

Tax on Powerball Payout

US Federal Law necessitates the Lottery to report winnings of $600 or more to the IRS and withhold 25 percent of any claim of more than $5,000. All the States Law has their deductions percentage of winnings. But with winnings of $500, you just might be tax free. All prizes over $599 are subject to taxes and other offsets required by law. Do well to know about your home state tax applicable laws. A save route is to contact the IRS to get concrete information regarding tax winnings.

Powerball Ticket Cost

The cost of a Powerball ticket is $2 per line with additional $1 for the Power Play option. The price is the same in all 47 states.

Powerball Recent Ultimate Prize Winners Stories

Success stories of Powerball Jackpot Winners abound as there have been lucky winners that clinch the coveted jackpot. Below are some interesting success stories

LANSING, Mich. - A Shelby Township woman won a whopping $1 million Powerball prize from the Michigan Lottery. She recalls “I stopped at the corner gas station Thursday and as I was checking out, the clerk said: 'The Mega Millions and Powerball jackpots are looking pretty good,'" said Dawn Zendt, 60. "So, I bought 10 tickets for each drawing. As I turned to leave the clerk reminded me to grab my tickets because I had set them on the counter."

Zendt matched the five white balls drawn - 03-06-11-14-66 - in Saturday's drawing to win a $1 million prize. She bought the winning ticket at the Marathon gas station, located at 51969 Van Dyke Avenue in Shelby Township

RALEIGH – A 66-year-old grandfather from Cumberland County has come forward to claim his $344.6 million Powerball prize, making him the largest jackpot winner in state history.

For over two years, Charles W. Jackson Jr. has played Powerball and Mega Millions with the same numbers twice a week in hopes of winning it big.

Jackson’s lucky ticket matched all six numbers in Saturday’s drawing, winning a $344.6 million prize. It’s the largest jackpot in state history.

Available Powerball Operator/States

Powerball is available in 47 states including Puerto Rico. Purchasing Powerball tickets over the internet is not advisable or possible except In some selected states, kindly inquire if this is possible in your respective state. Prizes might not be paid if a ticket was purchased online except in some selected states. Check our sports betting comparison page to get concrete information on licensed lottery operators for Powerball lotteries.

So quickly go to the nearest licensed Lottery retailer near you and purchase your tickets to be part of the Powerball lottery jackpot stories.

 

Powerball FAQs

Conclusion: Ball for life with Powerball

In this article, we have gone through Powerball in details, how you can purchase your tickets, prizes including the jackpot prize and definitely claim that dream cash. The draws are done twice weekly. So quickly get down to the nearest licensed lottery office to get that ticket that would make you win a Powerball Jackpot today!